As part of our high school football coverage to get you ready for the 2025 season, we are rolling out previews of all leagues in our coverage area.

Today’s focus:

TRI-COUNTY ATHLETIC LEAGUE STONE DIVISION

(Predicted order of finish)

No. 1 BETHEL

Coach: Gary Lee

2024 record: 3-8

What to expect: Despite a disappointing 2024 season that included starting 0-6 and being outscored by an average of 35-6 in those contests, optimism prevails at Bethel. After the winless beginning, the Jaguars beat St. Patrick-St. Vincent and tied for first place in the TCAL Stone. This year, it appears they can match and probably surpass any team in the division with their size and speed. Wide receiver/cornerback Jermeer Lee-Hicks is a 6-foot-4, 200-pound transfer from Elite-Vallejo who had over 400 yards worth of catches and 45 tackles last season for the Eagles. He might be the best college prospect in the Stone Division. Fellow senior Kylan McNeal will play quarterback and outside linebacker. He goes 6-4, 190. Three-sport athlete Melvin Miller III will likely open the season at running back. Senior Weston Pangelinan Gull and junior Geovanni Mitchell will provide some experience on the offensive line. On the other side of the ball, Keith Salmon plays OLB/DE. Gull and McNeal join Salmon to give the Jaguars a trio of experienced linebackers. Lee-Hicks is one of the league’s better cornerbacks. 

Season opener: Aug. 29 at Las Lomas, 7 p.m.

No. 2 ST. PATRICK-ST. VINCENT

Coach: Dominguez Dickerson

2024 record: 5-5

What to expect: The Bruins could finish anywhere between first and fourth place in the Stone. They have a sizable number of returning players, experience on both lines and some talented skill players. The question is at quarterback. Curtis Berry IV stands 6-foot-2 and possesses above average speed, but he’s a sophomore. “He’s poised, but he’s still young,” SPSV coach Dominguez Dickerson said. Berry will have a couple of solid receivers in Baron Laxa and Amelio Vigil. Laxa, who is beginning his fourth year on the varsity, did it all last fall for the Bruins, catching 28 passes, scoring three rushing TDs and returning 10 kickoffs. He’s also been a three-year starter in the secondary. He will play in the slot on offense this fall. Vigil (6-foot-2) will be the main outside receiving threat. He caught 13 passes in 2024, three for touchdowns. Dylan Santos will switch from receiver to running back. “He has speed, he’s very strong, he’s a ball of muscle,” Dickerson said. Senior Jaeden Burgstaller-Woody and junior Daniel Corvinelli are key returnees on the offensive and defensive lines. One concern for the Bruins will be numbers. Dickerson is hoping for a roster of about 30 players. There will be no junior varsity team this season.   

Season opener: Aug. 29 at Napa, 7 p.m.

No. 3 HERCULES

Coach: Corey Meshack

2024 record: 2-8

What to expect: The Titans are 3-25 since they last had a winning season in 2021, but there is excitement about this year’s team. “We have a strong group of juniors and seniors returning,” said coach Corey Meshack, who is beginning his second season. “This is a good opportunity. The kids know the system. We’ve had to teach them how to win.” The five non-league games are challenging but winnable. It could come down to the last three weeks of the season, when two of the opponents are Bethel and St. Patrick-St. Vincent. The strength of the Titans could be the defensive line, led by juniors Tyler McCaffrey and Kardonn Jarell. Both stand over six feet and weigh in excess of 270 pounds. The secondary is solid with free safety Erique Broussard Wilson, the Stone Division co-defensive player of the year in 2024, and Sohaib Abdulla. “The best cornerback on the team,” Meshack said of Abdulla. There are two experienced linebackers in Lamont Carter and Drevaughn McGuire. Carter was all-league despite beginning the season on the junior varsity. Junior Zyiere Carter-Moore is expected to start at quarterback. He has size (6-2,190) and a strong arm. He won the job last year, then a knee injury ended his season. The speedy McGuire will be the running back. Napa transfer Shareef Gibson gives Hercules a deep threat at wide receiver, and team captain Aaron Velez is a solid tight end.

