UCLA football is hot, USC not, and other rivalries

The UCLA football team is 3-0 and ranked No. 19 in the nation by the Associated Press. Valencia High graduate Steven Manfro is turning out to be a big piece of Bruins puzzle.
Manfro scored the first touchdown of his career, on a 49-yard catch, in UCLA’s upset win over then No. 16 Nebraska, 36-30, at the Rose Bowl.
He scored again in UCLA’s 37-6 win over Houston. He has two touchdowns in three games and is becoming quarterback Brett Hundley’s favorite target.
Manfro is UCLA’s leader in receiving through the first three games of the season. He has 14 catches for 164 yards. He was also averaging nearly nine yards per carry in the first three games. In all fairness, he carried the ball only three times for 26 yards, but scored on a 14-yard run in garbage time against Houston. Manfro added five punt returns for 55 yards for good measure.

Palmdale the new Northern Division No. 1 team

The Canyon football team took quite a hit in the CIF Southern Section Northern Division rankings after losing to Quartz Hill, 56-49.

It was a bad loss, but was it bad enough to drop from No. 1 to No. 5 in the Northern Division poll? That seems a little much for losing a close game.

Palmdale didn’t even play last week and took over the No. 1 spot.

Hart traveled to Bakersfield to play Ridgeview, had their game postponed an hour because of the excessive heat, and won, 49-27. The Indians’ reward for playing the toughest road game of the weekend: the No. 2 spot in the Northern Division poll.

At least Valencia earned a boost in the rankings, winning its first game of the season in impressive fashion, 48-9, over then-ranked No. 10 Righetti.

The Vikings moved up to No. 6 and Righetti was knocked out of the top 10.

Mira Costa, Quartz Hill and Eastside moved in to the top 10.

Palos Verdes and San Luis Obispo dropped out with Righetti.

Here is a look at the Northern Division top 10:

NORTHERN DIVISION

1. Palmdale 3‐0

2. Hart 2‐1

3. West Torrance 2‐0

4. Arroyo Grande 3‐1

5. Canyon/C.C. 3‐0

6. Valencia/Valencia 0‐2

7. Mira Costa 2‐1

8. Quartz Hill 2‐0

9. Eastside 3‐0

10. Antelope Valley 3‐0

The Wolitarsky Watch

Canyon’s Drew Wolitarsky caught eight passes for 89 yards in his team’s 56-49 loss to Quartz Hill on Saturday night.

He is in pursuit of Steve Smith’s state records for receptions and receiving yards. Smith, a receiver with the St. Louis Rams who played high school football at Woodland Hills Taft, caught 271 passes for 4,545 yards in high school.

Wolitarsky has 226 catches for 4,333 yards in his high school career. He has 34 receptions for 460 yards in four games in his senior season.

He needs 46 catches and 213 yards to break Smith’s state records. He is averaging 8.5 catches and 115.0 yards per game.

Photo: Canyon's Drew Wolitarsky caught eight passes for 89 yards and two touchdowns against Quartz Hill on Friday night. (Credit: Tim Haddock)

Northern Division top three teams hold strong

The top three teams in the CIF Southern Section Northern Division poll all had big wins.
The next seven teams were not as impressive.
Canyon, the No. 1 team in the Northern Division, easily beat Knight, 56-27. Cade Apsay is emerging as the top quarterback in the Northern Division. He threw for 425 yards and four touchdowns and added a 5-yard touchdown run against Knight of Lancaster.
Hart, the No. 2 team in the Northern Division, blew out La Palma Kennedy, 51-3. The preseason No. 1 team won its first game of the season after losing to Tesoro, 10-7, in the first week of the season.
Arroyo Grande posted an impressive, 34-14, win over Templeton.
San Luis Obispo won its first game of the season and, curiously moved up to No. 4. Probably because some of the other teams in the top 10 had some tough losses.
Palos Verdes lost to Central of Fresno, 25-22, has an 0-2 record and dropped to No. 8 in the Northern Division.
Valencia lost to Chaminade, 41-27, also has an 0-2 record and dropped to No. 9.
Eastside, at 3-0, is waiting in the wings if Valencia or Palos Verdes lose again.

