California Player of the Year Watchlist, playoff matchup previews (11-14-2025)

Fifteen of the top players in the state that includes nine quarterbcks all have reached at least the quarterfinals of their section playoffs

Mission Viejo QB Luke Fahey fires a sidearm throw against Folsom on Sept. 5, 2025. Fahey is one of nine quarterbacks as Player of the Year finalists in California / Jeremy Westerbeck

When judging All-State and Player of the Year possibilities, there is no more relevant time than the playoffs. 

With all CIF sections either entering first- or second-round games, here is a Watchlist of 15 California’s Player of the Year nominees. 

Trey Arnold (Mission Bay): The 6-foot-2, 210-pound senior quarterback has been about perfect for the perfect Buccaneers (10-0), while completing 231 of 326 passes (71%) for 3,090 yards and 45 touchdowns and just six interceptions. Mission Bay, the third seed, hosts San Diego (6-5), in a San Diego Section Division 2 quarterfinal game on Friday.

Jelani Dippel (Central East): A 5-11, 170-pound junior, who led East to a state title game as a sophomore has been even better this season by completing 191 of 300 (64%) for 3,362 yards and 39 touchdowns. He’s added 431 rushing yards for the 10-1 Bengals, who host fourth-seed Buchanan (8-3) in a semifinal 1-AA game Friday.  

Sands Dougherty (Morro Bay): The 5-11, 185-pound senior is completing one of the most prolific two-year runs in state history, with a state-leading 3,831 passing yards while completing 72% of his passes. Though his team has struggled at 4-7, the left-handed throwing Dougherty has completed 269 passes in 374 attempts with 42 touchdowns. He also leads the team in rushing at 767 with seven more scores. In two-plus seasons — he played sparingly as a sophomore — Dougherty has thrown for 8,778 career yards and 97 touchdowns while rushing for 1,736 yards yards and 15 more scores. He passed for 4,441 yards as a junior, which ranks 26th all-time according to the Cal-Hi Record Book. Morro Bay goes for a huge upset at top-seed and unbeaten Liberty (11-0) in a D5 quarterfinal game. Dougherty was at his all-time best last week in a first round 52-28 upset at Delano when he completed 29 of 44 for 458 yards and six touchdowns and he rushed for two touchdowns. 

Morro Bay senior Sands Dougherty has put together two of the most prolific seasons in state history with close to 9,000 career passing yards and 100 touchdown passes. / Photo by Mitch Stephens

Luke Fahey (Mission Viejo): The senior quarterback and Ohio State commit has completed 197 of 264 (75%) for 3,108 yards and 25 touchdowns and only two interceptions. He’s also rushed for 330 yards and six touchdowns. His 9-1 squad plays 7-2 Mater Dei at the Santa Ana Bowl in a Southern Section Division 1 quarterfinal game Friday.  

Lenny Ibarra (Los Alamitos): The senior athlete does everything for the Griffins (9-2) which host San Juan Hills (2-9) in a Southern Section Division 2 quarterfinal game Friday. He runs, catches and plays defense for the Griffins. 

Ryder Lyons (Folsom): The state’s top 2026 recruit has continued an absolutely flawless prep career by throwing for 2,781 yards and 28 touchdowns against six interceptions for the state’s No. 9 team (9-1) which hosts Downey (7-3) Friday in a Sac-Joaquin Section Division 1 quarterfinal game. Lyons, a 6-3, 215-pound dual-threat option and BYU commit has also rushed for eight touchdowns. 

Ryder Lyons throws a pass against Long Beach Poly in 2024 / Photo by Todd Shurtleff

Koa Malau’ulu (St. John Bosco): The youngest of the group, the sophomore quarterback has been a model of consistency all season for the 9-1 Braves with 2,290 passing yards and 32 touchdowns and only four interceptions. The second-seeded Braves (9-1) host Orange Lutheran (2-8) in a Southern Section Division I quarterfinal game on Friday. 

