UPDATED, 12:06 a.m.: Quite a few blowouts around Kern County tonight, but there were a few exceptions to that — and one in particular. All the scores are updated below, but here's a few I've pulled out.

West 16, Centennial 14: The Vikings returned two — count em — fumbles for touchdowns in the fourth quarter to stun the Golden Hawks, who got 195 yards from Myren Moore on the ground but not much else in the way of offense until a desperation TD pass late that set up a failed onside-kick attempt. West is up to 3-1 in the SWYL and Centennial has fallen a long ways from its 2-0, win-over-Liberty days. The win last week was nice, but this is a different team without Cody Kessler.

Taft 42, Wasco 0: No doubt about it, Wasco is a contender in the SSL only if that means second place (and probably third, honestly, after Tehachapi comes to town in a couple of weeks. Cody Shirreffs exploded for 279 yards and Taft set up the real showdown for a league title, next week up the mountain.

Stockdale 41, Ridgeview 7: A relatively close game exploded in the second half, and that's a great thing if you're Stockdale, which is now just a win at home against North away from its meeting with Frontier. Eddie Gutierrez, by the way, filled in just fine for Malik Henderson, running for five TDs.

Garces 67, East 41: The shootout of all shootouts. Joe Pearson threw for more than 400 yards for the Blades, but Garces kept East at bay with a strong running game and some turnovers. Jalen Sykes ran for 266 yards, returned a fumble 60 yards and a punt 40 yards. Pretty good day for one guy.

Bakersfield 40, Foothill 14: That's No. 700 for the Drillers, and it could have been by a wider margin if it weren't for 187 yards in penalties against BHS. Those mistakes are an old foe for Bakersfield, and it's something to watch as it faces three more overmatched foes to end the season.

Mira Monte 28, Independence 27: Got to give credit to Falcons coach Sean McKeown, who went for two in the final minute to get a win instead of a tie, but give more credit to the Lions who stopped it. Tim Harris had a big day and Mira Monte takes control of the South Central Sequoia race.

UPDATED, 10:19 p.m.: This has to be the earliest I've ever been done with a story on a Friday night, but two running teams and a blowout will do that for you. 42-0 Taft the final here. I'll make the drive back and have another update with a bunch of scores a while later.

UPDATED, 9:40 p.m.: West recovers a fumble and scores a defensive touchdown to seal it, 16-7. Bigtime upset there, and all of a sudden the Vikings, at 3-1, are right near the top of the SWYL race.
Stockdale has dominated the second half against Ridgeview. Eddie Gutierrez, the back filling in for Malik Henderson, has five touchdown runs. That's a way to show you're up to the task.

UPDATED, 9:28 p.m.: It's now 42-0 Wildcats here with 9:21 left, but the bigger news on this night comes from West, where the Vikings have scored to take a 9-7 lead on Centennial with a little more than three minutes left. No Kessler, so Mark Ritchie might have to pass the Hawks into position for a score here with his arm.

UPDATED, 9:07 p.m.: A 57-yard TD run for Shirreffs. It's 35-0 and he has 257 yards rushing. This one has gotten pretty ugly fast.

UPDATED, 8:59 p.m.: To me, it was a bit predictable, but the Tigers still tried an onside kick to start the second half. Taft recovered and promptly marched 52 yards in four plays, capped by a 34-yard TD run by Kevin Rivera, who has touched the ball twice and scored twice, totaling 69 yards. Taft is either the real, real deal, or Wasco is being exposed a bit. Probably a bit of both.
20-0 BHS at halftime over Foothill. The Drillers have had four touchdowns called back because of penalties.

UPDATED, 8:54 p.m.: East's reign atop the Southeast Yosemite League will come to an end tonight, it looks like. Garces 41, Blades 14 just before halftime. Second half just starting here.

UPDATED, 8:35 p.m.: Stays 21-0 here at halftime. Wasco's offense just isn't equipped to pass on command, and a two-minute drill isn't an option unless someone busts a big run.
Elsewhere, Centennial scored late in the first half to break a scoreless tie at West. The Golden Hawks having some offensive trouble without Cody Kessler, evidently, but they're up 7-0. It's Bakersfield 6, Foothill 0 at the end of a quarter as the Drillers go for program win No. 700, and Stockdale leads Ridgeview 14-7 at halftime. Couple of close games there.
Not in Wasco, though. Here are some first-half stats:
TAFT — Shirreffs 13 carries, 167 yards, 2 TDs; Medina 1-35, TD
WASCO — Cheatham 15 carries, 69 yards; Jacob Salinas 8-13, 2 catches, 31 yards
        & nbsp;       &n bsp;  Taylor Yursik 3-5 passing, 66 yards

