Coming Friday: A night of strong high school matchups

Whether because of luck, fate or divine intervention, Friday night is going to be like none other this high school football season. There are seven games in which both teams are in The Times’ top 25, a rare occurrence that makes it seem as if it’s a championship weekend in December.

Any of the matchups could easily be held at the Home Depot Center, the Coliseum or Angel Stadium. They are that good, with large crowds and excited alumni and fans expected to come out in force.

No. 1 Servite plays No. 12 Edison at Huntington Beach. No. 2 Santa Margarita plays at No. 20 Carson. No. 3 Mission Viejo plays host to No. 6 Long Beach Poly. No. 4 Ventura St. Bonaventure plays at No. 7 Westlake Village Oaks Christian. No. 13 Mission Hills Alemany plays at No. 16 West Hills Chaminade. No. 15 Bellflower St. John Bosco plays No. 22 Los Angeles Loyola at Los Angeles Valley College. No. 21 Santa Ana Mater Dei plays No. 23 San Clemente at Santa Ana Stadium.

There would be no reason to have bowl championship games if only the winners of these games could face off next week and the week after. Then there would be a real Southern California champion.

“It’s the playoff brackets right there,” Loyola Coach Mike Christensen said. “It’s cool. For the fourth week of the season, it’s good to have those matchups. Win or lose, it’s going to be a productive day, and you’re going to find out where you’re at.”

The reason so many top teams are facing off is because coaches have concluded that playing top competition is the best preparation for league play while also trying to impress the section commissioners who select the bowl representatives at the end of the season.

Whether the games help clarify the league favorites remains to be seen. The Trinity League is looking as tough as ever, with Servite, Santa Margarita and Orange Lutheran the early choices to claim the league’s three Pac-5 Division playoff spots. But don’t count out Mater Dei and St. John Bosco. And this league will go down to the wire because Servite plays Santa Margarita in the final week of the regular season.

In the Serra League, good luck trying to predict who gets three playoff spots. Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, Loyola and Encino Crespi are each 3-0, with preseason favorites Alemany and La Puente Bishop Amat at 2-1.

The Poly-Mission Viejo game will help reveal whether Poly has returned to elite status. The Jackrabbits have beaten Sacramento Grant, Carson and Narbonne to start the season. They were routed by Mission Viejo last season.

Fans who can’t attend multiple games Friday have another option. FoxSportsWest.com will stream live three of the games on its Prep Zone site: St. Bonaventure-Oaks Christian, Poly-Mission Viejo and San Clemente-Mater Dei. And FS West will carry the Chaminade-Alemany game with a delayed start of 10:30 p.m.

By then, we’ll know how many overtimes were needed to decide victory and defeat on what is shaping up as a night to savor in high school football.

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com