Every week brings answers. It also creates a whole new set of questions.
That’s the fun of a high school football season. There are reactions, overreactions, and takeaways as San Joaquin County teams continue to show what they might become.
And then there are the numbers that make you look twice.
Some belong in a video game, the kind you might put up with Madden or EA Sports College Football set to easy mode. Others may not seem quite as unreal but still find a way to fill nearly every corner of the stat sheet.
Here are The Record’s biggest takeaways, reactions, and top individual performances from Week 7.
Key Takeaways
Sixty straight or a changing of the guard? Friday could decide the TCAL
Fifty-nine consecutive league victories. Every TCAL championship since
2014. Not a single league game decided by seven points or fewer. That's the standard St. Mary's has set, with its latest statement coming in a 56-0 win over Kimball. Yet coach Tony Franks warned that this might be the toughest TCAL in years, and Edison has already survived two major tests against Tracy and Lincoln, escaping the latter 51-48. Friday, the Vikings visit St. Mary's with a chance to all but claim the title. If the Rams extend their streak to 60, though, would anyone bet against them beating Tracy and Lincoln?
Some league races are settled. Others are just heating up.
Week 8 hasn't even arrived, and the VOL and SJAA might already have their champions. Central Catholic appears headed toward ending Manteca's two-year reign in the VOL, while Chavez would need a major stumble to lose its grip on the SJAA. The TCAL remains a battle of its own, but don't overlook the MLL or Western League. Linden is unbeaten in MLL play at 3-0, though River Islands (3-1) and favorite Calaveras (3-0) still stand in its way. Meanwhile, Lathrop has new life after beating Central Valley 20-12. The Spartans, who suffered their first league loss since 2023 against Johansen in the opener, now need either Central Valley or Grace Davis, both 3-1, to knock off the unbeaten Vikings (4-0).
Could Tracy really miss the playoffs?
Make that make sense. Tracy is 7-1, has beaten a top-65 team and lost only to Edison, 21-14. Sure, the loss dropped the Bulldogs out of MaxPreps' state top 100, but that's hardly the biggest concern. The site's first Sac-Joaquin Section playoff projections have Tracy outside the field, needing an at-large bid. Now comes Lincoln, followed by St. Mary's. Lose both, and what happens to the Bulldogs' postseason hopes? Pretty wild that a team with this résumé even has to ask.
Video Game Numbers
Julian Perez, Lincoln — Talk about leaving it all on the field. Lincoln's senior quarterback went toe-to-toe with Edison, slinging the ball for a career-high 590 yards on 34-of-50 passing with six total touchdowns and two interceptions. Even that wasn't enough as the Trojans fell 51-48.
David Gray, Lincoln — Julian Perez wasn't the only Trojan putting up video game numbers against Edison. His NCAA Division I target hauled in 12 passes for a career-high 211 yards and three touchdowns. It marked the Cal Poly commit's first 200-yard receiving game, although Lincoln came up short 51-48.
Ian Trejo, Escalon — Who needs a 100-yard receiving game when you can go straight to 200? Escalon junior Ian Trejo picked the rivalry game against Ripon for his breakout performance, torching the Indians for 211 yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions in a 45-24 victory.
Shawn San, McNair — Forget moving the chains a few yards at a time. McNair junior Shawn San was picking up chunks of the field with nearly every completion, throwing for 405 yards and six touchdowns on 12-of-18 passing. That's 33.8 yards per completion in a 52-12 rout of Merrill West.
Taevion Gibson, McNair — Remember when 302 receiving yards was an entire season's worth of production? Those days are long gone for McNair junior Taevion Gibson. After exploding for 202 yards in Week 0, he struck again with 224 yards and two touchdowns on seven catches in a 52-12 demolition of Merrill West.
Elijah Walker, Chavez — Breaking school records one week, nearly perfect the next. Chavez's all-time leader in passing yards and touchdowns completed 17 of 20 passes for 396 yards and five total touchdowns as the Titans rolled past Franklin 69-0.
Case Borges, Tracy — Some players need an entire season to put up numbers like these. Tracy senior linebacker Case Borges needed just one game, racking up 23 tackles, seven tackles for loss, three sacks and two quarterback hits in a 48-7 victory over Lodi.
Stat Sheet Stuffers
When Edison needed one last big play, Travis Gresham delivered. His 55-yard kickoff return set up the winning field goal in a 51-48 victory over Lincoln, capping a night with more than 200 all-purpose yards and two interceptions.
Blink, and you might have missed Nikko Juarez doing his damage. Manteca's all-time leading rusher needed just three carries to pile up 134 yards and three touchdowns in a 65-14 rout of crosstown rival Sierra.
Washington State might be getting a safety, but Jayden Harris can do plenty more. The three-star recruit found the end zone on a 78-yard punt return, a 10-yard reception and a 14-yard run as Manteca rolled past Sierra 65-14.
Breaking two school receiving records was just the beginning for Jackson Batch. The Oregon State commit followed that performance with five catches for 151 yards and three touchdowns as Chavez rolled past Franklin 69-0.
The rivalry week started with tape covering every "R" on Escalon's campus. Dylan Ball helped finish it with 157 yards and three touchdowns on 23 carries in a 45-24 win over Ripon.
This article originally appeared on The Record: San Joaquin County football Week 7 takeaways and top performances
