California High School Football Predictions: Top 25 matchups - Oct. 3-5

The calendar has turned to October and high school football in California is moving into the latter half of the 2024 season.

Beginning on Thursday and moving through Saturday, teams across the Golden State will take the field for the first time this month. The schedule is headlined by five games between teams ranked inside the On3 Massey Ratings California top 25.

The likes of No. 1 Mater Dei, No. 2 St. John Bosco and No. 5 J Serra Catholic are featured in the top bouts of the weekend. Here’s how the On3 Massey Ratings predict each ranked team in California will fare across the next three days:

The On3 Massey Ratings — which were officially used during the BCS era and have generated college high school sports team rankings since 1995 — rank sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule and margin of victory.

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#1 Mater Dei vs. #9 Santa Margarita Catholic
Mater Dei, now 4-0 on the season, continues to hold serve as the top-ranked team in the nation, thanks to multiple impressive performances against other nationally-ranked foes, including Las Vegas Bishop Gorman. It’s always hard to win on the road, however, and No. 9 Santa Margarita Catholic will look to catch the Monarchs napping on Friday night. The 3-2 Eagles have a win over No. 4 Centennial this season, but taking down Mater Dei will be a much taller task.
Massey Ratings Prediction: Mater Dei 42, Santa Margarita 6

#6 Orange Lutheran vs. #2 St. John Bosco
Both teams have faced a rigorous schedule early on this season and the tests keep on coming. Orange Lutheran heads to Bellflower with a 4-1 record that includes wins over Baltimore St. Frances Academy and Sierra Canyon. Nebraska QB commit TJ Lateef has been impressive but will have his hands full on Friday against a St. John Bosco defense that ranks No. 2 in the state. The 5-0 Braves enter as the No. 3 team in the nation with wins over Chaminade-Madonna (Fla.), Sierra Canyon and Junipero Serra San Mateo.
Massey Ratings Prediction: St. John Bosco 44, Orange Lutheran 14

#7 Servite vs. #5 J Serra Catholic
J Serra Catholic returns to San Juan Capistrano following a successful two-game road swing that saw wins over No. 17 Lincoln and Damien. The Lions are now 5-0 as they enter a brutal five-game stretch against teams ranked inside the state top 10. That begins with No. 7 Servite, who comes to town also undefeated at 5-0. The Friars have one ranked win — a 20-point road triumph over No. 16 Murrieta Valley — under their belt thus far and are led by Michigan State QB commit Leo Hannan.
Massey Ratings Prediction: J Serra 30, Servite 14

Predictions for Top 25 California High School Football Games

#3 Mission Viejo vs. Long Beach Poly — Game being played at SoFi Stadium
Massey Ratings Prediction: Mission Viejo 48, LB Poly 14

#4 Centennial vs. Eleanor Roosevelt
Massey Ratings Prediction: Centennial 50, Roosevelt 12

#10 Sierra Canyon vs. Chaminade
Massey Ratings Prediction: Sierra Canyon 42, Chaminade 13

#11 Folsom vs. Oak Ridge
Massey Ratings Prediction: Folsom 42, Oak Ridge 20

#12 Junipero Serra Gardena vs. Loyola
Massey Ratings Prediction: Gardena 42, Loyola 14

Clovis West vs. #13 Clovis East
Massey Ratings Prediction: East 42, West 20

#14 Los Alamitos vs. #17 Lincoln
Massey Ratings Prediction: Alamitos 35, Lincoln 34

Oxnard Pacifica vs. #15 Oaks Christian
Massey Ratings Prediction: Oaks Christian 41, Pacifica 8

Norco vs. #16 Murrieta Valley
Massey Ratings Prediction: Murrieta 41, Norco 14

Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep vs. #18 Junipero Serra San Mateo
Massey Ratings Prediction: San Mateo 44, SHCP 7

#25 Clovis North vs. #19 Central Fresno
Massey Ratings Prediction: Fresno 30, North 27

Los Gatos vs. #20 Pittsburg
Massey Ratings Prediction: Pittsburg 39, Los Gatos 14

#21 Rocklin vs. Whitney
Massey Ratings Prediction: Rocklin 48, Whitney 14

#22 Clovis vs. Buchanan
Massey Ratings Prediction: Clovis 35, Buchanan 28

Upland vs. #23 Rancho Cucamonga
Massey Ratings Prediction: Cucamonga 34, Upland 14

#24 Chaparral vs. Vista Murrieta
Massey Ratings Prediction: Vista 34, Chaparral 31