2026 SDFNL KICKOFF CLASSIC THIS WEEKEND

By Ramon Scott
Updated: August 11, 2026

2026 PREP FOOTBALL

SAN DIEGO FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS KICKOFF CLASSIC

EAST COUNTY TEAMS GET FINAL TUNE-UP

Valhalla, El Capitan, Santana and Steele Canyon set for preseason scrimmages at Hoover and University City

By Ramon Scott
EastCountySports.com

SAN DIEGO — The scoreboard won’t count toward anybody’s record, but the football should tell coaches plenty.

Four East County teams will participate in the 2026 San Diego Friday Night Lights Kickoff Classic Friday and Saturday, an annual preseason event that gives teams an opportunity to work in full uniforms and pads against outside competition before the regular season begins.

Santana will face Hoover and El Capitan will meet University City on Friday night. Valhalla takes on San Diego and Steele Canyon faces Del Norte on Saturday.

The two-day event will be held at Hoover and University City high schools, with admission consisting of one canned food item benefiting the San Diego Food Bank.

The Kickoff Classic has become a longstanding part of the preseason calendar for San Diego Friday Night Lights, an organization also known for its postseason all-star game and its work helping high school players connect with college football opportunities, including programs outside the FBS and FCS levels.

For the teams, however, this weekend is primarily about football.

The regular season begins one week later, making the Kickoff Classic a final opportunity to evaluate personnel, test offensive and defensive packages and give starters meaningful work without the result becoming part of the record.

For East County followers, it also provides an early look at four Grossmont Conference teams with plenty to sort out before opening night.

VALHALLA VS. SAN DIEGO

Saturday, 7 p.m. — Hoover High School

Valhalla is one of the biggest stories in East County entering the season, and the Norsemen’s matchup with San Diego should provide the first significant look at coach Jason Carter’s rebuilt program.

Carter takes over a Valhalla team that finished 3-8 last season but will look considerably different in 2026.

Quarterback Jeremiah Loper transferred from Mount Miguel after throwing for 2,423 yards and 26 touchdowns with only six interceptions last season. His arrival gives Valhalla an established varsity quarterback around whom Carter can build the offense.

Loper won’t lack targets.

Romeo Pepi comes over from Madison after catching 39 passes for 422 yards and six touchdowns. Former University City receiver Des DeMara had 32 receptions for 402 yards and three scores last season while also making 78 tackles on defense.

Sophomore Tmarrion Williams caught 23 passes and scored eight touchdowns as a freshman at Mount Miguel, and Camryn Conley adds another option to a receiving group that should allow Valhalla to spread the field.

The Norsemen also return running back Jayden Hunter, who rushed for 736 yards last season.

How quickly all of those pieces fit together is one of the major questions surrounding Valhalla, and San Diego should provide an excellent early measurement.

The Cavers went 7-6 last season and are now coached by former Chargers linebacker and former Francis Parker head coach Stephen Cooper.

San Diego quarterback Jayden Harris passed for 2,167 yards and 17 touchdowns last season, while running back Jayden Johnson rushed for 786 yards.

The headline player is Kye Cooper, a San Diego State commit who caught 64 passes for 897 yards and seven touchdowns while also contributing 70 tackles at safety.

And there is a familiar name for East County fans on the other side.

Former Mount Miguel receiver and UNLV commit Delontay Williams is now at San Diego, adding another explosive athlete to the Cavers’ offense.

For Valhalla, the objective isn’t to win a preseason scrimmage. It’s to find out how far a reconstructed roster has come before the games begin to count.

Against San Diego’s skill talent, Carter should get some answers.

EL CAPITAN VS. UNIVERSITY CITY

Friday, 7 p.m. — University City High School

El Capitan’s situation is much different.

The Vaqueros enter 2026 with considerably more continuity and should be among the teams with legitimate expectations in what could become a highly competitive Grossmont Valley League race.

Junior quarterback Hayden Passanisi returns after throwing for 1,014 yards and six touchdowns as a sophomore, while running back Michael Castillo rushed for 558 yards and four scores.

Micah Clark provides another returning weapon after recording 140 receiving yards and two touchdowns in six games, while senior tight end Braiden Linder caught 14 passes for 140 yards and figures prominently on both sides of the football.

The Vaqueros have also added former Granite Hills running back Anthony Mattar and receiver Elijah Arzu.

Friday’s assignment should be a substantial one.

University City returns 17 starters and has one of the section’s more productive backs in Deshaun Hille, who accounted for 1,992 yards from scrimmage and 27 touchdowns last season.

Receiver D.J. Ferguson is another player El Capitan will need to locate. Ferguson caught 40 passes for 731 yards and seven touchdowns as a freshman.

University City’s experienced defense should also give Passanisi and the Vaqueros’ offense something close to a regular-season examination.

The timing is particularly useful for El Capitan.

The Vaqueros open their regular season the following week at Pearl City in Hawaii, so Friday represents their final stateside on-the-field contact before making the trip.

Execution, substitutions, communication and game operation could ultimately be more valuable to El Capitan than anything that happens on the scoreboard.

SANTANA VS. HOOVER

Friday, 7 p.m. — Hoover High School

Santana may have one of the most interesting individual matchups of the East County contingent.