UPDATED, 8:25 p.m.: Wasco did respond with its best drive of the night, keyed by a 35-yard pass from Taylor Yursik to Rene Medina, but Taft stiffened from there and took over on downs with a Lio Maino sack on fourth down.
And then Cody Shirreffs strikes, breaking tackles all the way down the right sideline until he reaches the Wasco 5. This would be a backbreaking turnaround before halftime if Taft can punch it in. Remember, the Wildcats get the ball first in the second half, too.
Out of a timeout, Taft gives it to Shirreffs, who finishes the job barely touched. He's got two TDs and — get this — 167 yards before halftime. 21-0 Taft, 1:47 before the break.

UPDATED, 8:11 p.m.: Cody Shirreffs is the definition of a downhill runner, and he's making Wasco work right now. An offsides penalty converted a fourth-and-1 for Taft, and Shirreffs pounded out runs of 11, 4 and 15 yards after that. From there, a speedy scatback named Kevin Rivera took it to the house on his first carry of the night, a 35-yard burst up the middle. 14-0 Taft, and I'd say it's pretty darn important for Wasco to do something in the 6:12 left before halftime.

UPDATED, 8:08 p.m.: A third-down pass from Taylor Yursik to Jacob Salinas nets 27 yards and finally gets the Wasco offense moving. Quentin Cheatham follows it with a first-down run before the first quarter comes to an end. Still 7-0 Taft. Defenses came to play tonight in a battle of Kern County's two leading rushers. He follows it up with another to start the second quarter, but Wasco stalls at the Taft 21, fourth-and-5. Tigers call their second timeout. And it's an incomplete pass on fourth down. Yursik had a man on the right sideline but overshot him.

UPDATED, 7:56 p.m.: Another three-and-out for Wasco, which couldn't convert third-and-2 when Jacob Salinas was stuffed at the line. The Tigers then lined up to go for it on fourth, but they were just trying to draw Taft offside. No dice, and a timeout wasted to boot with the punting situation.
I stand corrected! Wasco is going to go for it from their own 25. Risky, risky, and it costs Wasco, which is stuffed a yard short of the first down. Wow. That's a heck of a gamble and it could bury the Tigers quickly. Remember, neither one of these teams has a passing game to speak of, so comebacks will be tough.
But Chris Rocha comes up with Wasco's play of the game thus far, tripping up Brice Royal on third-and-4 in the backfield to force Taft into a fourth down. Tigers' defense trying to bail out their offense for the second time, but Taft also is going to go on fourth-and-7. Cody Shirreffs on a sweep, and he slips. Not sure he was going to get it anyway. Defenses controlling this one so far.

UPDATED, 7:46 p.m.: It took half a quarter, but at least one running game has gotten going here in Wasco. On a third-and-8, Cody Shirreffs ripped off a 22-yard gain on a pitch play, then ran a counter 30 yards for a touchdown on the very next play. Wildcats 7, Tigers 0.
Wasco went three-and-out in its second possession after fumbling on the first. Nerves? If it is, the Tigers had better get over them pretty quickly.

UPDATED, 7:39 p.m.: Not a good start for the home team. Jacob Salinas nearly busted a dive play for 76 yards, but he was caught and then stripped of the ball. Taft recovered and has a first down inside the Wasco 30. With a couple of potent offenses, turnovers are going to be crucial, so score one for the Wildcats.
But a defensive stand for Wasco. Three plays net Taft just a yard, and they'll have to settle for a 45-yard field goal try from Ada Figueroa. He's got a heck of a leg and easily had the distance, but it went wide left. Bullet dodged for Wasco, still scoreless.

UPDATED, 7:27 p.m.: Quite an entrance there for Wasco, with about 30 chopper motorcycles rolling across the field with cheerleaders on board (behind the drivers) as part of Homecoming festivities here, then with all 30 lined up and revving as the Tigers ran through. Big crowd here for Taft, too. Can't wait for kickoff. It's in about five minutes.

ORIGINAL POST: To set the stage for Week 7, take a look at a fun story I got to do this week on Wasco's re-emergence as an SSL contender from this morning's Californian.

I'll be up in Tigertown tonight to see the home team face Taft in probably its stiffest test yet. For the Wildcats, of course, it's a test too, their first road game since Week 0 and a quality opponent. Both teams will run the ball, and both teams will do it all night. Should be a lot of fun.

