Local Football – 11/20

Last week, while the Lassen Grizzlies and Loyalton Grizzlies won their playoff games to advance toward a division championship, the 2025 season ended for the Modoc Braves and Placer Hillmen after they lost their postseason games.Meanwhile, the Portola Tigers also landed a bowl game for tomorrow night against the Biggs Wolverines.

Lassen Grizzlies: Last Friday, at home, with a ground game producing seven touchdowns and a defense holding the Corning Cardinals to one touchdown and one field goal, the Grizzlies overwhelmed their opponent 49-9 in the first round of California’s Northern Section Division 3 playoffs. Tomorrow, at 6 PM, in a semifinal contest, the Grizzlies will host the Orland Trojans. Like the Grizzlies, the Trojans enter this game with a 9-2 win-loss record and a big (42-14) victory over their round 1 opponent, the West Valley Eagles. Yes, while this playoff game is expected to be very competitive, I think home-field advantage will be the margin the Grizzlies need to reach their division’s championship game against either the Gridley Bulldogs or Arbuckle’s Pierce Bears on November 29.

Loyalton Grizzlies: Last Saturday, at home, in another semifinal playoff game, these Grizzlies dominated the Burney Raiders 40-20. During the game, senior Bryson Lake rushed for two touchdowns and passed for another, juniors Blaine Morgan and Justus Emsoff rushed, respectively, for 94 and 59 yards, and sophomore Sam Williams caught two passes for 42 yards. Thus, Loyalton’s team will be traveling to Trinity County tomorrow for California’s Northern Section 8-Man Football Championship against the Hayfork Timberjacks. When the Grizzlies made this 250-mile journey earlier in the season, on October 10, Hayfork’s team was carrying a 6-0 win-loss record, and the Timberjacks shut out the Grizzlies while scoring 52 points. Since then, the Timberjacks have played four more games, scored 256 points, and held all their opponents scoreless. Given Hayfork’s impressive performance this year, the odds of the Grizzlies bringing home the 8-Man championship are extremely, extremely slim to none.

Modoc Braves: As expected, the number 8 seed (4-6) Braves were unable to upset the number 1 seed (11-0) Redding Christian Lions in Round 1 of California’s Northern Section - Division 5 Playoffs. The Braves did hold the Lions to three fewer touchdowns than they allowed back in early October; however, the final score was a disheartening 0-42 loss.

Placer Hillmen: In a postseason bowl last Friday night, seniors Keilen Beverage and D. Sanchez-Harlow combined to gain 223 yards and scored two touchdowns. The ground game for their hosts, the East Union Lancers, however, amassed an astounding 452 yards, and the Hillmen fell to defeat, 25-58, in their final game of the 2025 season.

Portola Tigers: Last week, we incorrectly reported that the Tigers’ season had ended with the victory over the Quincy Trojans. In fact, tomorrow at 6 PM, the Tigers will play the Biggs Wolverines in a Northern Section -Division 5 “bowl” game. Since the Wolverines outscored the Trojans, 42-8, back on 10/17, both the Tigers’ offense and defense will have to shine much more brightly to reverse the outcome of last month’s game against Biggs’ team.