LET PLAYOFFS BEGIN
Rancho Cucamonga top seed in Division 2, Centennial No. 4 in Division 1
Rancho Cucamonga football coach Brian Hildebrand woke up Sunday morning fully expecting to begin preparation for a Division 1 playoff game.
Since the CIF Southern Section went to in-season rankings to determine its playoff divisions three years ago, the biggest mystery each season has been how many teams would be selected for the Division 1 bracket. It was eight teams in 2021, and 10 teams in 2022. The possibilities were wide open again this season, and football coaches throughout the Inland Empire were predicting the 2023 Division 1 field to be anywhere between eight and 12 teams.
Rancho Cucamonga finished the regular season No. 9 in the Calpreps ratings, which is used by the Southern Section to place teams in divisions.
The Southern Section elected for eight teams in the highest division this year, which made Rancho Cucamonga the No. 1 seed in the Division 2 bracket. The Cougars (9-1) open the playoffs at home Friday night against No. 16 Edison (6-4) and a rematch with Damien is a possibility in the following round.
“We have been preparing and playing all season to be a Division 1 playoff team. That’s what I want for this program, to be at the highest point possible,” Hildebrand said. “We ended up getting the top spot in Division 2, but that does not make it easier. It’s going to be one of the toughest divisions to win.”
With Rancho Cucamonga getting pushed down to Division 2, Centennial once again will be the Inland area’s lone representative in the Division 1 playoffs. The Huskies (8-2) are seeded No. 4 in the division and have two weeks to prepare for their opener against No. 5-seeded Orange Lutheran (5-5) on Nov. 10. Should Centennnial win that first game, it likely will take on top-seeded St. John Bosco, which is the No. 1 team in several national rankings.
One of the most intriguing first-round games comes in Division 5, as Mountain Pass League members Liberty (9-1) and San Jacinto (6-4) will meet for the second time in four weeks. Liberty beat San Jacinto 40-37 earlier this month, a victory that helped the Bison secure the program’s first league title.
“We were the better team that night, but that result does not mean anything right now,” Liberty coach Adam Contreras said about the rematch against the Tigers. “We have to be the better team again this Friday or the
season is over. It’s a doubleedged sword because both teams know each other so well.”
San Jacinto coach Aric Galliano is no stranger to playoff rematches. In 2021, the Tigers defeated Beaumont 44-36 in a nonleague game, and the two teams were paired together for the opening round of the Division 5 playoffs. Beaumont avenged that previous result with a 30-28 win.
“We found out the hard way how difficult it is to beat a good team twice in a season,” said Galliano, who guided San Jacinto to the Division 6 title last season. “We are on the other side now and will try to prove that statement true. Our kids look that loss (to Liberty) very hard. They are motivated and looking forward to another chance at them.”
Another rematch between league foes comes in Division 10, with Inland Valley League champion Hemet (7-3) hosting Rancho Christian (73). The teams squared off in the league opener Sept. 29, and Hemet came away with a 23-16 victory that helped the Bulldogs secure the league title.
Of the 60 Inland teams in this year’s playoffs, 49 secured an automatic spot based on final league standings. The 11 area teams that received at-large berths in their respective playoff divisions were Damien, Vista Murrieta, Etiwanda, Yucaipa, Jurupa Hills, Vista del Lago, Los Osos, Redlands,
Ramona, Western Christian and Montclair. The top-ranked Inland teams who did not receive an at-large berth Sunday morning were Roosevelt and Chino Hills.
Another Inland team that did not receive an at-large berth was Norco, which was not a surprise since the Cougars finished the season with a 3-7 mark. Norco’s exclusion from the playoffs this season ends the program’s streak of 35 consecutive postseason appearances, which is an Inland record.
Three Inland teams found themselves on the bubble of either being the No. 1 seed in a division or the No. 16 seed in the division immediately above.
Ontario Christian and Chino were big winners in this scenario, as those teams received the top seed in Division 6 and Division 7, respectively. Norte Vista finds itself on the other end of the spectrum, however, as the Braves are the No. 16 seed in Division 4 and not the No. 1 seed in Division 5.
The Southern Section also released the two brackets for the 8-man football playoffs.
No Inland teams were among the eight chosen for the Division 1 playoffs this season. Last year’s Division 1 champion, California School for the Deafriverside, will look to win a second consecutive section title, as the Cubs (6-3) received the No. 1 seed in the Division 2 bracket this season. CSDR hosts Southlands Christian in Friday’s opener. Cornerstone Christian and Cal Lutheran also are included in the Division 2 playoffs.