Mater Dei vs. Corona Centennial Headlines CIF's Top Games, Predictions for Week 3

A preview of Week 3's top high school football games in the CIF Southern Section, including predicted winners of each game. Corona Centennial QB Jaden Jefferson will look to take down Mater Dei in Santa Ana on Friday, September 11, 2026. | Jeremy Westerbeck The CIF Southern Section has a heavyweight matchup set for Week 3 in Corona Centennial vs. Mater Dei. But that's not the only intriguing game in this week's slate ... Here is a look at the top games for Week 3, a quick preview of each one, and a predicted winner. Corona Centennial (1-1) at Mater Dei (3-0) Mater Dei will look to snap a two-game losing streak against Corona Centennial Friday night at home. | Scott Padgett The biggest question I'm asking is from 30,000 feet up: Is Mater Dei going to lose to Corona Centennial three times in a row? Initially, I think the answer is no. The Monarchs fell to Corona Centennial twice last year, 43-36 in September and again in the Division 1 playoffs, 28-27. But then I look at what these teams are presenting, who they've played and how they're playing early in 2026. Centennial's only loss is to No. 1-ranked Santa Margarita by one point (21-20). Mater Dei is 3-0 against out-of-state opponents. It's hard to gauge who's playing better ball, but I think the answer is Centennial. Mater Dei played three quarterbacks last week, and there are murmors that the young freshman is the best chance for the Monarchs, but will coach Raul Lara give more reps to a ninth grader over a senior and junior? Probably not. Especially not against the Huskies. Corona Centennial 43, Mater Dei 36. FINALLast team to beat MD not named St. John Bosco: Corona Centennial, Nov. 27, 2015 (42-36)QB in '15 was Anthony Catalano. Tonight's QB was Dominick Catalano, the little brother. Both coached by Matt Logan. You can't make this stuff up. pic.twitter.com/nIGJLowZqL — Tarek Fattal (@Tarek_Fattal) September 13, 2025 Centennial has identity and weapons, but the offensive line is banged up — thankfully for coach Matt Logan, QB Jaden Jefferson is elusive, which can help mitigate pressure from opposing defensive lines. Mater Dei's best chance to score is to establish the run game with standout sophomore RB Asir Nembhard, but if that can't get going — the Monarchs could be in trouble. What an opportunity for QBs Russell Sekona, Cameron Pooley, and freshman Paytyn Guess. After more thought ... I'm thinking maybe Centennial does beat Mater Dei three times in a row. The pick: Corona Centennial Orange Lutheran (2-1) at Gardena Serra (2-1) If you ask new Orange Lutheran coach Ray Fenton about the team's Week 0 loss to Miami Central (FL), he'd tell you the Lancers should have won the game. So, could this Orange Lutheran team be looked at like a 3-0 team? In theory, sure. Orange Lutheran took down San Diego power Cathedral Catholic and Arizona juggernaut Basha in back-to-back weeks. This team is good. Serra's lone loss is to Palos Verdes in Week 0, but have shown a sign of life in wins over Los Angeles Hamilton and a comeback victory over Los Alamitos. But the wins have to come with a grain of salt: Hamilton and Los Al are a combine 0-5 this season. If Serra RB AJ McBean has another video-game-like performance, that's the best chance for the Cavs to win. But I believe Orange Lutheran is good enough to stop one player. The pick: Orange Lutheran Oak Hills (2-1) at JSerra (2-1), Thursday What an interesting matchup all of a sudden. JSerra wins two straight, including last week's win over a talented Crean Lutheran ball club. Oak Hills bounces back from a big loss to Amat in Week 1 with a Week 2 win over Rancho Cucamonga. So, what gives? Oak Hills will prove to be the real deal by taking down a Trinity League team or JSerra will continue to show that outside of the Trinity League, the Lions take care of business. I think it's the latter. The pick: JSerra Huntington Beach (3-0) at Redondo Union (3-0), Thursday The battle of unbeatens, and a stop in next week's High School On SI Top 25 rankings is up for grabs. Huntington Beach is led by highly-touted QB Brady Edmunds, whole Redondo Union is riding RB Rocky Martinez, a workhouse that ran for a school-record 306 yards in last week's win over Culver City. This is an absolute toss up, but so far this season Huntington Beach has played slightly better opponents — the Oilers might be more prepared for this game. HSratings predicts this game to be 17-16 in favor of HB. The pick: Huntington Beach Add us as a preferred source on Google TAREK FATTAL Follow tarek_fattal