Prep football: Favorites, contenders and pretenders in all 13 Sacramento-area leagues

This marks the fifth week of high school football, in a flash. Didn’t practice sessions just start? Well, yes — in July. We’re in fast-forward mode now.

Here, we size up league races as league play kicks off for most Sacramento-area schools.

Capital Athletic League

Rio Americano 4-0

Vista del Lago 3-1

Christian Brothers 2-2

Del Campo 2-2

El Camino 1-3

Capital Christian 0-3

Sacramento 0-4

▪ Rio Americano hasn’t started 4-0 since 1994 and prepares for a grudge match at Capital Christian with revenge in mind.

▪ VDL has played the strongest schedule of any CAL team with a 42-35 loss to powerhouse Manteca.

▪ Christian Brothers has been hammered by injuries, but the defending champs are well coached and dangerous.

▪ Capital Christian and Sacramento started the season Bee-ranked and both are eager for a breakthrough.

Capital Valley Conference

Woodcreek 3-0

Inderkum 3-1

Roseville 3-1

Bella Vista 2-1

Yuba City 2-2

River Valley 0-4

Antelope 0-4

▪ Woodcreek seeks its first league crown — ever. Showdown looms on Sept. 22 against Inderkum.

▪ Inderkum has found a new gear since opening with a loss at powerhouse Del Oro.

▪ Roseville is balanced and has a 39-30 loss to Bee-ranked Laguna Creek.

▪ Bella Vista went 5-5 last season, its best showing in years, and expects to exceed that.

▪ Antelope is better than its record with losses to Whitney, Elk Grove, Lincoln-Stockton and Granite Bay

▪ River Valley doesn’t have wins, but it has a good coach in Alex Gomes-Coelho, who turned Johnson around.

Delta League

Jesuit 2-1

Davis 2-2

Pleasant Grove 2-2

Cosumnes Oaks 1-3

Elk Grove 1-3

Sheldon 1-3

Franklin 0-4

▪ Jesuit is the favorite to take the Delta with QB CJ Lee and playmakers such as Drew Vassar and Caleb Dixon.

▪ Davis has won two games late with special teams after going 2-8 in 2022.

▪ Pleasant Grove was 1-9 in 2022 and is an inch away from being 3-1.

▪ Cosumnes Oaks is a dangerous outfit with a strong coaching staff.

▪ Elk Grove is the defending champion with losses to Bay Area powerhouse programs.

▪ Sheldon and Franklin are ready to surprise, stalled by injuries and rotten luck.

Foothill Valley League

Nevada Union 3-1

West Park 3-1

Ponderosa 1-2

Placer 0-4

Oakmont 0-4

Lincoln 0-4

▪ West Park is the favorite with a young team and a veteran coach in Jason Tenner.

▪ Placer is the defending champion and has bounced back big before from slow starts.

▪ Nevada Union is the dangerous upstart under coach Brad Sparks.

▪ Ponderosa has all the makings of being a solid program. It takes time.

▪ Oakmont and Lincoln have good coaches, eager players and a lot of bad luck and injuries.

Golden Empire League

Casa Roble 3-0

Mesa Verde 3-0

Pioneer 3-1

Rio Linda 2-1

Dixon 0-3

Woodland 0-4

▪ Casa Roble is the overwhelming favorite to take the GEL and maybe even a Division V section title.

▪ Mesa Verde is off to its best start in years and is ready for its new home stadium.

▪ Pioneer graduated a ton but is off to a solid start.

▪ Rio Linda home games remain a memorable experience.

▪ Dixon and Woodland have been recent playoff teams. Cycles happen.

Greater Sacramento League

Foothill 2-1

Johnson 2-1

Natomas 1-3

Cordova 0-3

Valley 0-4

Florin 0-4

▪ Foothill, Johnson and Natomas are the favorites with the best athletes and team speed.

▪ Cordova has tremendous tradition, but the climb back has been steep.

▪ Valley has had powerhouse teams before, but it’s been 22 years since it last tasted the playoffs.

▪ Florin coach Dan Davis cares a great deal, but he battles roster numbers and inexperience.

Metro League

Grant 3-1

Laguna Creek 3-1

River City 3-1

Burbank 1-3

Monterey Trail 0-3

McClatchy 0-3

Kennedy 0-4

▪ Grant is the favorite as a defending CIF state champion.

