With three-and-a-half weeks left in the regular season, the race for the 56 playoff spots across seven divisions is heating up in the Sac-Joaquin Section.

As it stands, all local teams are well positioned to at least qualify for one-off postseason bowl games.

There are only 22 automatic entries reserved for league champions, with tiebreakers in place to determine who gets the pass to the brackets. The remaining bids go to the teams with the highest MaxPreps ratings and a minimum of four wins.

For the second-year SJS Bowl Games, teams ranked Nos. 9-16 in each division gain eligibility. The section’s seeding committee will create regionally-based match-ups pitting schools with similar competitive levels regardless of divisional placement.

In the stacked Division II field, Manteca managed to jump two spots to No. 6 despite its 42-13 loss to Central Catholic, which has ascended to No. 3 behind Sierra Foothill League heavyweights Rocklin and Del Oro. The Buffs got a boost in strength of schedule and Division I Edison’s win over previously-unbeaten Tracy, which slid to No. 9, but they may need to win out to secure their at-large berth. That’s because No. 10 Chavez or No. 12 Stagg of the San Joaquin Athletic Association will take an automatic spot, and No. 13 River City is a darkhorse in the Monticello Empire League.

Manteca has a Week 9 bye with three rivalry showdowns in sight, including the Oct. 23 date with Division III contender Oakdale.

East Union and Sierra are ranked sixth and 12th, respectively, in Division IV.

East Union needs one more win for the requisite four, as it looks to make second straight run to the final. The Lancers can improve their rating on Friday with an upset of visiting Oakdale, which is No. 15 in MaxPreps’ overall section rankings.

For Sierra, the toughest part of its schedule is ahead. The T’wolves’ schedule strength is sure to get a bump the next two weeks with match-ups against overall No. 12 Manteca and No. 8 Central Catholic. Home games against fellow Division IV hopefuls East Union and Patterson follow. Patterson is fifth in the division after its 41-31 win at EU.

Lathrop, coming off back-to-back wins, is on the bubble at the No. 8 spot in Division V. The Spartans have a big homecoming test this week in Central Valley. The Hawks are locked in a first-place tie with Johansen, which has beaten Lathrop, in the Western Athletic Conference and may likely need to win the championship for an automatic bid in the tough Division III bracket. CV sits at No. 14 in D-III, while Johansen is 11th.

Strength of schedule has benefited both Ripon Christian and Ripon out of the Trans Valley League, despite recent results. Ripon Christian is idle this week and ranked third in Division VI after ending a two-game slide with a 17-6 victory at Orestimba. The Knights are back in action Oct. 23 against undefeated Hilmar, which is ranked No. 2 in Division V.

Fifth-ranked Ripon has dropped three straight and needs to come out on top in at least two of its final four games to hit the four-win barrier. It won’t be easy with its closing stretch that begins with visiting Escalon, ranked fourth in D-V.

River Islands is off to a program-record start but lacks quality wins. The Riptide are seventh in Division VII but can improve their standing in the coming weeks. They must first avoid an upset against Bret Harte in Angels Camp on Friday. They’ll then end their regular season against No. 3 Linden at home and No. 8 Big Valley Christian in Modesto. Their bye is in Week 10.

Here’s a closer look at Week 7 match-ups for area teams:

Valley Oak League

Manteca (2-1, 4-3) at Sierra (1-1, 4-2): Urgency has set in for the Buffaloes following their mistake-filled loss to Central Catholic.

The reigning league champions may be fighting for their playoff lives. They’ll lock up with a cross-town foe that’s on the outside looking in for the Division IV playoffs and in need of some major upsets down the stretch.

Manteca has won the last 13 games against the Timberwolves, including last year’s 74-7 thrashing, and owns a 25-6 all-time lead.

Workhorse running back Nikko Juarez had little to do in the previous three head-to-heads, in part because he played through a shoulder injury his sophomore year. All three games were also out of reach by halftime. Manteca’s all-time leading rusher totaled 223 yards and five touchdowns on just 11 carries.

