It’s the penultimate week of the regular season, and plenty of high-quality matchups are taking place across the San Fernando Valley. All three league titles could be decided by the end of the night, or, depending on how things go in Granada and Verdugo Hills, we could have a bit of chaos heading into the final week. Here are the intriguing matchups happening around the Valley that you won’t want to miss on Friday night:

Van Nuys Wolves (5-4) at Panorama Pythons (5-3) – 7 pm kickoff, Panorama High School

The Van Nuys Wolves have had a season full of ups and downs. They’ve had to fight through injuries at key positions. They have had to play inexperienced players significant time on the Varsity level. Despite it all, the Wolves have persevered, and the young players Ken Osorio has leaned on have risen to the occasion. Their final regular-season game will be tough, though, as they head to Panorama to face a rugged Pythons squad coming off a bye week and looking to finish the regular season strong. Brandon Hernandez has been tough to stop this season, so the Wolves’ defense will have its work cut out. A win here would serve both of these squads well, as Division II seems like the likely destination for both teams come playoff time. A victory should put the winner in a stronger position to host a playoff game.

#3 Cleveland Cavaliers (8-0) at #15 Granada Hills Highlanders (3-4) – 7:15 pm kickoff, Granada Hills High School

The Cavaliers have had a tremendous 2026 season so far, but Mario Guzman’s squad is hungry for more. If they can win their last two games, the Cavs will accomplish two firsts in program history: an undefeated regular season and a West Valley League championship. Cleveland hits the road for its final regular-season game as it takes on the Highlanders, who are looking to rebound from last week’s defeat on the road at Birmingham. Both Cleveland and GHC lean on smashmouth offenses designed to break their opponent’s will. I expect a hard-hitting, physical contest decided in the trenches.

#20 Taft Toreadors (4-4) at #22 El Camino Real Royals (3-5) – 7:15 pm kickoff, El Camino Real High School

It’s time to decide who gets the bragging rights as Taft and El Camino Real meet tonight in the annual Woodland Hills battle. If you ask the Royals, they’ll say it hasn’t been much of a rivalry, as they have won the previous nine meetings going back to 2016. The Toreadors have more than enough firepower to turn the tide in this series, and they’ll enter the matchup as the older, more experienced team. The Royals are young, but talented. Elco showed their talent on the road at Chatsworth last week, picking up their first win in league play, 22-6 over the Chancellors. Taft should be the favorite here, but anything goes in the West Valley.

VST Co-Games of the Week

#23 San Fernando Tigers (5-3) at #5 Kennedy Cougars (8-0) – 7 pm kickoff, Kennedy High School

It’s always fun when San Fernando and Kennedy lock horns in Valley Mission play. The stakes couldn’t be higher this year, as the Tigers have a golden opportunity not only to position themselves to steal a share of the Valley Mission title, but also to end Kennedy’s league dominance. The Cougars enter the contest with 22 straight wins in the Valley Mission League and are closing in on a third straight league title. The Cougars’ offense is scary, averaging nearly 46 points per game this season. The Tigers are no slouches on offense either, averaging 31 ppg in Valley Mission play. It could be fireworks when these two get together in Granada Hills tonight.

#18 Poly Parrots (7-1) at #25 Verdugo Hills Dons (6-2) – 7 pm kickoff, Verdugo Hills High School

If you asked Boo Williams and Sean Jackson, both coaches would tell you that, going into the season, they knew they had the teams to end the North Hollywood Huskies’ reign over the East Valley League. Tonight, the winning coach will see that dream come to fruition. The Poly Parrots are one of the hottest teams in the City Section, with seven straight wins, and they’ve made it look easy. During the win streak, the Parrots have outscored opponents by an average of 27 ppg, and in five of those seven contests, the Poly defense held opponents to 8 points or fewer, including two shutouts. The Dons’ offense will present a much bigger challenge this week, though, as Jered Smith has had a statistical season for the Verdugo Hills record books, already throwing 27 touchdowns. This game promises to be close, as both of these teams are loaded with senior leadership ready to seize a tremendous opportunity.