Peering into the crystal ball for 2026 high school sports predictions
It’s time to look into my crystal ball to see what 2026 has in store for Southland high school athletes (and a few alumni), coaches and fans:
JJ Harel from Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, armed with passports from the United States, Israel and Australia, will soar so far beyond 7 feet in the high jump that national organizations from three different countries will fight to have him represent their team. …
Attacker Pencea second-year pitcher at Corona Santiago with a 100 mph fastball, will receive an endorsement deal from a radar gun company. …
The UCLA-USC women’s basketball games will attract so many celebrities and former players eager to be seen that TMZ won’t need to pay for the video. …
A new freshman’s high school football debut Zoe Thompsonsister of Alyssa And Giselewill be so big that Harvard-Westlake will have to hand out red bibs to photographers to identify who is real media. …
Norco junior shortstop Dylan Seward will hit for the cycle. …
Jaden Soong celebrates after winning the Southern California Golf Assn. Amateur Championship at the Saticoy Club in Somis on July 11, 2024.
(SCGA)
St. Francis sophomore golfer Jaden Soong will win a second straight CIF championship, then have to answer the same question over and over again: “When are you going pro?” …
Gary Morse, a 6-foot-8 senior pitcher at Orange Lutheran, should be one of the Southland’s best in 2026.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
Orange Lutheran 6-foot-8 senior pitcher Gary Morse will throw up a base hit, then find a hoop and celebrate with a dunk. …
Second-year catcher Jordan Lindsay (left) and second-year pitcher Carlos Acuna will be key players for Birmingham in 2026.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
Birmingham’s second-year pitcher/catcher duo Carlos Acuna And Jordan Lindsay will lead the Patriots to the City Section baseball title, then celebrate with a dogpile at Dodger Stadium in which 6-2, 200-pound Lindsay protects Acuna from being choked to the bottom by his teammates. …
Santa Margarita shortstop Brody Schumaker (left) and his father, Texas Rangers manager Skip.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
The Santa Margarita Brody Schumakerwho had eight single bunts last season, will be asked by his father, Jumpthe new manager of the Texas Rangers, to show off his bunting skills during spring training. …
Brian Prince de Cathédrale will break 47 seconds in the 400 meters. …
Rickee Luevano of Sylmar and Xavier Allen of Carson will fight to be the home run champion in the City section. …
Eastvale Roosevelt Aubrey McLaughlin, who won a gold medal playing for Team USA’s U-18 softball team at the World Cup, will break out her new jewelry for a showdown match against Norco. …
All-City Linebackers De’Andre Kirkpatrick of Crenshaw and Elyjah Staples de Marquez will become one of the first City Section players to receive NIL offers. …
Cypress Baseball Coach John Weber will receive a NIL offer from a pencil company because he always walks around with a pencil hidden behind his ear. …
All-CIF defensive back from Corona Centennial Jaden Walk-Greenwho also starts in center field for the baseball team, will show so much promise in snowboarding that he will decide to seek a place in the Olympic Games in 2028. …
George Hastings d’Agoura will try to play every position in a football match this season. …
There will be so many quarterbacks transferring that MaxPreps’ digital rosters will shrink from too many clicks. …
PlayOn, which owns MaxPreps, GoFan and the NFHS Network, will aim for a prep sports monopoly in California by bidding for the CIF state playoff contract that expires in June. …
Offensive lineman Elisha Mueller of Servite.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
Offensive lineman Elisha Mueller of Servite will save so many pancake blocks that IHOP will sign it on to promote a week of unlimited pancakes for anyone weighing 280 pounds and over. . . .
A basketball official, tired of hearing a parent complain about his calls, will stop the game, blow his whistle to the parent and challenge him to take over. …
(Gene J. Puskar/AP)
Freshman Louis Lapeknown for his home run for El Segundo in the 2023 Little League World Series championship game, would hit a home run in his high school debut for Harvard-Westlake. …
Shohei Ohtani will be seen practicing on a high school baseball field, resulting in multiple helicopters being dispatched to provide commentary like a car chase in Los Angeles. …
USC will address any red zone scoring deficiencies by installing a freshman Trent Mosley to the wildcat quarterback. …
Former Granada Hills pitcher Easton Hawk will be UCLA’s closer this season.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
Former Granada Hills pitcher Easton’s Falcon will become the most sought-after player in a long time to lead UCLA to the NCAA baseball title. …
With four Southern California players on its roster, led by a Sherman Oaks Notre Dame graduate Ella Parker, The Oklahoma softball team will host a beach day at practice to make sure its SoCal players don’t get homesick. …
Freshman tight end Austin Miller de Bellflower will be the first to motivate new UCLA coach Bob Chesnecome to campus for a personal presentation. …
Valencia second-year quarterback Evan McCalister will be a passing star. …
After nine straight years of Northern California teams losing in the CIF Open Division state championship finals, the CIF will agree to allow postseason transfers to De La Salle or San Mateo Serra so they can be competitive. …
Huntington Beach surfer Bailey Turner shows off her medals after returning from the ISA Junior World Surfing Championships in Peru.
(Don Leach/Staff Photographer)
Bailey Turner of Huntington Beach, winner of the ISA Junior World Surfing Championship, will continue his preparation for the 2028 Olympic Games by surfing big waves. …
After that of the Cleveland Browns Carson Schwesinger is named Defensive Rookie of the Year, everyone who didn’t rate him highly at Oaks Christian during his high school years will use magic markers to update their star rankings.
