2026 Football Week 9: Carlsbad, Santa Fe Christian, Patrick Henry, Escondido Charter, Francis Parker Two Wins Each From *Perfect Seasons
*Regular seasons, that is, but one will fall this week, when Santa Fe Christian (8-0) visits Escondido Charter (8-0). The Pick: Santa Fe, ranked fifth in the top 10. Charter has been blanked in top 10 voting all season.
No. 1 Carlsbad (8-0) faces La Costa Canyon (5-3), no stranger to big games in the big Avocado West league. The Pick: Carlsbad, but the Mavericks could make this uncomfortable.
Patrick Henry (8-0) came up 5 votes shy of a No. 10 ranking in this week’s Top 10 and takes on Madison (5-3) in a City League test. The Patriots beat Army-Navy, 56-0; the Warhawks defeated the same opponent, 34-0. The Pick: Madison.
Francis Parker (7-0) went to the eight-man game two seasons ago but hopes to return to 11-man in 2027. The Lancers meet 0-6 Warner Springs Warner. The Pick: Francis Parker.
John Maffei’s The San Diego Union Week 8 poll. Points awarded on 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. *First-place votes. Previous rankings in italics. NR–Not ranked. MaxPreps’ are state rankings. HS-ratings.com and MaxPreps follow computer model. Cal-Hi Sports’ rankings are the opinion of prep honcho Mark Tennis.
| RANK | TEAM | POINTS | PREVIOUS | MAX PREPS | HS-RATINGS.COM | CAL-HI SPORTS |
| 1. | Carlsbad (8-0) *31 | 319 | 1 | 11/12 | 51.8/52.9 | 13/13 |
| 2. | Cathedral (5-3) *1 | 275 | 2 | 37/28 | 44.9/44.8 | 22/23 |
| 3. | Granite Hills (6-2) | 255 | 3 | 58/44 | 42.3/45.9 | 33/34 |
| 4. | Mission Hills (6-2) | 245 | 4 | 27/21 | 33.6/33 | 35/37 |
| 5. | Santa Fe Christian (8-0) | 189 | 5 | 41/40 | 40.6/41.1 | 41/42 |
| 6. | La Costa Canyon (5-3) | 148 | 65 | 64/43 | 31.5/30.3 | On Bubble/Bubble |
| 7. | Rancho Bernardo (7-1) | 135 | 78 | 82/91 | 28.3/27.4 | On Bubble/Bubble |
| 8. | Helix (6-2) | 108 | 89 | 60/70 | 31.6/29.7 | On Bubble/Bubble |
| 9. | San Marcos (4-4) | 38 | 97 | 73/62 | 22.7/23.7 | On Bubble/Bubble |
| 10. | Oceanside (4-4) | 21 | 10 | 69 | 30.5/26.9 | NR/NR |
Others receiving votes: Patrick Henry (8-0), 16 points; Lincoln (3-5), 14; Torrey Pines (5-3), 9; Holtville (6-2), 4; Eastlake (8-1), 2.
Voting panel: Sportswriters, sportscasters, administrators from the San Diego Section:
John Maffei (The San Diego Union-Tribune).
Donald Ray Norcross, Kevin Farmer, Rick Hoff, Steve Brand (The San Diego Union-Tribune independent correspondents).
Todd Cassen, Ron Marquez, Cristina Byrne (San Diego Section bosses).
Brandon Stone, Allison Edmonds, John Carroll, Chase Isidoro (KUSI-TV, Chl. 51).
Rick Smith (partletonsports.com).
Braden Suprenant, Frank Markese (97.3 FM The Fan).
Mike Dolan (Coaching Legends).
Tom Helmantoler (Southern Conference).
Joe Evangelist, Rex Johnson, Bruce Ward (CIF Advisory Committee).
Raymond Brown (sdfootball.net).
Christian Pedersen (San Diego Sports Association).
Bodie DeSilva, John (Coach) Kentera, Dennis Ackerman, Steve (Biff) Dolan, Eric Williams, Thomas Gutierrez, Tom Ronco, Adam Paul (independent contributors).
Max Preps.