Sports

Playoffs Preview: De La Salle, Concord High to Play Friday

The Spartans and Minutemen try to advance to the third round of the NCS football playoffs.

Can De La Salle High do it for the 20th consecutive season?

Can Concord High come out on top against Walnut Creek's best team?

Those two questions will be answered at 7 p.m. Friday when the Spartans and the Minutemen play second round NCS football playoff games.

Find out what's happening in Concordwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

De La Salle takes on Freedom High at Spartan Stadium in a Division I match-up while Concord visits Las Lomas High to battle the Knights in a Division II contest.

De La Salle, the top seed in the division, has not lost to a Northern California team since Pittsburg High defeated them, 35-27, in the 1991 NCS championship game.

Find out what's happening in Concordwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The Spartans are 9-1 on the season. They have won seven straight since losing 30-6 to St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Sept. 23. Their smallest margin of victory since then is 21 points.

The Spartans had a bye week last week.

Freedom reached the second round with a thrilling 29-28 victory last week over California High. The Falcons are 10-1 on the season. Their only loss was a 35-14 defeat at the hands of Pittsburg High on Oct. 14. They've won five in a row since then.

However, the eighth ranked Falcons haven't played anybody of the Spartans' caliber. Freedom is ranked 58th in California by Max Preps Sports while De La Salle is ranked sixth.

Meanwhile, Concord High takes its 8-3 record into Las Lomas. The Minutemen have won eight of their past nine, their only defeat coming against College Park High on Nov. 4.

Concord, the division's seventh seed, reached the second round by crushing Newark Memorial High, 42-7, last week.

Las Lomas, the second seed, defeated Washington High of Fremont, 27-6, in the first round. The Knights have a 9-2 record this season. Their only two defeats came against powerhouses Campolindo and Miramonte high schools.

Who do you think will win these games Friday night? Vote in our poll and then discuss the game in our comments section.

Check in with Concord Patch on Friday evening for the local high school football playoff scores as well as stories on the two games.


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