High School

Capistrano Valley QB Tommy Acosta is SBLive/Sports Illustrated California Football Athlete of the Week (10/16/2024)

The senior passes for 390 yards and four touchdowns in a win over Western, then picks up more than 18,000 votes in a fan vote

Mitch Stephens

Capistrano Valley senior quarterback Tommy Acosta continued his stellar senior season by passing for 390 yards and four touchdowns and adding a rushing TD in a 35-25 win over Western, earning him the SBLive California Football Player of the Week award.
Capistrano Valley senior quarterback Tommy Acosta continued his stellar senior season by passing for 390 yards and four touchdowns and adding a rushing TD in a 35-25 win over Western, earning him the SBLive California Football Player of the Week award. / Photo: Terry Jack

Tommy Acosta evidently did some big work in the offseason.

The 6-foot, 185-pound high school senior quarterback from Capistrano Valley in Mission Viejo had a fine junior season passing for 1,698 yards and 18 touchdowns in 12 games leading the Cougars to eight wins.

He's matched those numbers and then some in seven games in 2024.

Acosta has completed 127 of 201 for 1,679 yards and 23 touchdowns (against just two interceptions) as Capistrano Valley is off to a 6-1 start.

In a 35-25 win over Western on Oct. 4, he completed 22 of 32 for 390 yards and four touchdowns — and he rushed for a TD — throwing himself on a list of nearly 30 players on a California top performers list for the week. That's when his numbers really got gaudy.

Acosta piled up a total of 18,307 votes to earn the SBLive Athlete of the Week award, out-voting Makya Chee, a running back for El Toro, who piled up more than 14,000 votes. Congratulations Tommy!

Costa is used to putting up big numbers, the most impressive one being a 4.7 grade point average.

Check out all the other candidates:

Cody Cappelleti, a senior RB and QB for Patrick Henry, rushed for 41 yards and three touchdowns, caught three passes for 61 yards and completed 13 of 21 for 300 yards and three TDs in a 52-8 win over Morse. 

Makya Chee, a running back for El Toro, rushed 20 times for 383 yards in a 63-35 win over Canyon. 

Ricky Cole, a senior quarterback at Inderkum, completed 22 of 32 passes for 248 yards and seven touchdowns in a 64-21 win over Vista del Lago. He also rushed 11 times for 82 yards. 

Thomas Donovan, a senior QB at Grossmont, completed 26 of 43 for 396 yards and six touchdowns in a 54-33 win over Monte Vista-Spring Valley. 

Tanner Doyle, a senior linebacker for La Costa Canyon, had two interceptions, nine tackles and  a pick 6 in a 33-15 win over Poway. 

Judah Garrison, a freshman DB and QB for Desert Christian Academy, did a little bit of everything in a wild 75-38 win over San Jacinto Valley Academy with three receptions for 97 yards and a TD, a 60-yard kickoff return for a score, a 55-yard punt return, two interceptions and a pick 6. 

Brice Hawkins, a senior running back at Simi Valley rushed 20 times for 126 yards and three touchdowns and had seven catches for 106 yards and another score in a 42-28 win over St. Bonaventure. 

Jayden Hill, a junior defensive end for Mission Viejo, had seven tackles, four for loss, including three sacks with two forced fumbles, a blocked field goal and three hurries in a 49-14 win over Long Beach Poly. 

Charlie Jeffers, a defensive end for Rio Vista, had five sacks and nine tackles in a 49-3 win over Vacaville Christian. 

Koa Malau’ulu, a freshman QB at St. John Bosco, came off the bench to complete 20 of 22 for 225 yards and four touchdowns, all in the second half, of a 28-24 comeback win over Orange Lutheran. 

Quinn Martinez, a junior wide receiver/cornerback for Manteca, scored four touchdowns four different ways — an 18-yard run, a 26-yard catch, a 69-yard pick six and a 90-yard kickoff return, during a 60-21 win over Sierra. 

Kendale McGrew, a sophomore running back/linebacker at Sanger, rushed 19 times for 158 yards and added two sacks, an interceptions and a fumble recovery in a 39-20 win over Bullard. 

Noah Mikhall, a senior wide receiver, strong safety and linebacker for Bonita, had three catches for 75 yards and a TD, nine carries for 50 yards and 13 tackles, five for loss, in a 27-14 win over Glendora. 

Tyus Miller, a senior QB at Clovis East, completed 6 of 19 for 240 yards and three touchdowns to three different receivers, and he rushed eight times for 121 yards in the surprisingly lopsided 44-3 home win over Clovis West.

Samuel Mourhess, a senior quarterback at Desert Chapel, threw for 486 yards and seven touchdowns and added 47 more yards and another score on the ground in a 60-42 win over Saint Jeanne de Lestonnac. 

Omar Muhammad, a running back for North Hollywood, rushed 25 times for 259 yards and four touchdowns in a 33-7 win over Grant. 

Jayden Najera, a sophomore QB at Golden West, completed 19 of 20 for 223 yards and three touchdowns, and rushed for 62 yards and another score in a 48-0 win over Mt. Whitney. 

Kaleb Pieis, a senior tight end and defensive end for San Ramon Valley, had a 21-yard touchdown catch, and contributed four tackles for loss in a 35-6 win over Granada. 

Caesar Reyes, a running back for Garfield, rushed 16 times for 260 yards and four touchdowns in a 48-30 win over South East. 

Albert Richardson, a senior running back and strong safety for Hanford, rushed for two touchdowns and added eight tackles and an interception in a 43-6 win over Dinuba. 

Ethan Rickert, a senior quarterback and free safety for Bradshaw Christian, completed all six of his passes for 221 yards and four touchdowns and added an interception on defense in a 65-0 win over Amador

Deagan Rose, a junior QB at Clovis, completed 24 of 33 for 267 yards and four touchdowns in a 37-10 win over Buchanan. 

Cashton Scott, a junior RB/SS for Desert Christian Academy, rushed 11 times for 371 yards (33.7 per carry) and six touchdowns, plus had eight tackles and three sacks in a 75-38 win over San Jacinto Valley Academy. 

Junio Silva, a senior slot back and free safety for Turlock, had two interceptions and added four catches for 105 yards and a touchdown in a 35-0 win over Gregori. 

Erick Stubbs, a senior running back at Bell, rushed 32 times for 320 yards and five TDs in a 42-40 win over South Gate. 

Tristan Ti’a, a senior QB at Amador Valley, completed 20 of 21 for 362 yards and five touchdowns in a 48-12 win over arch-rival Foothill. He also carried the ball four times for 41 yards and ran in a pair of 2-point conversions. 

Diego Ultreras, a senior safety at El Capitan, had three interceptions including a pick six in a 33-28 win over Los Banos. 

Nathan Zeppieri, a running back and linebacker for Zeppieri for Bradshaw Christian, had five carries for 98 yards and a touchdown, two catches for 100 yards and two more scores and booted all five of his extra point tries in a 65-0 win over Amador.

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Mitch Stephens
MITCH STEPHENS

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