Ryan Teicheira has stood on both sidelines of the Sierra-Lathrop rivalry.
On Friday, the two schools will meet on the gridiron for the 15th time, and the 2001 Sierra graduate will be back on the home side of Daniel Teicheira Memorial Stadium.
Across the field are the familiar faces of the Spartans, now led by his former defensive coordinator, Justin Muschott. Lathrop reached several milestones the past five seasons under Teicheira, including Western Athletic Conference championships and Sac-Joaquin Section Division V semifinal appearances the past two years.
Although Lathrop has won the last two, Sierra leads all-time, 9-5.
Elsewhere, East Union makes its 2026 debut following a zero-week bye and a highly-successful first season under coach Jason Stock. Also at home are River Islands and Ripon Christian, both of which kicked off the new season with lopsided wins.
Manteca and Ripon are headed opposite directions on long trips for intriguing clashes against powerhouses.
Here’s a closer look at the Week 1 matchups:
Lathrop (0-1) at Sierra (1-0): Both teams want to improve from their Week Zero performances.
Although Sierra beat Enochs 28-7, behind 21 unanswered points in the second half, the Timberwolves’ running game — 29 carries for 68 yards — couldn’t get untracked, and some early mistakes kept the visiting Eagles in it.
Second-year junior quarterback Jaysen Martinez had a solid opener (9 of 14, 162 yards, two touchdowns) while under duress for much his drop-backs, and Blama Kamara (156 all-purpose yards, 60-yard TD catch) showed his explosiveness as a receiver and special-teams returner.
The defense allowed just 144 yards and led by Isaac Kempf (nine tackles) and Damian Densmore (eight tackles, sack, forced fumble).
Teicheira is trying to bring the same physicality up front that he got out of the Spartans in recent years.
In Merced, Lathrop out-gained Golden Valley 316-294 on offensive yards and ran 12 more plays, but the 23-6 final tells a different story. The Spartans were thwarted by five turnovers and unfinished drives in Cougars territory. They didn’t get into the end zone until fullback Jayden White pounded his way in from a yard out with 5:11 left with the game already out of reach.
There were some positives for Lathrop to take away. Senior wingback Ekam Sohal (57 rushing yards, 42 receiving) and Jaylen Santos (nine rushes, 101 yards) were productive in the Spartans’ new-look Wing-T.
Modesto (0-1) at East Union (0-0): East Union has an extra week to get ready for the season with many new starters at key spots on both sides of scrimmage.
Modesto may be the perfect opening opponent for the Lancers. The Panthers, who ended 2025 on an eight-game skid, were shutout last week at Johansen, 27-0. Johansen, a future opponent of EU’s, ground out 153 yards with seven different ball carriers and forced three turnovers on defense.
Modesto has not had a winning season since 2017.
Manteca (0-1) at Buchanan (1-1): It doesn’t get easier for the Buffaloes, who lost to Central Coast Section heavyweight St. Francis 31-23 last week in Mountain View.
They’ve turned their attention to one of the best out of the Central Section.
Ranked No. 5 in the CS by MaxPreps, Buchanan welcomes the Buffs to Clovis after throttling its first two opponents. The 63-27 drubbing of Visalia’s Golden West on Aug. 21 was forfeited by the Bears for use of an ineligible player. They went on to trounce Central Valley Christian, 55-21.
Like St. Francis, Buchanan has NCAA Division I prospects all over the field. Three-star junior quarterback Tommy Devany (22 of 34, 401 yards, eight TDs, interception) leads the explosive offense.
Also back for the 2025 CS Division I-AA semifinalist are three-star receiver/running back Carvell Wafer Jr. (363 scrimmage yards, seven touchdowns), running back Gannon Sever (238 yards, two TDs) and heralded three-star strong safety Grant Moser (six tackles, INT), who is also a big-target receiver (55 yards, two TDs) at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds.
Interior defensive lineman Jayden Turner heads the defense with five sacks.
This is the second Manteca’s three difficult road games before league. After hosting Chavez next week, the Buffs travel to Northern Section juggernaut Chico on Sept. 18.
Delhi (0-1) at River Islands (1-0): The Riptide is brimming with confidence after storming past Waterford 49-20 with a wave of 30 unanswered points in the second half.
It was a satisfying, albeit imperfect, outcome for a third-year team on a mission to avenge its 2025 defeats. One of them was to Delhi.
The Hawks kicked off their campaign with a 21-7 loss to visiting Bret Harte, but their top returning player, quarterback Bryan Martinez, did not play.
Junior Edgar Gonzalez (2 of 5, 12 yards) played behind center and scored Delhi’s lone touchdown on a short-yardage run. The Hawks mostly did their damage on the ground, using six different ball carriers to pile up 155 yards on 38 carries.
Bret Harte, which River Islands will see in Mother Lode League play, beat Delhi with a balanced attack led by quarterback Jeshua Wahlman, who passed for 108 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 82 yards.
Ripon (1-0) at Placer (1-0): Ripon warded off large-school Livermore 27-24 last week and is likely in for another battle up in Auburn.
Tradition-rich Placer also held on for a quality win in its opener, downing Sac-Joaquin Section Division V finalist Casa Roble, 18-13.
The Placer-Ripon showdown is a duel of balanced Wing-T offenses.
The senior-heavy Hillmen are led by two-way standouts such as running back/linebacker Jesiah Aday (72 rushing yards, nine tackles), running back/free safety Isiah Caminiti (49 yards, fumble recovery) and receiver/outside linebacker Riley Nilsen (four catches, 116 yards; 10 tackles, fumble recovery).
Inside linebacker Carter Soderman (10 tackles), 6-3, 265-pound Gage Esty (five tackles, 2.0 for losses) and 6-2, 235-pound junior end Lewis Lewis Marquez are defensive anchors.
Stagg (0-1) at Ripon Christian (1-0): After rolling past Mother Lode League power Summerville on the road, 41-6, the Knights are testing themselves against a large-school opponent for their home opener.
It will be the first-ever meeting between Ripon Christian and Stagg, which is coming off an 8-3 campaign and returns one of the top running backs in the SJS in Darnell Holmes. The 5-8, 160-pound dynamo rambled for 180 yards on 27 carries in a 17-14 loss to Rio Americano last week.
Special teams played a big part in the outcome, as Rio Americano blocked a punt returned for a touchdown and blocked a 45-yard field goal. It was an otherwise strong defensive effort by the Delta Kings, who held the Raiders to 130 yards.
Senior quarterback Dario Dominguez had a hand in both of Stagg’s touchdowns, hitting Isaac Bun (four catches, 49 yards) with a pass for one and running in the other.
Stagg is headed by first-year coach Sopeter Mao.