Here is a look at the Northern Division:
NORTHERN DIVISION

1. Canyon/C.C. 3‐0
2. Hart 1‐1
3. Arroyo Grande 2‐1
4. San Luis Obispo 1‐2
5. Antelope Valley 2‐0
6. Palmdale 3‐0
7. West Torrance 2‐0
8. Palos Verdes 0‐2
9. Valencia/Valencia 0‐2
10. Righetti 1‐2

The Wolitarsky Watch

Canyon’s Drew Wolitarsky caught 11 passes for 184 yards  and a touchdown against Knight on Friday night. He is in pursuit of the state records for receptions and receiving yards set by Steve Smith.

Wolitarsky has 218 catches and 4,244 yards in his career at Canyon. Smith, who played high school football at Woodland Hills Taft and is a receiver with the St. Louis Rams, holds the state records with 271 catches and 4,545 yards.

Wolitarsky has 26 catches for 371 yards in three games this season. Canyon is off to a 3-0 start after beating Knight, 56-27.

Wolitarsky needs 54 catches and 302 yards to break Smith’s records. The Canyon senior is averaging 8.6 catches and 123.6 receiving yards per game.

Photo: Canyon's Drew Wolitarsky is in pursuit of Steve Smith's two receiving records. (Credit: Tim Haddock)

Delays at Dodger Stadium and the trade with the Red Sox

Sung to the tune of “Take Me Out To the Ball Game” with apologies to Jack Norworth:

Take me out to the ball game
Except on Vin Scully bobblehead night
Cuz if you run late
(Let’s face it, if you live in LA, who doesn’t run late?)
They’ll make you wait
Outside the gate for an hour
If your son scoots, scoots, scoots away from you
Security will make you stay
For it’s one, two, three innings you’ll miss
At the old ball game.

Suffice it to say, not a good time was had by all at Vin Scully bobblehead night at Dodger Stadium. Not only did the Dodgers lose to the Arizona Diamondbacks, 2-0, but it took nearly an hour to get into the stadium while Vin Scully bobbleheads were passed out at the gates.

Photo: Fans waited for about an hour to get into Dodger Stadium on Vin Scully bobblehead night. (Credit: Tim Haddock)

Lots of changes in the Northern Division top 10

The Canyon football team moved up to the No. 1 spot in the CIF Southern Section Northern Division poll after an impressive, 56-48, win over Clovis West, one of the top teams in the Central Section.
Hart, the preseason No. 1 team, dropped to No. 2 after a 10-7 loss on the road against Tesoro, the fourth-ranked team in the Pac-5 Division.
Palmdale is the only other 2-0 team in the Northern Division top 10. The Falcons beat Valencia, 35-21. The loss only cost Valencia one spot in the rankings, dropping from No. 4 to No. 5, and Palmdale was ranked ninth.
Another head scratcher is how is San Luis Obispo still ranked in the top 10.
The Tigers have lost two games, each by scores of 21-20. Dos Pueblos was the latest team to knock of San Luis Obispo on Friday night.
Here is a look at the Northern Division top 10:


NORTHERN DIVISION

1. Canyon/C.C. 2‐0
2. Hart 0‐1
3. Arroyo Grande 1‐1
4. Palos Verdes 0‐1
5. Valencia/Valencia 0‐1
6. San Luis Obispo 0‐2
7. Righetti 1‐1
8. Antelope Valley 1‐0
9. Palmdale 2‐0
10. West Torrance 1‐0

The Wolitarsky Watch

Canyon’s Drew Wolitarsky caught 10 passes for 129 yards in his team’s 56-48 win over Clovis West on Saturday night.

He has 15 catches for 187 yards this season as he closes in on Steve Smith’s state records for receptions and receiving yards.

