SBLive's LA City Section Top 10 Football Rankings: It's East LA Classic Week

For the 87th time, Garfield will play Roosevelt in the East LA Classic on Friday night. The game will take place at the Coliseum.

Author:
Connor Morrissette
Publish date:
Oct 17, 2022 6:32 PM EDT

SBLive's LA City Section football rankings will be released every Monday throughout the 2022 season. Enjoy!

1. San Pedro Pirates (8-0)

Last week: 1

Last game: 14-0 win over No. 9 Carson

Next game: Oct. 21 vs. Narbonne

San Pedro blanked Carson last week. The Pirates are giving up an average of just 8.25 points per game this season.

Who else can't wait for San Pedro at No. 2 Banning on Oct. 28? That game will decide who gets the No. 1 seed in the LA City Section Open Division playoffs.

2. Banning Pilots (4-4)

Last week: 2

Last game: 28-0 win over Narbonne

Next game: Oct. 21 at Gardena

In Banning's shutout win over Narbonne, Caleb Nuhi-Yandall rushed for 166 yards and three touchdowns. On defense, the Pilots had 11 tackles for loss.

3. Roosevelt Roughriders (8-0)

Last week: 3

Last game: 40-7 win over Bell

Next game: Oct. 21 vs. Garfield

The key to beating Roosevelt is to stop the run, but so far this season no team has been able to figure that out. In the Rough Riders' 40-7 win over Legacy, Roosevelt totaled 390 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Surprisingly, Roosevelt threw the ball last week too. Senior Naszeer Reed attempted three passes and they all went for touchdowns. Will Roosevelt head coach Aldo Parral call a few passes this week against No. 7 Garfield in the East LA Classic? We'll find out on Friday.

4. Venice Gondoliers (6-2)

Last week: 4

Last game: 35-7 win over Hamilton

Next game: Oct. 21 vs. University

In Venice's 35-7 win over Hamilton, senior QB Paul Kessler completed 19 of 24 passes for 280 yards and three touchdowns. He's the top QB in the City.

5. Birmingham Patriots (4-4)

Last week: 8

Last game: 59-0 win over Chatsworth

Next game: Oct. 21 at El Camino Real

Birmingham steamrolled Chatsworth to move back into the top five. The Patriots will be a tough out in the Open Division playoffs. If the season ended today, Birmingham would play overall No. 1 seed San Pedro in the first round.

6. Franklin Panthers (8-0)

Last week: 5

Last game: 28-14 win over Lincoln

Next game: Oct. 21 at Wilson

Franklin rallied to take down Lincoln 28-14 last week — the game was tied 14-14 at the half. The Panthers struggled in the pass game, but found success in the run game. Senior Omar Gardella rushed for 143 yards and three touchdowns.

7. Garfield (6-2)

Last week: 6

Last game: 55-7 win over Bell

Next game: Oct. 21 vs. No. 3 Roosevelt

When Garfield has won this season, they've won by at least 28 points in each game. If the Bulldogs come out on top in this year's East LA Classic, it will surely be closer than a four score win.

Last season the Bulldogs fell in the Classic for the first time in 10 years. Lorenzo Hernandez's team will be desperate to take back the rivalry trophy on Friday.

8. Eagle Rock (7-1)

Last week: 7

Last game: 50-6 win over Wilson

Next game: Oct. 21 vs. Marshall

Eagle Rock dropped its first game of the season against No. 5 Franklin three weeks ago, but bounced back two weeks ago with a blowout win over Wilson. The Franklin loss put the Eagles right on the Open Division/Division 1 playoff line in the City. Eagle Rock's best win this season came in September against No. 10 Granada Hills 37-22.

9. Carson (4-5)

Last week: 9

Last game: 14-0 loss to No. 1 San Pedro

Next game: Oct. 27 vs. Gardena

Carson played No. 1 San Pedro tough, but couldn't put any points on the board. If the season ended today, the Colts would be the No. 2 seed in the Division 1 playoffs.

10. Granada Hills Highlanders (5-2)

Last week: 10

Last game: 58-21 win over Cleveland

Next game: Oct. 21 vs. Taft

Following their 29-28 defeat against No. 5 Birmingham, Granada Hills took out its anger on Cleveland last week winning 58-21. Class of 2023 University of Utah commit Dijon Stanley rushed for 210 yards and three touchdowns. Sophomore Darrell Stanley rushed for 145 yards and two scores.

If the season ended today, the Highlanders would be the No. 1 seed in the Division 1 playoffs.

In the mix: Cleveland, Palisades