SBLive's Northern Section Top 10 rankings/Games of the Week: No. 1 Pleasant Valley braces for Oak Ridge

University Prep jumps five spots after shutout win over Red Bluff

With league play quickly approaching, teams throughout the Northern Section are finessing their playbooks and narrowing down their starters for the heart of the season.

This week features two of the first bowl-type games this season, with Red Bluff and Corning facing off in the Tehama County Shootout, and Gridley and Live Oak facing off in the Harvest Bowl.

No new teams entered SBLive’s Northern Section Top 10 this week, but there was a shakeup amongst many teams. 

After a loss to Yuba City, Chico High dropped two spots to No. 5, while Northern Athletic League team University Prep jumped five spots to No. 3 after a defeat of the Eastern Athletic League team Red Bluff. 

Despite undefeated records, Durham and Colusa remain at No. 9 and 10 due to a weaker schedule.

1. Pleasant Valley-Chico (3-0 record)
Last week rank: No. 1
Last week game: Beat Las Plumas 48-0
Next game: Thursday at Oak Ridge
Pleasant Valley looked concerning as a team in its opening half against Las Plumas in week 3, with nearly 150 penalty yards against the Vikings. After leading 14-0 going into the halftime break, PV scored 21 points in the third quarter en route to the big win. Running back Parker Williams has proved to be a spark with five TDs, including two against Las Plumas. Coach Mark Cooley said his team is traditionally a third quarter team, but linebacker Gabe Garretson said his team needs to come out with the same energy to start each game. One concern is quarterback Elijah Sanchez exited the game Sept. 2 against Yuba City due to injury, and quarterback Hayden Rick was seen hobbling with his foot wrapped in ice following the Sept. 9 game against Las Plumas. Pleasant Valley will get a big test Friday when it faces Oak Ridge, which has outscored opponents 181-0.

2. Foothill-Palo Cedro (2-1)
Last week rank: No. 2
Last week game: Beat Lassen 28-7
Next game: Sept. 23 at Fortuna
After a loss to Buchanan on Sept. 2, Foothill rebounded with a three-touchdown win over Lassen. The Cougars scored all 28 points in the opening half, including 21 in the second quarter. After this week's bye, they'll face a Fortuna squad that won its first game Sept. 9 against 0-2 Kelseyville. Following the game against Fortuna, Foothill will host Corning before opening Eastern Athletic League play Oct. 7 at home against Shasta.

3. University Prep (3-0 record)
Last week rank: No. 8
Last week game: Beat Red Bluff 14-0
Next game: Friday at McKinleyville
University Prep’s defense shined against Eastern Athletic League opponent Red Bluff, handing the Spartans their first loss. Running back Ryan Dyab had his third straight 100-yard rushing game to start the season. After two straight home games to start the season, University Prep now has four consecutive road games before returning home Oct. 21 against West Valley. University Prep will face McKinleyville in the Panthers’ third game. McKinleyville lost 3-0 to Willits on Sept. 9, after opening with a 40-0 win against Anderson on Sept. 2.

4. Fall River-McArthur (2-0)
Last week rank: No. 5
Last week game: Beat Redding Christian 30-0
Next game: Friday at Weed
The Bulldogs opened their season with a victory, had a bye and then defeated Redding Christian. Fall River is scheduled to play Weed, which has not yet played a game in 2022 due to wildfires. It was announced Monday that the Mountain Fire, which started Sept. 2 and as of Sunday evening had grown to 13,249 acres and 60% containment, has jumped its containment line and ordered evacuations in the area west of Weed. The Bulldogs went 13-0 en route to a CIF Division 7-AA championship in 2021.

5. Chico (1-2)
Last week rank: No. 3
Last week game: Lost to Yuba City 35-21
Next game: Friday at Whitney
The Panthers are facing a handful of injuries, with hopes of many returning for the start of EAL play Oct. 7 against Red Bluff. They've played without two of their lineman and lost two running backs to Yuba City. The Honkers got their first win after three close losses. Chico looks to bounce back in a second straight road game, when it travels to Rocklin to face Whitney.

6. Enterprise (3-0)
Last week rank: No. 4
Last week game: Beat Yreka 61-6
Next game: Friday at Lassen
Enterprise used 146 yards passing, 191 yards rushing and three turnovers on defense in a big win over Yreka. The Hornets, who went 9-3 in the 2021 season, are looking for a second consecutive undefeated nonleague schedule. Enterprise faces Lassen (1-2) in its fourth game Friday and finishes its non-league schedule with Oroville (0-3) on Sept. 23. The Hornets then face Pleasant Valley to open Eastern Athletic League play Oct. 7, the same team that gave them their first loss in 2021. Despite a strong win in its third game, Enterprise drops two spots for one reason — strength of schedule.

7. East Nicolaus-Nicolaus (2-1)
Last week rank: No. 8
Last week game: Forfeit win against Bradshaw Christian
Next game: Friday vs. Cordova
Bradshaw forfeited according to East Nicolaus Athletic Director Matt Ray “because of program disciplinary action.” Ray said Bradshaw forfeited both JV and varsity and he did not hear anything else from the school. Cordova is 0-3. 

8. Orland (2-0)
Last week rank: No. 7
Last week game: Bye
Next game: Friday vs. Shasta
Shasta won its first game last week when it defeated West Valley, which Orland defeated on Sept. 2. Trojans head coach Nick Velazquez, a defensive-minded head coach, has led a strong defense that has allowed 13 points in each of its first two games.

9. Durham (3-0)
Last week rank: No. 9
Last week game: Beat Oroville 49-6
Next game: Friday vs. Paradise
Durham plays at home for the fourth straight game when it takes on Paradise (1-1).  Durham has previous wins over Willows (14-0) and Williams (21-12) and looks to continue to defend its home turf before its first road game and final non-league game Sept. 30 at Orland. Durham’s three opponents have gone a combined 0-8. 

10. Colusa (3-0)
Last week rank: No. 10
Last week game: Beat Willows 14-12
Next game: Friday vs. Williams
The RedHawks have wins over teams with combined records of 1-6. Williams is 0-3. 

On the bubble: Paradise (1-1), Red Bluff (1-1)

Top 5 Games of the Week

No. 1 Pleasant Valley (3-0) at Oak Ridge (3-0), Thursday: Pleasant Valley will get its starting tight end and defensive end Luke Alloway back, after sustaining an injury in the Vikings’ season opener against Corning.

Corning (1-2) at Red Bluff (1-1), Friday: The Tehama County Shootout dates back to 1983, when Corning defeated Red Bluff 16-8. Corning leads the all-time record between the two teams 28-27. Red Bluff won last year’s game, 35-13.

Gridley (1-1) at Live Oak (3-0), Friday: The Harvest Bowl is an annual game between the two schools just seven miles apart on Highway 99. Live Oak won the first four games in the series which began in 2009. Gridley has won the last eight games, including a 49-0 in 2021. Live Oak has had a strong start after going 1-8 last season.

No. 5 Chico (1-2) at Whitney (2-2), Friday: LThe Panthers, the defending NS D2 champs, hope to give their youthful squad more experience before heading to league. Whitney, similar in enrollment to Chico, has one additional game due to Sac-Joaquin Section's earlier start. 

Paradise (1-1) at No. 9 Durham (3-0), Friday: It's a stiff test for Paradise against a Durham team that has allowed just 18 points, while scoring 84.

Justin Couchot is a reporter for the Chico Enterprise-Record. Reach him on Twitter @JCouchot_Sports