Season opener: Aug. 29 at Alhambra, 7 p.m.

No. 4 KENNEDY-RICHMOND

Coach: Jerome Fletcher

2024 record: 6-4

What to expect: New coach Jerome Fletcher has large shoes to fill replacing Greg Marshall, who in eight seasons was 49-32 and captured three outright or co-championships. But Fletcher appears to be up for the challenge. “I believe we’ll be one of the top teams,” he said. The Eagles have a strong offensive line, beginning with Cesar Villa and senior tackle Jose Campos, who goes 6-foot-3, 295 pounds. Campos started at guard last season. Tight end Julius Campos (6-3, 225) gives Kennedy more size up front. The Eagles expect to pass a fair amount with senior quarterback Logan Espinoza having talented receivers in Bryson Briscoe, Treshawn Ellis and Campos. All three pass-catchers stand at least 6-1. The defense returns two solid linebackers in Julius Campos and Kameron Hicks, another good-sized Eagle at 6-1, 235. Fletcher said his team is a little small on the defensive line, but the Eagles are fast in the secondary. Joining the defensive backfield this fall is Raul Velasco, who is switching from linebacker to safety.

Season opener: Aug. 29 at San Lorenzo, 4 p.m.

No. 5 RICHMOND

Coach: Charles Wright II

2024 record: 0-9

What to expect: First-year Richmond coach Charles Wright II is not someone to back down from a challenge. The Oilers are 2-37 since 2021, they haven’t won a league game since 2019, and their best record in the MaxPreps era (since 2004) is 5-5. “Football is easy,” Wright says. “What we’re trying to do is bring new energy. Something the parents and students can enjoy. We’ve been bottom of the barrel the last four years. All we can do is look up.” Defense should be the strength of the team with free safety Manuel Piche and linebackers Jordan Lewis and Jorge Ocampo. Piche averaged 12 tackles per game last season. He also plays running back and returns kicks. Lewis will probably see more snaps on the offensive than on defense this year. He will be used as a wide receiver and running back, and will play “a little safety,” Wright said. Ocampo will rarely miss a down as an inside linebacker and offensive lineman. Wright is very high on freshman quarterback Anthony Mora. How much Mora plays this fall is uncertain, but Wright calls him “one of the smartest players I’ve ever coached.”

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Season opener: Aug. 29 at Riverbank, 7 p.m.

No. 6 ALBANY

Coach: Scott Shevelson

2024 record: Did not field a varsity team

What to expect: Albany will have a varsity team for the first time since 2021. Coach Scott Shevelson isn’t sure what to expect. “We’re trying to get to our first game,” he said. “Our plan is a full varsity season.” Shevelson, who is beginning his third term as the Cougars’ head coach, hopes his roster will number about 25 players. That includes incoming freshmen who may turn out once school starts. The Cougars did play on the junior varsity level last season and went 7-2. “If we stay healthy, I hope we can compete,” Shevelson said. “We don’t have depth.” Senior Muhammad Amin will be the quarterback. He’s listed as a tight end/linebacker by MaxPreps. Junior Theo Morris will play running back and linebacker. Other key players include WR/CB Cainen Cisneros and OL/LB Victor Fraga. The non-league schedule is ambitious. After the opener at Lowell, Albany visits Mt. Eden, then hosts Overfelt and Alhambra. “Those were the closest schools to us we could find with open dates,” Shevelson said. A full-time teacher at Albany, he previously coached the Cougars from 2006-2010, then again in 2016 and 2017. Shevelson was also an assistant on Napoleon Kaufman’s staff at Bishop O’Dowd.

Season opener: Aug. 30 at Lowell-San Francisco, 1 p.m.