Darnell Miller (Santee): The state’s second-leading rusher has piled up 2,485 rushing yards on 152 carries for a ridiculous 16.4 yards per carry with 27 touchdowns. His top-seeded Falcons (7-4) play Maywood CES (7-4) in a LA City Section Division 3 quarterfinal game Friday. 

Mike Mitchell (Riordan): The 5-foot-11, 190-pound fourth-year starting quarterback for the state’s No. 11 team has capped a brilliant career with 161 completions in 232 attempts for 2,833 yards and 39 touchdowns against just four interceptions. He led the Crusaders to a historic season, winning their first West Catholic Athletic League title since 2000. A Vanderbilt commit. Game: First-round Central Coast Section Open Division game 1:30 p.m. Saturday versus Salinas. 

Brandon Smith (Central East): Two players from the same team up for the award? It’s very difficult to differentiate Dippel and Smith, who has not only rushed 161 times for 1,603 yards (10.0 per carry) and 24 touchdowns to go along with 65 tackles with three interceptions and 10 pass deflections. The 6-foot, 190-pound senior has 13 college offers, but he committed to Arizona on June 29. The  10-1 Bengals host fourth-seed Buchanan (8-3) in a semifinal 1-AA game Friday.   

Fresno Central senior Brandon Smith was a Player of the Year nominee as a junior. The Arizona bound star has rushed for more than 1,600 yards while averaging 10 yards per carry as a senior for the 10-1 Grizzlies. / Photo: Richard Posada

Wyatt Shaw (Redding Christian): The junior quarterback has been just about perfect for the perfect Lions, while completing 138 of 171 yards for 2,262 yards and 44 touchdowns against just three interceptions. He leads the top-seeded Lions (10-0), who have outscored foes 472-73, in a first-round Northern Section D5 game against eighth-seed Modoc (4-6) 

Mekai Smith (Balboa): The senior 6-2, 215-pound running back is averaging nearly — get this — 20 yards per carry for the defending state Division 7-A champion. Smith has rushed 94 times for 1,853 times and 31 touchdowns for the San Francisco Section power (8-2), which hosts Mission (2-5) in a first-round playoff game Saturday.  

Jack Thomas (Palisades): One of the nation’s top team stories, the unbeaten Dolphins (10-0) have proved a rallying point for a school that was largely destroyed by the Southern California wildfires of January. Despite practicing at different locations the Dolphins have piled up 411 points while pulling out five games by a touchdown or less including a 56-54 game over Venice when Thomas completed 25 of 43 passes for 473 yards and five touchdowns. For the season, the 5-11, 185-pounder has completed 176 of 283 for 3,147 yards and 42 touchdowns against three interceptions. The fourth-seeded Dolphins play Garfield (8-2) in a LA City Section Open Division game at LA Southwest College. 

Jaden Walk-Green (Corona Centennial): What doesn't the 6-foot, 190-pound junior do for the state's No. 6 team? Though his main influence is as a hard-hitting and playmaking safety — with 89 tackles and nine interception with five pick 6s — he's also contributed 624 all-purpose yards as a returner and a reliable and key kicker with 58 extra points in 60 attempts and four field goals (in five attempts). His coming out party was the Huskies' monumental 43-36 upset of Mater Dei on Sept. 12 when had two interceptions, including a pick-6, two field goals and seven tackles. His late interception sealed the win. Centennial beat Servite on Friday 41-6 and new has a rematch with Mater Dei next week in the Southern Section D1 semifinals.

Richie Wesley (Sierra Canyon): So unique to nominate a defensive end as an overall Player of the Year, but Wesley, a 6-5, 255-pound senior with 24 offer, is a unique talent. The 5-star Texas commit has 8.5 sacks this season and 27 for his three-year career. He’s the premier piece on a historically good defense for the top-seeded Trailblazers (10-0), who host Santa Margarita (7-3) in a first-round Division 1 Southern Section game on Friday.