Ryan Teicheira has helped Sierra double its 2025 win total in his first year as head coach of his alma mater. The Timberwolves recorded their first shutout of the season last week, but the offense was silenced in the second half of a 13-0 win at Sierra. Blama Kamara (25 catches, 576 yards, five TDs), one of the section’s leading wide outs, was on the receiving end of both first-half touchdowns.

Oakdale (2-0, 3-3) at East Union (0-2, 3-3): The Lancers have lost 32 in a row against Oakdale, the longest active head-to-head streak in the VOL.

Although it’s a one-sided series favoring the Mustangs, 48-9, most of the recent entanglements have been competitive. Last year, Oakdale won 71-55 before both teams made runs to runner-up finishes in the section playoffs.

Both teams graduated much of their talent from 2025, including Oakdale star Wes Burford and JP Abrew of East Union — now teammates at Air Force.

Patterson is the common opponent, so far. Oakdale took care of the Tigers 49-21 two weeks ago. Coming off their bye week, Mustangs appear to have rebounded well from their early three-game skid to Lincoln, Escalon and No. 25 state-ranked Crean Lutheran of Irvine.

Senior Anthony Navarro (763 yards, 5.7 per carry, six TD) heads Oakdale’s Wing-T running game that averages 265.8 yards per game. East Union saw a similar attack in Week 4 against still-undefeated Placer, which rambled for 420 rushing yards.

Trans Valley League

Escalon (2-1, 4-3) at Ripon (0-2, 2-4): Ripon has dropped the last seven meetings against the Cougars. Ripon hasn’t won in this longtime rivalry since 2019, the year it claimed the Division IV-AA state title. Escalon leads overall, 50-23-4.

Both teams are battle tested by tough non-league schedules. Overall, five of Escalon’s games have been decided by seven or less points. Last week, the Cougars downed Hughson, 31-14. Ripon lost at Hughson two weeks ago 35-21 but is fresh from its bye.

They’re led by third-year varsity running back Dylan Ball, who is sixth in the section in rushing with 982 yards (8.8 per carry) to go with eight touchdowns. All of the Cougars’ top skill-position players are sophomores and juniors.

Escalon has size and experience in the trenches, where 6-foot-8, 305-pound Caleb Boatman, 6-7, 250-pound tight end Kolton Kjellberg, 6-5, 280-pound tackle Dominic Rissetto and second-year sophomore Trey Herrera (6-0, 285) are featured.

With two more wins needed to qualify for the postseason, Ripon next heads to two-time reigning state champion Sonora before closing with Orestimba at home and neighboring Ripon Christian.

Western Athletic Conference

Central Valley (3-0, 5-1) at Lathrop (2-1, 3-3): Bolstered by the addition of transfer Roman Duvernay and the possible return of running back/defensive lineman Jayden White from injury, Lathrop may be rounding into form in time for the stretch run.

The Spartans have not yet lost to Central Valley, winning the previous two clashes by large margins. The Hawks, however, are on pace to have one of their best seasons in program history, combining a veteran group of returners — led by junior quarterback in Roberto Gomez (43 of 68, 675 yards, eight TDs, no interceptions) — with promising youngsters than went 7-2-1 at the JV level.

Central Valley has been on fire since losing the season opener to Pitman 29-14 in its brand-new stadium. The Hawks averaged 45.2 points win wins over El Capitan, Modesto, Beyer, Grace Davis and Pacheco. None of those games were competitive, though Grace Davis made things interesting by scoring 12 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, Lathrop’s modified Wing-T attack got untracked the past two weeks in blowout wins over Pacheco and Livingston. Duvernay (288 yards, 12 per carry, seven TDs) played a big role in that with his physical running style.

Mother Lode League

River Islands (2-1, 6-1) at Bret Harte (0-2, 2-4): The Riptide’s explosive spread offense is whole again with the return of receiver Darien East from a hamstring injury. He had just two touches in a 41-0 win against Riverbank last week, but they went for 34-yard rushing and 72-yard receiving touchdowns.

Bret Harte is desperate for a win after coming up just short on Big Valley Christian’s homecoming, 35-33. Dual-threat quarterback Jeshua Wahlman passed for four touchdowns in the near-upset, as BVC improved to 6-1.

