Prep football: Week 4 game preview capsules for all Marin teams

After a month of non-league competition, several Marin teams are set to officially begin life in their new leagues.

The Redwood Empire Mountain and Valley Leagues are set to begin play this weekend. Redwood and Tam begin play in the Valley League against Petaluma and Justin-Siena, respectively.

The Mountain League features four Marin teams, including Archie Williams and Novato, who open up against each other. San Rafael opens up against Healdsburg and Terra Linda has a bye week.

Marin Catholic and San Marin won’t kick off Adobe League play until they face each other in a highly anticipated clash under the lights at San Marin on Oct. 11.

Action inside the county is light this week, limited to Novato at Archie Williams and Justin-Siena at Tam on Saturday afternoon. Redwood is still pretty close by with a Friday night game at Petaluma.

Friday

Tomales (0-4) at Round Valley (1-1), 6 p.m., Covelo

Round Valley got its first taste of victory last week with a 46-8 win against Laytonville, breaking a seven-game skid that stretched back to last season and included a 70-20 loss to Laytonville. Tomales is still looking for its first win after taking a 60-0 loss against Roseland University Prep last week. The Braves have been outscored 228-30 this season.

Redwood (2-2, #37 in NCS) at Petaluma (1-3, #68 in NCS), 7 p.m., Petaluma

The Giants will look to open Redwood Empire Valley league play on a high note against the Trojans. Both teams have already faced Maria Carrillo this season, with Redwood notching a 32-16 victory on Sept. 16 and Petaluma taking a 48-40 loss last week. Petaluma had only completed eight passes combined in its first three games while running the ball 49 times per game on average for a total of 987 yards. Petaluma piled up 406 rushing yards and four touchdowns in a 34-28 loss to Santa Rosa. Redwood has struggled against the run in its losses this season, allowing 176 yards against Rancho Cotate and 287 last week against Enterprise.

San Marin (4-0, #9 in NCS) at Ukiah (2-1, #24 in NCS), 7 p.m., Ukiah

The Mustangs, fresh off a last-second 39-37 win at Casa Grande, travel much farther north to face the Wildcats. Ukiah has won its past two games against Dublin and Chico after a season-opening 40-22 loss to Rancho Cotate. Ukiah is led by QB Beau David, a dual-threat playmaker who has thrown for 851 yards and run for a team-high 215 yards. David has 11 total touchdowns (nine passing, two rushing) against four interceptions. WR Omaurie Phillips-Porter is his top target with 30 of the team’s 50 catches for 480 yards and five scores – including an insane 18-catch, 257-yard stat line against Rancho Cotate.

San Rafael (2-1, #55 in NCS) at Healdsburg (3-1, #70 in NCS), 7 p.m., Healdsburg

Following a two-year break in the series, Healdsburg is back on San Rafael’s schedule as a league opponent. San Rafael won all three meetings between 2019 and 2021 by a combined 100-33 score line. The Bulldogs will be hoping for similar success, but to achieve that they’ll need to slow down dual-threat QB Nova Perrill II, who has thrown 12 touchdowns against no interceptions. Perrill II has 833 passing yards and a team-high 227 rushing yards, plus two more scores. Hayden Mariani is the top target with 12 catches for 363 yards and six touchdowns.

Marin Catholic (2-2, #8 in NCS) at Edison (0-4, #28 in Sac-Joaquin), 7:30 p.m., Stockton

The Wildcats are set for their fourth game this season against a team from the Sac-Joaquin Section, but the Vikings are the lowest-ranked of the bunch. Edison has lost all four games by at least two scores and has been outscored 144-67 on the season. QB Devin Rasmussen had thrown for 705 yards with six touchdowns against three interceptions. WR Langdon Horace has 25 catches for 377 yards and a pair of touchdowns. MC has bounced back from an 0-2 start with a dramatic 29-28 win against Manteca followed by a 42-0 win against Tam.

Saturday

Novato (2-1, #85 in NCS) at Archie Williams (2-2, #88 in NCS), 2 p.m., San Anselmo

The Hornets and Peregrine Falcons begin life in their new league against a familiar opponent in each other. The teams already have a common opponent in Encinal with Archie Williams winning 39-34 on Sept. 6 and the Hornets winning 34-7 on Sept. 14. The two teams closed out MCAL play last season against each other with Archie Williams securing a 36-21 victory. Novato held a 14-13 lead at the half but the Peregrine Falcons pulled away for the victory in the second half.

Justin-Siena (2-1, #64 in NCS) at Tam (0-4, #33 in NCS), 2 p.m., Mill Valley

The Red-tailed Hawks also open play in their new league against a familiar opponent, albeit one they haven’t seen since Justin-Siena left the MCAL for the Vine Valley League in 2018. The Braves haven’t faced a single MCAL team since the 2017 season and last played Tam in 2016 – a 50-21 victory for the Red-tailed Hawks, who were led by QB Cooper Carroll, RB Tre’chaun Berkeley, and WR Jordan Smith. When Justin-Siena played in the MCAL, the program often utilized a run-heavy, veer offense. The 2024 Braves are a pass-happy bunch, having thrown for 780 yards against just 248 on the ground. Senior QB Drew Sangiacomo has thrown for 749 yards with six touchdowns against two interceptions. Senior WR Tommy Malloy has 29 catches for 319 yards and four scores. Tam QB Reed Edwards made his season debut last week under tough circumstances against a strong Marin Catholic defense. Edwards completed 10 of 18 passes for 120 yards but was picked off three times.

Terra Linda (2-1, #65 in NCS) at Washington (1-2, #4 in San Francisco), 2 p.m., San Francisco

With seven teams in the Redwood Empire Mountain league, someone had to play a non-league game. Terra Linda’s league debut will come next week in a home game against Archie Williams. The Trojans saw their early-season defensive dominance halted in a 56-0 loss to Heritage last week but should bounce back against the Eagles. TL gave up only 90 yards in the air against Heritage but were gashed for 196 yards on 24 carries on the ground. Washington hasn’t played a close game this season, losing to Skyline and Stevenson before beating Richmond 31-6 last week.

Bye week

Branson (2-1). Next game: Oct. 10 at Swett.