High school football: TRAC to be unpredictable? Plus, predictions on five games
Let the fun begin.
The start of the Tri-River Athletic Conference high school football season is about to start with plenty of premier games.
You can call it the SEC, Pac-12, Big 12 or whatever, in high school football in the Fresno area this year’s TRAC will be unpredictable.
There are no clear favorites to win the conference.
It’s wide open.
Clovis West may have a say-so in that since the Golden Eagles are the defending TRAC champions with several Fresno State commits.
During nonleague play, The Bee’s No. 10ranked Clovis North and No. 3 Clovis East were the teams that looked impressive, piling up points.
The Broncos got revenge against San Joaquin Memorial and Central Valley Christian.
Clovis North’s biggest win, so far, came against JSerra Catholic-San Juan Capistrano at Veterans Memorial Stadium before the bye week that gave the Broncos plenty of confidence heading into TRAC play.
Clovis East was equally dominating. Two of the Timberwolves’ five wins have come against teams from out-of-state, who now have a combined record 10-3.
Foothill-Henderson, Nevada’s lone loss came against Clovis East. The Timberwolves won 63-34, and also beat Sanger 42-21.
Clovis North vs. Clovis East is The Fresno Bee Game of the Week.
No. 4 Clovis West, meanwhile, had some close games during nonleague play.
After starting the season with a loss to St. Mary’s-Stockton, the Golden Eagles have won four straight.
But two of those games were close when Clovis West edged past Lemoore 27-26 and Bullard 21-20.
The Golden Eagles won in convincing fashion over Turlock and Edison in the other games.
Clovis West will visit No. 12 Buchanan at 7 p.m. Friday.
Despite the Bears’ 2-3 record, they will still be strong on both sides of the ball.
Just ask the defending Central Section champions Liberty-Bakersfield, which found out on Sept. 8.
In that game, the Bears put up a battle in a 35-30 loss.
Buchanan rebounded with a 35-3 over San Joaquin Memorial the following week.
In the other TRAC game, No. 7 Central will host No. 9 Clovis.
Central entered the bye week with a loss to Liberty-Bakersfield. The Grizzlies went to Bakersfield and lost 35-14.
Before the loss, the Grizzlies were on a roll, winning the first four games.
Clovis also looked impressive in the nonleague portion of the schedule.
The Cougars only loss came against a strong Sanger team on Aug. 25. Clovis lost 33-21.
The Cougars, however, have won three straight since.
TRAC game predictions
Clovis North (5-0) vs. Clovis East (5-0), 7 p.m. Friday (Lamonica Stadium): Speaking of revenge games, that’s been the theme for the Broncos this season, with wins over Memorial and Central Valley Christian — teams they lost to last season. Last season, Clovis East got the upper-hand with a 39-35 win in the TRAC opener. Could that happen again? It’s possible, but the Broncos have a strong offense and defense. The Timberwolves could overcome that with an offensive arsenal, led by QB Tyus Miller, WR/FS Harold Duvall, WR/S Tommy Nix, WR/SS Aidan Wilson, TE/LB Cherub Adeniran. The Broncos counter with QB Mario Cosma RB/LB Jackson Cinfel, RB/DB McKay Madsen, WR/DB Vincent Cordoba and TE/LB Brayden Bitter.
Prediction: Clovis North 34, Clovis East 30
Clovis West (4-1) at Buchanan (2-3), 7 p.m. Friday: Have the Golden Eagles found their groove before the bye week? It would seem so. Clovis West is always dangerous with scoring threats in WRs Marshel Sanders, Landon Wright and Jordan Pierro. Don’t forget about RB/TE/LB Tytus Khajvai, who leads the team in rushing, tackles and sacks. Clovis West’s offense is led by QB Tyler Patrick. Buchanan is led by LB Logan Studt, who has a team-leading 29 tackles. He is surrounded on defense by S Joshua Wilson and Austin Finegan. The offense is led by QB Logan Sanchez. RB Garrett Menagh and WR Giovanni Chiaramonte are players to watch for the Bears.
Prediction: Clovis West 43, Buchanan 27
Clovis (4-1) at Central (4-1), 7 p.m. Friday (Koligian Stadium): This game could be another high-scoring game like how The Bee is predicting in the other two games. The Grizzlies have scored 40+ points in three games this season. The Cougars have yet to give up 40 points. Central is led by QB Earl Riley, RB/Ath Brandon Smith and WR/DB Braylen Hall, LB Aidan Chavez and LB Jared Andrade. QB Deagan Rose leads the way for the Cougars. He is surrounded on offense by RB/LB Noah Luginbill, RB Roman Moreno and WRs Jacob Saldate and Tyler Marquez. Luginbill leads the Cougars in tackles with 62.
Prediction: Central 37, Clovis 27
Other predictions
Bullard (1-4) at Madera (4-2), 7:30 p.m. Friday: This will be the first game without Don Arax, who was let go as the Bullard head coach. Knights athletic director Brandon Gilbert is the interim coach. Madera is off to a 4-1 start. This is the County/Metro Athletic Conference opener.
Prediction: Madera 27, Bullard 24
No. 10 Lemoore (3-2) at No. 19 Tulare Union (4-1), 7:30 p.m. (Bob Mathias Stadium): High-scoring game looming at Bob Mathias Stadium? It’s quite likely. Close game? It’s possible. Jordan Crisp has been lights-out for the Tribe. Kobe Green, too, for Lemoore.
Prediction: Tulare Union 53, Lemoore 44