The Bullfrogs’ other league loss was to Linden, 40-6. They’ve dropped four straight while surrendering 45.3 points per game.

As it stands, all local teams are well positioned to at least qualify for one-off postseason bowl games.

There are only 22 automatic entries reserved for league champions, with tiebreakers in place to determine who gets the pass to the brackets. The remaining bids go to the teams with the highest MaxPreps ratings and a minimum of four wins.

For the second-year SJS Bowl Games, teams ranked Nos. 9-16 in each division gain eligibility. The section’s seeding committee will create regionally-based match-ups pitting schools with similar competitive levels regardless of divisional placement.

In the stacked Division II field, Manteca managed to jump two spots to No. 6 despite its 42-13 loss to Central Catholic, which has ascended to No. 3 behind Sierra Foothill League heavyweights Rocklin and Del Oro. The Buffs got a boost in strength of schedule and Division I Edison’s win over previously-unbeaten Tracy, which slid to No. 9, but they may need to win out to secure their at-large berth. That’s because No. 10 Chavez or No. 12 Stagg of the San Joaquin Athletic Association will take an automatic spot, and No. 13 River City is a darkhorse in the Monticello Empire League.

Manteca has a Week 9 bye with three rivalry showdowns in sight, including the Oct. 23 date with Division III contender Oakdale.

East Union and Sierra are ranked sixth and 12th, respectively, in Division IV.

East Union needs one more win for the requisite four, as it looks to make second straight run to the final. The Lancers can improve their rating on Friday with an upset of visiting Oakdale, which is No. 15 in MaxPreps’ overall section rankings.

For Sierra, the toughest part of its schedule is ahead. The T’wolves’ schedule strength is sure to get a bump the next two weeks with match-ups against overall No. 12 Manteca and No. 8 Central Catholic. Home games against fellow Division IV hopefuls East Union and Patterson follow. Patterson is fifth in the division after its 41-31 win at EU.

Lathrop, coming off back-to-back wins, is on the bubble at the No. 8 spot in Division V. The Spartans have a big homecoming test this week in Central Valley. The Hawks are locked in a first-place tie with Johansen, which has beaten Lathrop, in the Western Athletic Conference and may likely need to win the championship for an automatic bid in the tough Division III bracket. CV sits at No. 14 in D-III, while Johansen is 11th.

Strength of schedule has benefited both Ripon Christian and Ripon out of the Trans Valley League, despite recent results. Ripon Christian is idle this week and ranked third in Division VI after ending a two-game slide with a 17-6 victory at Orestimba. The Knights are back in action Oct. 23 against undefeated Hilmar, which is ranked No. 2 in Division V.

Fifth-ranked Ripon has dropped three straight and needs to come out on top in at least two of its final four games to hit the four-win barrier. It won’t be easy with its closing stretch that begins with visiting Escalon, ranked fourth in D-V.

River Islands is off to a program-record start but lacks quality wins. The Riptide are seventh in Division VII but can improve their standing in the coming weeks. They must first avoid an upset against Bret Harte in Angels Camp on Friday. They’ll then end their regular season against No. 3 Linden at home and No. 8 Big Valley Christian in Modesto. Their bye is in Week 10.

Here’s a closer look at Week 7 match-ups for area teams:

Valley Oak League

Manteca (2-1, 4-3) at Sierra (1-1, 4-2): Urgency has set in for the Buffaloes following their mistake-filled loss to Central Catholic.

The reigning league champions may be fighting for their playoff lives. They’ll lock up with a cross-town foe that’s on the outside looking in for the Division IV playoffs and in need of some major upsets down the stretch.

Manteca has won the last 13 games against the Timberwolves, including last year’s 74-7 thrashing, and owns a 25-6 all-time lead.

Workhorse running back Nikko Juarez had little to do in the previous three head-to-heads, in part because he played through a shoulder injury his sophomore year. All three games were also out of reach by halftime. Manteca’s all-time leading rusher totaled 223 yards and five touchdowns on just 11 carries.

Ryan Teicheira has helped Sierra double its 2025 win total in his first year as head coach of his alma mater. The Timberwolves recorded their first shutout of the season last week, but the offense was silenced in the second half of a 13-0 win at Sierra. Blama Kamara (25 catches, 576 yards, five TDs), one of the section’s leading wide outs, was on the receiving end of both first-half touchdowns.