The Sultans have an experienced secondary.

Hoover has an experienced passing attack.

Something should be learned from that combination.

Santana finished 6-6 overall and 2-3 in league play last season, defeating Bonita Vista 11-10 in the playoffs before its season ended against eventual state finalist Morse.

Coach Tim Estes returns a veteran quarterback in Ethan Miller, who completed 62 percent of his passes for 1,285 yards and 12 touchdowns last season.

Miller believes the receiving corps could be one of the strengths of the team, and Santana has several players capable of getting involved.

Denton Gore returns after catching nearly 40 passes, including 384 receiving yards and three touchdowns, while also intercepting two passes defensively.

Ethan Smith should receive an expanded offensive role after averaging approximately 20 yards per reception in limited opportunities last season.

Then there is Koko Thornton, a first-team all-league performer whose versatility makes him one of Santana’s most important players. Thornton can line up as a receiver or in the backfield, plays safety and is also a dangerous return specialist.

Santana also has senior Brenden Varner, sophomore Landon Braaksma and senior Josh Pehl among the additional receiving options.

The Sultans aren’t planning to become a passing team exclusively.

Julian Mayers is expected to begin the season as the primary running back after emerging as an important part of the offense last year. Estes also plans to use Mayers on defense.

Tatum Morehouse may be even more versatile.

Morehouse recorded 75 tackles, four sacks and two fumble recoveries last season and will again have a major defensive role while contributing at tight end or running back and handling punting duties.

Santana also returns linebacker Ryder Davey, who had six tackles for loss and 3½ sacks, and cornerback Anthony Terry, who recorded nine pass breakups and two fumble recoveries.

Terry and Gore are expected to work at corner with Thornton providing experience behind them at safety.

That secondary gets an immediate challenge Friday.

Hoover reached the CIF Division 5 championship game last season and returns 15 starters from a 7-7 team.

Quarterback Hezekiah Manuel threw for 3,033 yards and 26 touchdowns as a sophomore and enters his junior season drawing college attention.

Receivers Abdulhakam Abdallah and Rahni Grant Jr. combined for 120 catches and 1,981 yards, and the Cardinals have added former Mount Miguel receiver Jayden Stewart.

Four starting offensive linemen also return.

For a Santana defense that considers its secondary a strength, that’s about as useful a preseason test as Estes could request.

The other area worth watching is Santana’s offensive line.

Senior Raul Cortez is listed at tackle, while sophomore Izaiah Celindro gives the Sultans a 6-foot-1, 235-pound young lineman and sophomore Silas Waider adds another developing piece up front.

STEELE CANYON VS. DEL NORTE

Saturday, 7 p.m. — University City High School

Steele Canyon provides perhaps the best combination of returning production and established varsity experience among the four East County participants.

The Cougars are coming off a 9-4 season and return quarterback Gavin Caha, who started all 13 games as a junior.

Caha completed 169 of 264 passes for 2,426 yards and 25 touchdowns, giving Steele Canyon one of the Grossmont Conference’s most experienced returning quarterbacks.

Cougars Hhead coach Scott Longerbone calls Caha the best quarterback in the county.

Several of his targets are also back.

Josiah Stocker caught 30 passes for 464 yards and four touchdowns last season and was particularly dangerous on special teams. Stocker returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown and a punt 60 yards for another score.

Malcholm Ballard had 20 receptions for 284 yards, while 6-foot-4 tight end Trevor Zenno caught 12 passes for 183 yards and two touchdowns.

Running back Marcus Hunt averaged 7.3 yards per carry, rushing for 321 yards on only 44 attempts.

Junior Dreyvione Lewis also returns after getting varsity carries as a sophomore.

There is experience on defense as well.

Luke Rode recorded 57 tackles last season, while Gunner Minich had 55 tackles, five tackles for loss and two interceptions.

Jamieson Sablan contributed 30 tackles and an interception, Seabastian Castellon had 23 tackles and five tackles for loss, and Cameron Buchanan returns after recording 16 tackles and a sack in eight games.

The Cougars also have considerable size among their returning upperclassmen up front.

Del Norte should test it.

The Nighthawks went only 4-7 last season, but that record doesn’t accurately describe the amount of experienced offensive personnel coach Nick Barnett brings back.

Senior quarterback Kaden Williams completed 60 percent of his passes for 1,671 yards and 11 touchdowns.

First-team all-league receiver Riley Farroki caught 53 passes for 671 yards and six touchdowns, while 6-foot-5 tight end Detroit Taylor provides a difficult matchup in the middle of the field.

Running back Maddox Romans rushed for 743 yards and nine touchdowns.

And then there’s the offensive line.

Army commit Jacob Zieroff is 6-foot-5 and 255 pounds. Center Hudson Kelley is 6-2, 325. Guard Jackson Aunne is 6-3, 275, and junior Theo Anderson checks in at 6-8, 325.

For a Steele Canyon team preparing for Grossmont Hills League competition, there isn’t much downside to spending its final preseason Saturday dealing with that kind of size.

The Cougars will have enough experience on the field this season to surely challenge last year’s success.