Northern California high school football: Top stars, best performances last week (9/11/2023)

Headed by Hunter Babb's near Central Section-record 440-yard rushing explosion, the region featured huge numbers last week

Here’s a quick look at some of the top stars and memorable performances from last week of the high school football season in Northern California.

Players from the following sections are considered: Central, Central Coast, North Coast, San Francisco, Oakland, Sac-Joaquin and Northern.

Note: Entries are based on information provided by coaches, statisticians, media members and high school sports fans. Don’t see any details for your team’s game? Email some notes and/or stats to mitch@scorebooklive.com.

Top Northern California football stars from 9/7/23 to 9/9/23

Hunter Babb, a senior running back at Caruthers, rushed for 440 yards and six touchdowns in a 79-38 win over Riverdale. Babb leads the nation with 1,251 yards rushing this season in 132 carries and 17 touchdowns. Babb's total was just off the Central Section record of 456 set by Avenal's Ily Lopez in a 78-28 win over Lomoore Kings Christian in 2007. 

Luke Baker, a senior quarterback at San Ramon Valley, completed 16 of 18 passes for 384 yards and six touchdowns and rushed three times for 64 yards in a 45-7 win at Elk Grove.

Luke Baker (right) with coach Aaron Becker. Photo: Dennis Lee

Jaxon Bell, a sophomore running back at Liberty-Brentwood, carried 14 times for 266 yards and six touchdowns in a 53-14 win over Wood of Vacaville.

Jackson Cinfel and McKay Madsen, of the Central Section’s top-ranked Clovis North squad (4-0), combined to rush 28 times for 342 yards and six touchdowns in a 48-14 win over Central Valley Christian.

Kevin Conway, a senior quarterback at Mountain View, threw for 283 yards and accounted for five touchdowns in a 40-21 win over Leigh.

Quinton Davis, a junior for Corning, rushed 16 times for 229 yards and three touchdowns in a 40-39 win at Central Valley.

Mekhi Deluth, a running back for Liberty-Bakersfield, rushed for 129 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-30 win at Buchanan.

Braylen Hall, a senior wide receiver for Central-Fresno, had nine catches for 192 yards and three touchdowns in a 48-28 home win over Bishop Diego.

Dominic Ingrassia, a senior quarterback at San Marin, completed 15 of 23 passes for 270 yards and five touchdowns in a 49-0 win over Moreau Catholic.

Jack Lewis, a junior quarterback for Branham, completed 16 of 22 passes for 353 yards and five touchdowns, and rushed for 70 yards and two more scores, in a 55-26 win over Soledad.

Leon Martin, a running back for Grant, came off the bench to rush 37 times for 214 yards and a touchdown in a 22-21 win at Central Coast power Los Gatos.

Mikey McGrath, a senior quarterback at Menlo School, completed 25 of 28 for 198 yards and accounted for four touchdowns in a 51-6 win over Watsonville.

Tyus Miller, a junior quarterback for Clovis East, completed 12 passes for 399 yards and four touchdowns and he ran for a score in a 41-24 win at Provo (Utah).

Jamelle Newman, a senior running back and cornerback for defending state 7-A champion Lincoln-San Francisco, rushed 19 times for 212 yards and two touchdowns and added seven tackles and an interception on defense, in a 38-13 win at El Camino-South San Francisco.

Jamelle Newman (4) with an interception last season in a game at Washington overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge. Photo: Eric Taylor

Earl Riley, a quarterback for Central-Fresno, completed 19 of 28 passes for 336 yards and five touchdowns in a 48-28 win over Bishop Diego.

Deagan Rose, a sophomore quarterback at Clovis, threw for 356 yards and five touchdowns in a 38-0 win over visiting Salinas.

Bryson Ruff, a junior running back for Las Plumas, rushed for four touchdowns and added a touchdown catch, in a 49-14 home win over Hamilton.

Mariyon Sloan, a sophomore at Shafter, caught four touchdown passes, added an 8-yard touchdown pass and rushed home with a 2-point conversion with nine seconds left to pull out a wild 35-34 win at Bakersfield Christian.

Malakhi Statler, a senior quarterback at Frontier-Bakersfield, completed 25 of 31 for 313 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-6 win over Hanford. In four games, Statler has completed a remarkable 79 percent of his passes (74 of 94) for 1,136 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Brayden Turner, a junior quarterback at Monte Vista-Danville, completed 12 of 19 passes for 330 yards and five touchdowns, to five different receivers, in a 40-30 win over Bellarmine. Baker ranks second in the North Coast Section with 932 passing yards and 10 touchdowns this season.

Brayden Turner in Monte Vista's opening win over Granada. Photo: Troy Jones

Herschel Turner, a senior running back and linebacker at Mt. Diablo had another monster game with 18 carries for 280 yards in a 31-27 loss to Oakland Tech. In three games, Turner has 842 rushing yards (21.1 yards per carry) and 10 touchdowns.