Oakdale (2-0, 3-3) at East Union (0-2, 3-3): The Lancers have lost 32 in a row against Oakdale, the longest active head-to-head streak in the VOL.

Although it’s a one-sided series favoring the Mustangs, 48-9, most of the recent entanglements have been competitive. Last year, Oakdale won 71-55 before both teams made runs to runner-up finishes in the section playoffs.

Both teams graduated much of their talent from 2025, including Oakdale star Wes Burford and JP Abrew of East Union — now teammates at Air Force.

Patterson is the common opponent, so far. Oakdale took care of the Tigers 49-21 two weeks ago. Coming off their bye week, Mustangs appear to have rebounded well from their early three-game skid to Lincoln, Escalon and No. 25 state-ranked Crean Lutheran of Irvine.

Senior Anthony Navarro (763 yards, 5.7 per carry, six TD) heads Oakdale’s Wing-T running game that averages 265.8 yards per game. East Union saw a similar attack in Week 4 against still-undefeated Placer, which rambled for 420 rushing yards.

Trans Valley League

Escalon (2-1, 4-3) at Ripon (0-2, 2-4): Ripon has dropped the last seven meetings against the Cougars. Ripon hasn’t won in this longtime rivalry since 2019, the year it claimed the Division IV-AA state title. Escalon leads overall, 50-23-4.

Both teams are battle tested by tough non-league schedules. Overall, five of Escalon’s games have been decided by seven or less points. Last week, the Cougars downed Hughson, 31-14. Ripon lost at Hughson two weeks ago 35-21 but is fresh from its bye.

They’re led by third-year varsity running back Dylan Ball, who is sixth in the section in rushing with 982 yards (8.8 per carry) to go with eight touchdowns. All of the Cougars’ top skill-position players are sophomores and juniors.

Escalon has size and experience in the trenches, where 6-foot-8, 305-pound Caleb Boatman, 6-7, 250-pound tight end Kolton Kjellberg, 6-5, 280-pound tackle Dominic Rissetto and second-year sophomore Trey Herrera (6-0, 285) are featured.

With two more wins needed to qualify for the postseason, Ripon next heads to two-time reigning state champion Sonora before closing with Orestimba at home and neighboring Ripon Christian.

Western Athletic Conference

Central Valley (3-0, 5-1) at Lathrop (2-1, 3-3): Bolstered by the addition of transfer Roman Duvernay and the possible return of running back/defensive lineman Jayden White from injury, Lathrop may be rounding into form in time for the stretch run.

The Spartans have not yet lost to Central Valley, winning the previous two clashes by large margins. The Hawks, however, are on pace to have one of their best seasons in program history, combining a veteran group of returners — led by junior quarterback in Roberto Gomez (43 of 68, 675 yards, eight TDs, no interceptions) — with promising youngsters than went 7-2-1 at the JV level.

Central Valley has been on fire since losing the season opener to Pitman 29-14 in its brand-new stadium. The Hawks averaged 45.2 points win wins over El Capitan, Modesto, Beyer, Grace Davis and Pacheco. None of those games were competitive, though Grace Davis made things interesting by scoring 12 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, Lathrop’s modified Wing-T attack got untracked the past two weeks in blowout wins over Pacheco and Livingston. Duvernay (288 yards, 12 per carry, seven TDs) played a big role in that with his physical running style.

Mother Lode League

River Islands (2-1, 6-1) at Bret Harte (0-2, 2-4): The Riptide’s explosive spread offense is whole again with the return of receiver Darien East from a hamstring injury. He had just two touches in a 41-0 win against Riverbank last week, but they went for 34-yard rushing and 72-yard receiving touchdowns.

Bret Harte is desperate for a win after coming up just short on Big Valley Christian’s homecoming, 35-33. Dual-threat quarterback Jeshua Wahlman passed for four touchdowns in the near-upset, as BVC improved to 6-1.

The Bullfrogs’ other league loss was to Linden, 40-6. They’ve dropped four straight while surrendering 45.3 points per game.