By admin 
To compete in high school football, a team must be able to block and tackle. And contenders and championship programs require a capable quarterback to run the show and to take hard knocks.
Read more Sacramento police union makes ‘last, best and final offer’ in contract talks
The Sacramento region has had its share of standout passers over the years, and last year was another sparkling example. Aidan Lopez, The Bee’s 2025 Offensive Player of the Year from Casa Roble of Orangevale, led the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section with 3,489 passing yards. He has graduated.
Ryder Lyons, a three-time Bee Player of the Year and a two-time Gatorade State Player of the Year, also graduated after leading Folsom over three monstrous seasons. But get a load of who takes over: It’s Brody Rudnicki, who starred in the playoffs and is the only regional quarterback who as of this week has given a verbal pledge to an NCAA Division I program, the Cal Bears.
Here’s a breakdown of regional quarterbacks of note entering the 2026 season who are returning starters. (Watch for a list of up-and-coming players — who did not start last year but are expected to carry the load this fall — coming soon.)
Sydney Allen, Burbank Titans
He’s as big as a house at 6-foot-3 and 265 pounds — and how many defensive ends double as a quarterback? This one does on 3500 Florin Road, where Burbank students, coaches and alums like to remind people where they are planted in south Sacramento. Allen passed for 2,201 yards and nine touchdowns in 2025 when he wasn’t chasing passers down on defense.
Adam Amatangelo, Colfax Falcons
The 6-1, 175-pound junior is the next in a long line of fine passers in the history of this storied small-school Placer County program, having passed for 2,173 yards and 23 touchdowns in 2025. He has help in WR Brady Stowers and RB Graeson Howard.
Judah Allen, Yuba City Honkers
The 5-11, 175-pound senior passed for 1,450 yards and rushed for 205 more on a playoff team. He expects to up those numbers as the Honkers aim for a section finals appearance.
Frank Cady, Highlands Scots
The 6-3, 170-pound senior passed for 1,233 yards and 14 touchdowns in eight games for the small-school Scots, and he rushed for two scores. The goal is to dazzle on the school’s sparkling new field.
Dominic Cattolico, Granite Bay Grizzlies
The 6-0, 200-pound 4.33 student coolly passed for 1,655 yards and 11 touchdowns for the powerhouse Placer County program that reached another section final in 2025. He plans to up those numbers in pursuit of a section championship with his coaching father, Joe Cattolico.
Brody Cole, Inderkum Tigers
The 5-11, 190-pound senior continued the family tradition of fine quarterback play last fall, passing for 2,279 yards and 27 touchdowns with just five interceptions for a 9-2 team that expects to be in the section Division I title hunt this season.
Jayden Debbs, Laguna Creek Cardinals
The 5-10, 165-pound senior passed for 2,328 yards and 15 touchdowns for the Elk Grove Unified School District program that reached another playoff berth. The goals remain the same.
Andrew Gerondakis, Golden Sierra Grizzlies
A 6-2, 185-pound senior, AG was the driving force behind the small-school program nestled in Garden Valley in El Dorado County, passing for 2,431 yards and 31 touchdowns and rushing for five more scores for a playoff team.
Joseph Franklin, Wheatland Pirates
The 5-10, 200-pound senior passed for 1,073 yards and 15 touchdowns and rushed for nearly 300 more and four scores for the small-school Pirates, a playoff regular.
Read more USDA denies $32M request for California glassy-winged sharpshooter battle
Josiah Hutchinson, McClatchy Lions
The 5-11, 160-pound senior passed for 1,367 yards and 12 scores and ran for two touchdowns in 2025. He and the Lions of the Sacramento City Unified School District are aiming for the program’s first winning record since 2021. Home games are at historic Hughes Stadium.
Nick Johnson, Oak Ridge Trojans
The 6-4, 205-pound senior competes with the same poise as his father of the same name displayed during a Major League Baseball career after playing sports at McClatchy in the 1990s. Johnson passed for 1,197 yards and nine touchdowns in splitting duty last season, and the aim is to reach the section Division I finals for the fifth consecutive season.
Deangelo Keys, Mira Loma Matadors
The 6-foot, 150-pound playmaker led the charge for the section’s first 8-man championship team, passing for 1,652 yards and 30 touchdowns and rushing for 587 and eight more for a 12-0 team.
Jacoby More, Vista del Lago Eagles
The 6-0, 175-pound junior showed More promise last fall as a sophomore and looks the part of the program’s next good passer, having thrown for 1,835 yards and 20 touchdowns with just four interceptions, including three scoring strikes in a season-ending “bowl” win over Elk Grove.
Blake Nycum, Grant Pacers
The 6-foot, 180-pound senior settled in after transferring into the Del Paso Heights powerhouse program, passing for 1,095 yards and 13 touchdowns in five games. He has receivers, runners and linemen galore on hand for another section-championship drive.
Laron James-Radcliffe, Sacramento Dragons
The 5-11, 185-pound senior is a fourth-year starter and the first at this position in the long, storied history of the Oak Park program. He has passed for 5,119 career yards and 70 touchdowns in his career. His first-year coach, Dragons alum Josiah Johnson, lives to air it out on game day.
Colton Ridgley, Ponderosa Bruins
The 5-11, 185-pound senior passed for 1,674 yards and 17 touchdowns with four interceptions for the Shingle Springs school that expects a repeat trip to the playoffs.
Braylon Robinson, Franklin Wildcats
The 5-11, 175-pound senior is a third-year starter for the Elk Grove school, and he led the Delta League with 2,539 yards passing and 32 touchdowns for an 8-3 playoff team in 2025. The Wildcats are a darkhorse threat in Division I.
Brody Rudnicki, Folsom Bulldogs
The 6-2, 210-pound senior with perfect grades was the capable backup to Ryder Lyons, and then emerged as a savior of sorts when Lyons was injured on a hard hit in a Northern California Division I playoff game. Rudnicki led a rally to beat Riordan of San Francisco with two late touchdown passes, and then he sizzled in the fog of a CIF State final, passing for 117 yards and two scores and rushing for 186 and four more in a victory.
Jack Singley, Bella Vista Broncos
The 6-2, 175-pound senior is a third-year starter who has done much of the heavy lifting in elevating an 0-10 team into one on the cusp of the playoffs. He passed for 1,064 yards and is one of 10 offensive starters back for the Fair Oaks school.
Elijah Stevens, Oakmont Vikings
The 6-1, 160-pound senior passed for 1,947 yards and 20 touchdowns with just six interceptions in 2025 to help power the Roseville school back to the playoffs.
Luke Taber, Del Oro Golden Eagles
The 6-1, 195-pound senior transfer from Sierra Foothill League rival Oak Ridge is an immediate boost for the smash-mouth Golden Eagles of Loomis. Taber split time last season for an Oak Ridge team that reached the Division I section finals.
Read more Yuba County deputies explain Flock camera use as privacy concerns grow
Who’d we miss? Email insight to [email protected]
This story was originally published August 13, 2026 at 6:00 AM.