▪ Monterey Trail is the best winless team in Northern California and has gone 21-0 in the Metro since joining.

▪ Laguna Creek went 7-3 in 2022 and is better this year, by a good margin.

▪ McClatchy has a new coach and the same expectations of trying to get on track.

▪ Kennedy has won before, but coaching and player turnover have stalled progress.

Monticello Empire League

Armijo 4-0

Fairfield 3-1

Rodriguez 3-1

Wood 3-1

Vacaville 2-1

Vanden 2-2

▪ Vacaville has won the MEL so many times that it has run out of room in the trophy case.

▪ Vanden is always a factor and won a CIF state crown two seasons ago.

▪ Armijo has impressed and Fairfield’s dreadful 42-game skid is long gone.

Pioneer Valley League

Twelve Bridges 4-0

Bear River 3-0

Sutter 3-1

Colfax 3-1

Marysville 3-1

Center 3-1

Wheatland 3-1

▪ Twelve Bridges continues to amaze and will have its first graduating class in the spring.

▪ Tanner Mathias has his alma mater off to a fast start.

▪ Sutter has been a great fit in this section after years of good living in the Northern Section.

▪ Marysville has section championship pedigree and aims for more.

▪ Colfax, as storied as it gets, has a QB leader in the 6-foot-5 River Roach.

▪ Center is well coached by alum and longtime coach Digol J’Beily.

▪ Wheatland is also a nice fit, having moved from the Northern Section.

Sacramento Metro Athletic League

Woodland Christian 4-0

Delta 4-0

Valley Christian 2-2

Foresthill 1-3

Western Sierra 0-3

▪ It’s Woodland Christian by a landslide, like last season.

▪ Delta is coached by alum Tim Rapp and has a QB star in Gavin McAllister.

▪ Valley Christian has a tremendous multi-sport star in Chase Clary.

▪ Foresthill has had playoff teams and hard luck, such as fires.

▪ Western Sierra is trying to get things started under coach Otis Washington.

Sierra Delta League

Golden Sierra 1-2

Rio Vista 1-2

Highlands 0-3

Esparto 0-4

San Juan 0-3

Vacaville Christian 0-4

▪ Golden Sierra leads the pack while some are low on numbers and others low on first downs.

▪ Highlands has had success before and will again under alum coach Matt Cokley.

▪ Esparto won nine games in 2022 and has been thinned by injuries and illness.

▪ No area team has suffered quite like San Juan, which won its last league title in 1947.

▪ This league is geared to help teams of similar challenges have a shot.

Sierra Foothill League

Rocklin 4-0

Oak Ridge 4-0

Del Oro 4-0

Folsom 3-1

Granite Bay 2-2

Whitney 2-2

▪ Far and away the best league in the Sac-Joaquin Section, if not all of Northern California.

▪ No. 1 Folsom lost 21-14 at NorCal No. 1 Serra of San Mateo; hosts De La Salle and Oak Ridge in next two games.

▪ No. 2 Oak Ridge has two Honor Bowl wins and a 21-18 victory over No. 3 Grant.

▪ Rocklin is stout in the trenches and has a QB leader in Reeve Slone.

▪ Del Oro has a Bee Player of the Year candidate in QB Caden Pinnick and stoppers on D.

▪ Granite Bay is 2-0 against local teams, with losses to Manteca and Pittsburg, and features a tremendous run game.

▪ Whitney can prove it is a player in the SFL with a statement in the Sept. 29 Quarry Bowl against Rocklin.

Sierra Valley Conference

Rosemont 4-0

Union Mine 3-1

Bradshaw Christian 2-2

Galt 2-2

Liberty Ranch 0-2

El Dorado 0-4

▪ Rosemont is the only Sacramento City Unified School District team ranked by The Bee.

▪ Union Mine has won this league in recent years and aims to do so again.

▪ Bradshaw Christian runs the ball as well as any program around — for years — under coach Drew Rickert.

▪ Galt can score but gives up a ton, the coaches remind.

▪ Liberty Ranch is the defending champion looking to find itself.

▪ El Dorado has been stalled by injuries, though a home game in El Dorado is a blast.