RANKINGS: Santa Margarita Claims No. 1 in JPWest Media’s Week 2 CIFSS Rankings

Eagles edge Centennial 21-20; Chaparral, Corona del Mar highlight biggest risers; Huntington Beach, Chaminade and Bishop Amat crash the Top 25

The 2026 CIF Southern Section season already had a new No. 1 last week. It has another one now.

Santa Margarita is the top team in the JPWest Media Top 25 after a 21-20 road win over then-No. 1 Corona Centennial on Friday night — a rematch of last year’s Division 1 championship that came down to a pick-six and a blocked extra point. Ca’ron Williams returned an interception 30 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the third quarter, and the Eagles’ defense finished the job when Jake Martin got a piece of the PAT after Braylin Drake’s late touchdown run.

That’s four straight wins over Centennial for Carson Palmer’s club, and it’s enough to flip the board.

St. John Bosco stays at No. 2 after a bounce-back 45-25 win over Roman Catholic (Pa.). Centennial drops two spots to No. 3. The rest of the top 10 holds, but the bottom half of the poll got shredded: Chaparral jumps six spots after knocking off San Juan Hills, Corona del Mar climbs four, and three new programs — Huntington Beach, Chaminade and Bishop Amat — force their way in.

Here’s how the board shakes out after Week 1.

The Top 10

1. Santa Margarita (↑2)
The defending CIF-SS Division 1 and State Open champions just went into Corona and won a one-score dogfight. Adrian Petero ran for 108 yards. The defense forced two turnovers. A blocked extra point was the difference. That’s a No. 1 performance.

2. St. John Bosco (—)
The Braves answered the Bishop Gorman loss the right way: 45 points and a statement win over a Pennsylvania power. They didn’t reclaim the top spot this week, but they didn’t fall either. Title-contender status intact.

3. Centennial (↓2)
A 41-21 win over Servite put the Huskies at No. 1. A 21-20 home loss to Santa Margarita takes it away. Jaden Jefferson still threw for nearly 200 yards and Quentin Hale was a problem, but the missed PAT and the pick-six are why they’re looking up at the Eagles this week.

4. Sierra Canyon (—)
The Trailblazers went 3,000 miles from home, coughed it up four times in the first half, and still beat Chaminade-Madonna (Fla.) 24-7. Ugly first half. Impressive finish. They stay put.

5. Mater Dei (—)
A 32-26 escape at Orem (Utah) is not a masterpiece, but it’s a road win against a quality opponent and a 2-0 start. The Monarchs stay in the top five.

6. Mission Viejo (—)
A 77-12 demolition of St. Paul will do. Brett Burnor and the Diablos haven’t been tested yet, but they keep stacking scores and they stay firmly in the top tier.

7. San Clemente (—)
The Tritons are 2-0 and still sitting pretty after last week’s jump. Next test is a big one against a rising Chaparral club.

8. Orange Lutheran (—)
First win under Ray Fenton: 38-24 at Cathedral Catholic. The Lancers needed that after the Week 0 one-point loss. They hold at No. 8.

9. Servite (—)
Rick Garretson’s first win as Friars coach was a 42-10 handling of Murrieta Valley. That’s the bounce-back they needed after the Centennial loss.

10. JSerra (—)
Hardy Nickerson’s debut win was a 63-0 wipeout of Long Beach Wilson. The Lions stay in the top 10 and look a lot healthier than they did after Week 0.

Notable Movers & Newcomers

Biggest Risers

• Chaparral (↑6 to No. 19): The biggest leap of the week. After getting blasted by Mission Viejo in Week 0, the Pumas went home and beat then-No. 19 San Juan Hills 31-19. Direct result, direct jump.
• Corona del Mar (↑4 to No. 18): The Sea Kings were up 30-0 at one point in a 37-7 win over Santa Barbara. They’re rolling, and the poll finally caught up.
• Yorba Linda (↑2 to No. 14): A 30-13 win over Long Beach Poly is the kind of result that moves you past teams that stumbled. The Mustangs are 2-0 and climbing.
• Rancho Cucamonga (↑1 to No. 12), Palos Verdes (↑1 to No. 16), Norco (↑1 to No. 17): All three cashed in. Trey Towns Jr. and the Cougars dropped 44 on Oaks Christian. Ryan Rakowski threw for 306 yards and three scores as PV edged Bishop Moore (Fla.) 21-18. Julian Medina threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns in Norco’s 56-7 rout of Colony.

Biggest Fallers

• Edison (↓8 to No. 22): The Chargers’ 32-28 loss to Pinnacle (Ariz.) is the steepest drop on the board. They’ll get a chance to reset at home against Corona del Mar.
• San Juan Hills (↓4 to No. 23) and Inglewood (↓4 to No. 24): The Stallions lost the head-to-head with Chaparral. The Sentinels took a 33-26 decision at Westlake (Texas) after last week’s statement win over Los Alamitos. Both stay in the Top 25 — just not as high.

New to the Rankings
Huntington Beach (No. 20), Chaminade (No. 21) and Bishop Amat (No. 25) all enter this week.

The Oilers’ 31-15 win over Los Alamitos was their first over the Griffins since 2012 — 28 points before Los Al even scored. Chaminade is 3-0 after Jeremy Mellalieu threw four touchdowns in a 35-10 win over Valencia. Bishop Amat led Oak Hills 16-0 after one quarter and closed it 22-3. That’s Year 2 under Kory Minor looking a lot more serious.

Long Beach Poly, Murrieta Valley and Los Alamitos drop out.

Full Week 2 Top 25

1. Santa Margarita (↑2)
2. St. John Bosco (—)
3. Centennial (↓2)
4. Sierra Canyon (—)
5. Mater Dei (—)
6. Mission Viejo (—)
7. San Clemente (—)
8. Orange Lutheran (—)
9. Servite (—)
10. JSerra (—)
11. Crean Lutheran (—)
12. Rancho Cucamonga (↑1)
13. Damien (↓1)
14. Yorba Linda (↑2)
15. Pacifica (—)
16. Palos Verdes (↑1)
17. Norco (↑1)
18. Corona del Mar (↑4)
19. Chaparral (↑6)
20. Huntington Beach (NR)
21. Chaminade (NR)
22. Edison (↓8)
23. San Juan Hills (↓4)
24. Inglewood (↓4)
25. Bishop Amat (NR)