Friday’s top five matchups

Here’s a quick look at five of the top matchups tonight.

Enochs (0-1) at Buhach Colony (0-1)

The Thunder offense looks to get on track following a 34-6 loss to Manteca last week. The defense kept Buhach Colony in the game early, holding Manteca to 13 first-half points. Linebacker Daniel Albavera led the way with 11 tackles and two sacks.

Look for running backs Kory Woods and Brandon Muse to have more success against an Enochs defense that gave up 43 points to Turlock last week.

Merced (0-1) at Monterey Trail (0-1)

It appears Merced will have running back Ulonzo Gilliam in the lineup tonight. Merced coach Rob Scheidt said Gilliam was day-to-day earlier in the week, but he was able to practice. Gilliam banged his knee on a helmet in the first quarter of the Bears’ 43-21 loss to Clovis West last week and didn’t return.

Quarterback Jake Foss is out after his head hit the turf on a fourth-quarter sack against the Golden Eagles. Senior A.J. Stewart will move from receiver to quarterback. Stewart played receiver, defensive back, kicker and punter last week.

This game is a rematch of last year’s Sac-Joaquin Section Division I quarterfinal playoff game won 51-45 by Monterey Trail.

El Capitan (0-1) at Monterey Trail (0-1)

The Gauchos nearly won their first varsity game in school history, but lost to Stone Ridge Christian 40-34 in overtime. El Capitan heads into tonight’s game as the favorite against a Mountain House team that is playing its first season of varsity football without seniors.

The Gauchos moved the ball on offense against the Knights with quarterback Chase Whitaker throwing for 324 yards and two touchdowns. Elijah Reid caught only two passes, but he turned them into touchdowns of 81 and 65 yards.

Ripon Christian (1-0) at Stone Ridge Christian (1-0)

Stone Ridge Christian is looking for payback. This is the third meeting between the schools and Ripon Christian won the first two by scores of 42-14 and 52-20.

The Knights racked up 459 rushing yards in an overtime win over El Capitan last week. Sophomore Shane Casillas led the way with 223 yards and three touchdowns. Jonthan Collazo recorded 145 yards and a score.

Chowchilla (1-0) at Le Grand (1-0)

This game features two of the area’s top running backs in the Redskins’ Anthony Stewart and the Bulldogs’ Carlos Iniguez. Stewart rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown and had an 18-yard touchdown catch in Chowchilla’s 51-28 win over Madera South. Iniguez carried the ball just 11 times for 200 yards in a 54-22 win over Delta.

The Redskins like to keep the ball on the ground with their shotgun double-wing offense. They rushed for 326 yards last week. The Bulldogs have a more balanced attack with quarterback Beto Marquez passing for 114 yards and two touchdowns last week.

Chowchilla defeated Le Grand last year 27-0.

Shawn Jansen

This story was originally published September 3, 2015 at 10:16 PM with the headline "Friday’s top five matchups."