Wolitarsky needs 65 more catches and 486 receiving yards to break Smith’s records of 271 catches and 4,545 receiving yards set while he was playing at Woodland Hills Taft in high school. Smith is now a receiver with the St. Louis Rams in the NFL.

Wolitarsky broke the Canyon school record for receiving yards in the game against Clovis West. He has 4,060 yards receiving in his career at Canyon. He has 207 career receptions at Canyon, also a school record.

Photo: Canyon High receiver Drew Wolitarsky is chasing Steve Smith for the state record in receptions and receiving yards. (Credit: Tim Haddock)

Rough Week Zero for the Pac 7 League

Week Zero was not kind to the teams from the Pac 7 League. All three teams in the top 10 of the CIF Southern Section Northern Division from the Pac 7 lost their first games of the season.
No. 5 San Luis Obispo lost a heartbreaker to Garces, 21-20. Garces scored all 21 points in the fourth quarter.
No. 6 Arroyo Grande took a beating against Lompoc. The Eagles were shut out, 31-0.
No. 9 Righetti had a 21-14 lead heading into the fourth quarter against Villa Park, but gave up two unanswered touchdowns and lost, 28-21.
Meanwhile, No. 2 Canyon had no problems against Morningside in a 49-12 season-opening win. No. 10 Antelope Valley also won, 29-15, against Maranatha.
The big game of the week is Hart vs. Tesoro. Hart is the No. 1 ranked team in the Northern Division. Tesoro, which reached the semifinals of the Pac 5 Division playoffs last year, is the No. 4 team in the Pac 5 Division.
Here is a look at the top 10 in the Northern Division:

NORTHERN DIVISION
1. Hart 0‐0
2. Canyon/C.C. 1‐0
3. Palos Verdes 0‐0
4. Valencia/Valencia 0‐0
5. San Luis Obispo 0‐1
6. Arroyo Grande 0‐1
7. Highland 0‐0
8. Quartz Hill 0‐0
9. Righetti 0‐1
10. Antelope Valley 1‐0

The Wolitarsky Watch

Canyon High receiver Drew Wolitarsky is closing in on the state record for receptions and receiving yards.
Steve Smith, a receiver with the St. Louis Rams in the NFL, set the state records for receptions and receiving yards when he was at Woodland Hills Taft. He caught 271 passes for 4,545 yards.
Wolitarsky has 197 catches for 3,931 yards in his career at Canyon. He caught five passes for 58 yards in Canyon's 49-12 win over Morningside on Thursday night.
Wolitarsky needs 74 catches and 614 receiving yards to catch Smith. It's not a lock that he will catch Smith. Wolitarsky caught 75 passes for 1,628 yards in his junior season. He had a career-best 77 catches as a sophomore.

Photo: Canyon High receiver Drew Wolitarsky is chasing Steve Smith for the state record in receptions and receiving yards. (Credit: Tim Haddock)

Hart ranked No. 1 in CIF Northern Division football poll

The CIF Southern Section preseason football polls are out and three teams from the Foothill League are in the top 10 of the revamped Northern Division.

Hart comes in as the No. 1 team in the Northern Division. Hart finished in fourth place in the Foothill League last year and was a wild-card team in the playoffs.

Canyon is the No. 2 team in the Northern Division. The Cowboys open the football season tonight against Morningside.

Valencia, the reigning Foothill League champion, is No. 5.

Four teams from the Pac 7 League, newcomers to the Northern Division, are in the top 10. San Luis Obispo is ranked No. 3 and Arroyo Grande is No. 6. The Pac 7 League was in the Western Division last year.

Here is a look at the Northern Division top 10:

NORTHERN DIVISION

1. Hart

2. Canyon/Canyon Country

3. San Luis Obispo

4. Palos Verdes

5. Valencia/Valencia

6. Arroyo Grande

7. Highland

8. Righetti

9. Quartz Hill

10. Atasacdero