Tee Hendrix predicted the moment when he took over Oakland's football program in 2023. He said that the Wildcats would finally end McClymonds' nearly two-decade stranglehold on the Oakland Athletic League. A big promise from a program that hadn't even won a game in three seasons before he took the job.
Hendrix and the Wildcats kept that vow on Friday with an emotional and somewhat thorough 24-19 win at McClymonds, which hadn't lost to an OAL opponent on the field since 2009, a span of 125 games. (The Warriors forfeited a game to Castlemont in 2024 after numerous players were suspended for their part in a fight the previous game against Fremont.)
Hendrix, whose team improved to 6-1 on the season, got 100 yards rushing and a touchdown from DJ Hicks, two touchdown runs by Tahrese Mack and a huge defensive game by King Davis (recording a sack, forced fumble and a pass breakup).
McClymonds, playing under first-year head coach and former NFL Pro Bowler Marcus Peters, dropped to 3-4. It was Oakland's first win over McClymonds since 2008, a span of 22 games. From 2017 to 2021 the cumulative scores of those games were McClymonds 338, Oakland 0.
Hendrix said the celebration was more internal than external.
"We went in believing we could win," Hendrix said. "We respect (McClymonds) and everything they've accomplished. But our kids needed to understand they belonged on the field, too. You can't go into a game like that already defeated by the name on the other jersey. We gave ourselves a chance to make our own history.
"The biggest thing for me was what our kids had to celebrate. They get to say they were part of this. Years from now, they'll still have that together. For somebody who grew up in Oakland and cares about these young men beyond football, that means a lot."
Hendrix helped turn around Fremont's program, going from 0-9 in 2011 to 36-27 over the next six seasons, and said the players and assistant coaching staff deserve all the credit for Oakland's turnaround. Oakland has gone 5-5, 9-5 and 8-3 the previous three seasons under Hendrix.
To beat McClymonds, a four-time state champion, "it was a total team win," Hendrix said. "It's much more than the guys with a stat line. The guys blocking, doing their assignments and helping their teammates prepare matter too. It takes the whole group to accomplish something like this."
Is Oakland prepared to take over the OAL now?
"We're working to be the standard and No. 1 location for our inner city athletes," Hendrix said. "I'm not going to act like that isn't the goal. But one big win doesn't hand us the league or championships. We have to come back, prepare and earn it every week."
Oakland, on the edge of breaking into the Chronicle's Top 10, can all but wrap up the OAL regular-season title Friday at Oakland Tech (4-4).
Top 10 report
1. De La Salle (7-0, No. 1 last week):
2. Serra (6-1, No. 2 last week): The Padres recorded their first shutout of the season and gave up just 55 total yards in a 28-0 win over Sacred Heart Cathedral at CCSF. Cache Penisini-Surita, Motu Keanaaina and Andrew Takapautolo rushed for touchdowns in a game facing the program's longtime offensive coordinator Darius Bell, SHC's first-year coach. Next: Saturday vs. No. 9 St. Ignatius (6-1).
3. San Ramon Valley (7-0, No. 3 last week): Owen Power continued his stellar junior season with 13 carries for 116 yards and three more touchdowns, giving him 15 on the season in a 49-7 home win over Amador Valley-Pleasanton. Cole Dawes completed 15 of 21 passes for 196 yards and three touchdowns, two to Oklahoma-bound junior receiver Colton Fitzgibbon. Dawes has thrown 21 TD passes in 2026 with no interceptions. Next: Friday at No. 1 De La Salle (7-0).
4. Los Gatos (6-1, No. 4 last week):
5. Pittsburg (4-3, No. 5 last week):
6. Acalanes-Lafayette (6-1, No. 6 last week):
7. Cardinal Newman-Santa Rosa (5-2, No. 7 last week): James Curoso, a transfer from Clovis, carried a career-high 36 times for 233 yards and two second-half touchdowns in a 28-7 home win over Marin Catholic-Kentfield. Cardinal Newman scored 28 straight after Wildcats quarterback Dylan Skrinar stunned the Cardinals with a 74-yard touchdown pass to Cooper Milan. Next: Friday vs. American Canyon (5-2).
8. Riordan (5-2, No. 9 last week): UNLV-bound running back Adonyae Brown rushed 18 times for 145 yards and a touchdown and sophomore quarterback Braxton Larosa threw for 161 yards and another score, a 45-yard completion to freshman Jeffrey Palega in a 22-7 win over Mitty at Foothill College-Los Altos Hills. Next: Friday at Valley Christian (3-4).
9. St. Ignatius (6-1, No. 10 last week):
10. Monte Vista (7-1, No. 8 last week): Avantez O'Donnell averaged 7.0 yards per carry in the loss to De La Salle. The Mustangs will finally have a week off after Friday's home game. Next: Friday vs. Amador Valley (3-4).
Game of the week: Stuart Hall (6-1), playing its first full season of 11-person football, pulled out a 29-28 win at five-time NCS small-school champion Middletown. Napoleon Cabading (16-for-24, 186 yards) threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Titus Hughes (86 total yards, three TDs) with less than a minute to play to close to 28-27. Coach Greg Mangan went for two - Cabading rolled right and connected with Jake Oenning (seven catches, 94 yards, 13 tackles) for the winning score. The Mustangs (5-2), whose former coach Bill Foltmer (314 wins) was inducted into the California High School Hall of Fame on Saturday at the Rose Bowl, attempted a Hail Mary but quarterback Jamisen Jackson was sacked. "Both teams played their hearts out," Mangan said. "It was a great night for high school football."
Others approaching Top 10:Half Moon Bay (7-0) received a last-minute touchdown run by Joedoln Flores to defeat Burlingame last week, 35-28. … A 50-yard touchdown run by Jaymeion Bradley set the tone in a wild fourth quarter and San Leandro's sixth straight win, a 43-26 victory over previously-ranked and defending state champion Bishop O'Dowd-Oakland at Burrell Field. San Leandro
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There’s more to San Francisco with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at High school football top 10: Surging Oakland High takes down OAL power McClymonds.