Week 7 got started in parts of the Central Section last night with a couple of games involving ranked teams. No. 3 Tulare Union pounced on Porterville, but No. 5 Fresno-Edison lost a bit of a shocker to Sanger, a good program having a down year. But it was the Apaches' night Thursday; they scored with 18 seconds to go to win 21-19 after a late Edison turnover. The Tigers are now just 4-3, albeit against a good schedule, but this loss certainly throws a wrench into next week's rankings and into the Division II playoff picture. Not even Friday night and we've had excitement.

Locally, Stockdale visits Ridgeview in a dangerous "letdown" game, Bakersfield High School goes for all-time win No. 700 (a state record including the rugby years), and East tries to keep its unlikely perfect SEYL record going at home against Garces. It's also homecoming for many schools this week and next, so if you're in town for that, have fun.

Also, I somehow left a game on the schedule off of my predictions post Wednesday, so here's the addendum:

KENNEDY (0-6, 0-2 SCSL) AT TULARE-MISSION OAK (0-6, 0-2) — Obviously one of these teams is going to win the first game in school history tonight, but it's difficult to tell which one.The Thunderbirds have scored just 33 points and gained 673 yards in six games, but this will be by far their weakest opponent to date. Mission Oak got 22 points on Independence last week, so it might have a little pop, but I can't get past the feeling that Kennedy is due for a breakout win. We'll see if Delano's third school can get on the left side of the ledger.
Prediction: Kennedy 34, Mission Oak 28

Schedule is below, to be turned into a scoreboard tonight. Also be sure to check out the Week 7 predictions and Week 7 podcast.

(Central Section ranking in parentheses; all games 7:30 p.m. Friday unless noted)

Kern County scoreboard
(4) Stockdale 41, Ridgeview 7
(6) Bakersfield 40, Foothill 14
(9) Liberty 34, Golden Valley 0
West 16, (11) Centennial 14
(12) Frontier 36, Highland 10
(15) Tehachapi 40, Bakersfield Christian 12
Taft 42, Wasco 0
Garces 67, East 41
South 28, North 26
Mira Monte 28, Independence 27
Shafter 23, Arvin 19
SLO-Mission Prep 30, McFarland 7
Chavez 46, Porterville-Monache 27
Delano 64, Porterville-Granite Hills 6
Tulare-Mission Oak 47, Kennedy 14
Kern Valley 33, Desert 6
Frazier Mountain 55, Rosamond 28
Bishop 43, California City 0
Burroughs 14, Apple Valley-Granite Hills 7
Boron 76, Lucerne Valley 0
Mojave 28, Lancaster-Desert Christian 6
Lighthouse Christian 46, Alpaugh 0
Maricopa 12, Atascadero-North County Christian 8
Immanuel Christian 68, Lone Pine 36

Other Central Section scores
(3) Tulare Union 56, Porterville 21 (Thursday)
Sanger 21, (8) Fresno-Edison 19 (Thursday)
Visalia-Mt. Whitney 13, Lemoore 12 (Thursday)
(1) Fresno-Bullard 52, Reedley 42
(2) Clovis-Buchanan 38, (7) Clovis West 14
(5) Fresno-Central 20, Clovis East 7
(10) Fresno-San Joaquin Memorial 28, Madera South 0
(13) Kingsburg 49, Visalia-Central Valley Christian 7
(14) Visalia-El Diamante 56, Hanford West 9
Fresno-Hoover 37, Clovis North 19
Fresno-Washington Union 14, Madera Ranchos-Liberty 6
Chowchilla 35, Tollhouse-Sierra 0
Dinuba 42, Coalinga 21
Clovis 49, Madera 12
Hanford 35, Tulare Western 8
Visalia-Redwood 56, Visalia-Golden West 6
Mendota 28, Cambria-Coast Union 6
Corcoran 63, Riverdale 0
Exeter 31, Selma 14
Firebaugh 46, Avenal 6
Fowler 29, Fresno Christian 0
Farmersville 36, Lemoore-Kings Christian 9
Orange Cove 56, Laton 6
Fresno 27, Fresno-McLane 14
Caruthers 45, Parlier 9
Lindsay 25, Strathmore 20
Fresno-Sunnyside 14, Fresno-Roosevelt 13
Woodlake 37, Orosi 0
Oakhurst-Yosemite 30, Kerman 13
Reedley-Immanuel 30, Dos Palos 15 (Saturday)
Visalia Christian 36, Coalinga-Faith Christian 35 (Saturday)
Clovis Christian 82, Madera-Lighthouse Academy 0 (Saturday)