The Valley Oak League meets the Foothill Valley League on Friday, as rivals East Union and Sierra take their acts on the road for Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV playoff games.
In Division VI, Ripon gets reacquainted with a familiar foe in Galt, while Ripon Christian — the only area team hosting a game — faces a tradition-rich program for the first time. Ripon and Ripon Christian are part of the well-represented Trans-Valley League, which has all seven of its members in the postseason.
All games are scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. Manteca and Lathrop both have first-round byes in Divisions I and V, respectively.
No. 10 East Union (5-5) is traveling 117 miles to Grass Valley for a rematch with seventh-seeded Nevada Union (6-4) two years in the making. In 2022, Nevada Union visited the Lancers to kick off the Division IV playoffs, coming back from an early two-score deficit to win, 33-28.
Several of East Union’s current players took part in the game, but this is a new year under a new coach. Booie Daniels believes his team is rejuvenated after a much-needed bye in Week 9 and a 48-19 blowout of Mountain House in the Lancers’ regular-season finale. Prior to that was a brutal five-game stretch that included losses to Sierra and four of the top 25 ranked teams in the SJS, according to MaxPreps.
“Those games prepared us for the playoffs,” Daniels said. “We were able to learn from that and clean things up. Last week, we came out and executed. The fire was lit for the kids offensively, and defensively we only gave up one touchdown — the other two were on special teams.
“We were able to click again and get that spark back. The VOL is tough, and we got out of it healthy — not a lot of teams can say that. For us being able to make it through those games and go into the playoffs healthy with our starters ready to go, I’m very confident in our team going up to Nevada Union.”
The Miners are also battle tested, with losses to Division III No. 4 seed Christian Brothers and PVL rivals Twelve Bridges, Placer and Roseville — all top four seeds in Division IV. They placed fourth in the PVL.
Nevada Union runs a traditional Wing-T offense, which the Lancers faced against Ripon and Oakdale earlier this season.
Rhyder Eelkema (1,209 yards, 12 TDs) gets the bulk of the carries for the Miners and is among the top rushers in the SJS. Nathaniel Pritchett (577 yards, six TDs) is their change-of-pace wingback. Brandon McCallum (566 yards, eight TDs) has also been key to their run-heavy attack, but the 6-foot-3, 200-pound fullback missed NU’s last three games to injury.
Paving the way up front are massive linemen such as seniors Nate Via (6-5, 270) at tackle and Ryan Pack (6-4, 270) at center. Craig Statler is a two-way lineman who leads the defense with 58 tackles and 7.0 sacks.
“They’re very to the core (of a Wing-T) as far as how they pull their guards, how they align, how quickly get off the ball,” Daniels said. “They remind me very much of Oakdale in how they break their huddle and run their offense. They’re very sound in how they block and approach their offense, and they just grind you down. It’s going to come down to the team that makes the least amount of mistakes.”
The winner travels to second-seeded Patterson (5-5), which has a first-round bye, next Friday, Nov. 15.
Here’s a glance at the other first-round playoff games:
No. 9 Sierra (5-5) at No. 8 Yuba City (6-4): Like East Union, the Timberwolves will encounter an old-school offense from the PVL.
Yuba City, coming off a 33-20 loss to Nevada Union, uses the T-formation behind its burly offensive line. Ryan Corum and Peter Ithurburn are their hard-running ball carriers out of the backfield, and J.D. Henry is the top target for Ulysses Vaca in the passing game. Ithurburn and Henry are also the Honkers’ top defensive players at linebacker and free safety, respectively.
Yuba City has been shut out twice against Division IV top seed Twelve Bridges and No. 4 Placer. It also has a 22-12 loss to Northern Section powerhosue Pleasant Valley of Chico.
Sierra dropped its final four VOL contests to Division II No. 4 seed Manteca, D-IV No. 2 Patterson, D-III No. 1 Oakdale and D-I No. 3 Central Catholic.
Twelve Bridges will take on the winner.
DIVISION VI
No. 9 Bear River (8-2) at No. 8 Ripon Christian (4-6): The Knights have been introduced to some of the section’s top small-school programs as they’ve risen to prominence over the years, and they’ll beet Bear River for the first time on the gridiron.
The Bruins are making the trek from Grass Valley after a co-runner-up finish in the new-look Pioneer Valley League. Similar to RC, Bear River has competed in many close games. In fact, six of the nine games the Bruins have played were decided by less than seven points. They come into the postseason with a rest advantage, essentially getting a Week 10 bye with Center forfeiting their last game.
Senior running back Lincoln Williams is one of Bear River’s top playmakers. He leads the Bruins with 891 yards from scrimmage and 11 touchdowns. Williams splits carries with Elijah Hickman (655 yards, nine TDs). They’re anchored in the trenches by 6-5, 320-pound Connor Perrine.
Undefeated Bradshaw Christian awaits the victor.
No. 10 Ripon (4-6) at No. 7 Liberty Ranch (7-3): These two squared off for the first time in a non-league game last season, with Liberty Ranch escaping Stouffer Field with a 14-13 victory.
Now, it’s revitalized Ripon that is visiting after winning two of its last three against Sonora and Hilmar in TVL play.
Liberty Ranch took third in the Sierra Valley Conference. The Hawks have lost to 8-2 Linden, 8-2 Union Mine and Division VI top seed Bradshaw Christian. Ripon also has a loss to Linden, dropping a 47-44 heartbreaker in Week 0.
In this battle of dueling Wing-T offenses, senior running back Joseph Brown stars in Liberty Ranch’s backfield. The shifty 5-8, 165-pounder is the third-leading rusher in the SJS with 1,580 yards (10.0 per carry) and 22 touchdowns. He also has 198 yards and two scores receiving.
Sophomore Andrew Quinn (660 yards, nine TDs) is also a productive back for the Hawks, who have just 63 pass attempts all season compared to 442 run plays. Lucas Temple is the top target with 246 receiving yards and six TDs.
Liberty Ranch starts three big-bodied sophomores on the offensive line, including 6-5, 250-pound left tackle Deshaun Jackson. Edge rusher George Adrian leads the defense with 10.0 sacks.
The winner heads to No. 2 Woodland Christian, the reigning Division V-A state champion.
