Central East’s quarterback Jelani Dippel celebrates against Grant in week 2 action Friday night, Aug. 28, 2026 in Fresno.
ERIC PAUL ZAMORA
ezamora@fresnobee.com
Midseason Fresno-area football standouts and storylines
The first half of the season has been fun to watch.
Some teams have shined, while others have disappointed. One quarterback has shown he can still get it done after losing key weapons, while one coach has exceeded expectations in his first season as a head coach.
Then there are the undefeated teams, along with a few that have struggled out of the gate.
Here are some of the storylines and players that have stood out through the first half of the season.
Dippel keeps Bengals rolling
No surprise here: Central quarterback Jelani Dippel continues to lead the way.
Dippel has been without his top receiver, Bayou Harris, who is out for the season with a knee injury.
So how has he responded to that significant loss?
By continuing to throw.
His receivers include Relando Jefferson, who has eight touchdowns; Titus Thomas, who has six; and Kevin Cooks, who has two. Other touchdown scorers include Xavior Jones with two and Elijah Ball with one.
The Bengals have also been playing without starting running back Andrew Garcia because of an injury. Garcia has not played since Central’s 42-12 victory over Grant-Sacramento on Aug. 28.
Despite those setbacks, Dippel has continued to lead his team, showing he can keep the Bengals moving even after losing key pieces.
That’s bad news for the rest of the Central Section.
Bilskey powering Liberty-Madera Ranchos
Time to recognize another standout: Liberty-Madera Ranchos running back Henry Bilskey.
The Hawks are off to a 5-0 start, with Bilskey playing a major role. He has scored 18 touchdowns, including 16 rushing touchdowns, while appearing in all five games.
Hernandez putting up historic numbers
And what about Tulare Western quarterback Juju Hernandez?
Where would the Mustangs be without him?
Hernandez has thrown for 2,257 yards and 31 touchdowns.
Those are remarkable numbers, and he is setting school records along the way, according to section historian Bob Barnett.
It also helps to have a dynamic receiver like Amarion Taylor, who has caught 12 of Hernandez’s touchdown passes.
The Mustangs are 5-0.
Buchanan’s backfield duo
Buchanan running backs Carvell Wafer Jr. and Gannon Sever have each scored six touchdowns, helping the Bears to a 4-1 start.
Watch out for them in the TRAC.
Who is shining on defense?
Woodlake’s Ruben Palafox is showing why he is one of the top players in the section.
Palafox has been a tackling and sack machine. He leads his team with 76 tackles and has seven sacks.
Another player who deserves recognition is McLane’s Juan Raygoza.
While the Highlanders have had an interesting start to the season, Raygoza has held his own with eight sacks.
Clovis’ Jaxton Bridger has also made an impact. He has seven sacks heading into Friday’s Tri-River Athletic Conference opener against Buchanan.
Speaking of Clovis, kicker Michael Sanchez is 5-for-5 on field-goal attempts, with a long of 31 yards.
The undefeated teams
It is remarkable that, halfway through the season, so many undefeated teams remain in the Fresno area.
They are Central East, Redwood, Kerman, Hanford, Chowchilla, Liberty-Madera Ranchos, Immanuel and Tulare Western.
Most of those teams are 4-0 or 5-0.
Disappointing team so far
Central Valley Christian.
The Cavaliers are off to an 0-5 start, but their schedule has included some tough opponents. It doesn’t get any easier when they enter league play against teams such as Hanford, Tulare and Tulare Western.
Yikes.
Other teams struggling with sub .500 records: Edison, Golden West, McLane, San Joaquin Memorial and Sunnyside.
Coach leading the way
Kerman coach Josh Lopez has his players fully bought into his system.
The result: The Lions are 5-0.
Lopez was hired in January 2026 and brings 20 years of coaching experience at the high school and college levels. He previously served as the defensive coordinator at Clovis East.
He succeeded Damon Jenkins, who is now at San Joaquin Memorial.
What to watch in the second half
Now comes the fun part of the season.
League play is getting underway, undefeated records are about to be tested, and several teams will have opportunities to establish themselves as section contenders.
The next few weeks should provide a clearer picture of which teams and players can maintain their torrid starts and which teams have the depth to make a postseason run.
Some games to watch include Central East hosting Buchanan and Kerman hosting Kingsburg on Friday.
And how about Kingsburg against Immanuel or Immanuel against Kerman?
The Tri-County should be fun to follow.
Game of the Year: Buchanan at Sanger
What a game it was at Tom Flores Stadium.
Buchanan and Sanger needed overtime to settle things, with the Bears escaping with a 35-34 victory.
Sanger would have shaken up the rankings with an upset, but the Apaches still showed plenty of grit and established themselves as a potential County/Metro Athletic Conference contender.
As for Buchanan, the Bears might have gotten a wake-up call heading into Tri-River Athletic Conference play.
If we missed a player who is deserving of being mentioned of having a strong first half let agalaviz@fresnobee.com know.
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Anthony Galaviz writes about breaking news/sports for The Fresno Bee. He covers the Las Vegas Raiders, high schools, boxing, MMA and junior colleges. He’s been with The Bee since 1997 and attended Fresno City College before graduating from Fresno State with a major in journalism and a minor in criminology.
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