Friday’s football championship games

CITY SECTION

* CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION: Woodland Hills Taft (13-0) vs. L.A. Crenshaw (10-3) at Coliseum, 8 p.m.: There’s a good reason Taft Coach Troy Starr chose “Beat ‘em twice” for this year’s slogan. Six of the last seven City champions have been teams that won rematches after losing to their opponent in the regular season. Taft beat Crenshaw, 35-34, in the season opener. Since then, both teams have improved greatly. Taft sophomore Exavier Johnson, in particular, has made dramatic improvement at quarterback, passing for 37 touchdowns. Running back Raymond Carter of Crenshaw has emerged as an All-City player to complement underrated quarterback Marquis Curtis. One big plus for Taft is that linebacker Malcolm Smith is back after recovering from a dislocated elbow. Crenshaw has never won an upper-division championship. FSN West will televise the game.

-- ERIC SONDHEIMER

SOUTHERN SECTION

* DIVISION II: Newhall Hart (11-2) vs. Canyon Country Canyon (12-1) at Home Depot Center (Carson), 7:30 p.m.: This is a Foothill League rematch from Week 10, which Canyon won, 16-14. Second-seeded Canyon, in the finals for the first time since 1988 and trying to win its first title since 1984, boasts a physical offensive line that has helped J.J. DiLuigi rush for 1,802 yards and score 42 touchdowns. Austin Civita has also been efficient, passing for 2,610 yards and 24 touchdowns with eight interceptions. Hart, which finished second in league, ended Mission Viejo’s 26-game winning streak last week with a 24-12 victory. The fourth-seeded Indians have been getting by with just enough, as seven of their victories have been by 10 or fewer points. Tyler Lyon has passed for 2,009 yards and 15 touchdowns with three interceptions.

* DIVISION IV: Moorpark (10-3) vs. Ventura St. Bonaventure (13-0) at Ventura, 7 p.m.: St. Bonaventure has been to the finals every year since 1999, with five championships to show for it. The Seraphs have won 23 in a row, and have allowed more than two touchdowns only once in the last eight weeks. Michael Lee has rushed for 1,783 yards and scored 31 touchdowns and Matt Evans has thrown for 28 touchdowns with only seven interceptions. Marmonte League champion Moorpark has also put together a strong year defensively, but if the Musketeers hope to win their first title since 1997, they’d better not fire blanks on offense. They beat Ventura in the semifinals, 14-7, and St. Bonaventure beat Ventura, 60-14, in Week 9. Darrell Scott has rushed for 1,879 yards and scored 18 touchdowns.

-- MARTIN HENDERSON

* DIVISION V: Lake Elsinore Temescal Canyon (12-1) at Norco (12-1), 7:30 p.m.: Norco, seeded fourth, is powered by senior running back Toby Gerhart, who rushed for a career-high 458 yards in 44 carries and scored six touchdowns in a 43-36 semifinal victory over Riverside La Sierra. Gerhart, the state career rushing leader who has 9,395 yards in four seasons, is fifth on the national list and 47 yards shy of the third spot. Gerhart is eager to win his first section title after losing in the final the last two years. The third-seeded Titans will try to win their first title since 1995 behind junior running back Chris Pesaniello, who rushed for 213 yards in 44 carries and scored both touchdowns in a 14-6 semifinal victory over second-seeded Corona Santiago.

-- DAN ARRITT

* DIVISION VII: Orange (11-2) vs. West Covina South Hills (11-2) at Covina District Stadium, 7:30 p.m.: Second-seeded South Hills is led by running back Marquies Winbush, who has 1,771 yards rushing, 498 yards receiving and 36 touchdowns. Quarterback Kevin Mort has completed 67% of his passes for 1,881 yards and 15 touchdowns with four interceptions. The Huskies are trying to win their fourth title in six years after falling in last season’s final, 17-14, to West Covina. Unseeded Orange will be without running back Matthew Contreras, who broke his clavicle last week in a 35-17 victory over top-seeded Santa Fe Springs Santa Fe. Daniel Chairez, who like Contreras has rushed for 1,420 yards, leads the team with 23 touchdowns. The Panthers are playing in only their third final, having lost in 1989 and won in 1929.

--DAN LOUMENA

* DIVISION IX: Rancho Santa Margarita Tesoro (12-1) vs. Irvine Northwood (12-1) at Orange Coast College, 7 p.m.: Tesoro’s 24-17 victory in the regular-season finale on Nov. 11 decided the Pacific Coast League championship. Last year, Tesoro ended Northwood’s three-year reign as league champions en route to winning the Division IX title. Tesoro’s high-powered offense averages 42.9 points and is led by quarterback Todd Sciacqua, who has passed for 2,306 yards and 28 touchdowns, and running back Sean Calcagnie, who has rushed for 2,269 yards and 35 touchdowns. Northwood counters with a defense that has allowed only 11.7 points a game. Linebacker Mark Bentrott has 136 tackles and defensive back Michael Ciaccio has 116 tackles and seven interceptions for Northwood, which has held opponents to a touchdown or less in six games.

-- PETER YOON

* DIVISION X: Encino Crespi (10-3) at Lompoc (10-3), 7:30 p.m.: First-year Coach Jeremiah Ross has the Celts right where he wants them -- playing for their second consecutive Division X title. Running back Josh Morgan is coming off a 352-yard rushing performance that broke a school record held by Russell White. Lompoc has a strong one-two punch in quarterback Tim Ochoa and running back Joseph Scott, who has rushed for 1,311 yards and scored 19 touchdowns. These teams met in the semifinals last year, when Crespi ended Lompoc’s 23-game winning streak.

--ERIC SONDHEIMER