Game blogging: No.2 Westlake Village Oaks Christian at Mission Hills Alemany

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With the observations solely confined to a summer seven-on-seven scrimmage void of running plays, Oaks Christian Coach Bill Redell still noticed the capabilities of Alemany senior running back Malcolm Marable.

“They got speed, quickness and a running back who can catch the football,” Redell said. “You can tell how quick he is.”

And that was only a glimpse. He’ll see the complete picture tonight at 7:30 when the Lions visit Alemany, a matchup that will be aired on Prime Ticket.

The Oregon-State bound Marable ran for 1,655 yards and 23 touchdowns last season, plays at free safety and as Coach Dean Herrington told The Times’ Ben Bolch, is ‘probably the most underrated football player in Southern California.”

Marable is expected to have a showdown with Oaks Christian running back Malcolm Jones. He is coming off a junior season in which he had 34 touchdowns and averaged 10.1 yards per game.

What kind of offense should we expect from the Lions, the defending Northwest Division champions and victors of 21 consecutive games?

“It depends on what they do,” Redell said. “We’d like to be balanced to run and throw if that’s possible.”

That’s because Oaks Christian also has wideout Jordan Payton, whom The Times Eric Sondheimer recently observed is the best sophomore receiver to come out of the San Fernando Valley since former Woodland Hills Taft and USC receiver Steve Smith.

The Lions field six players who have sparked interest from major college football programs.

Senior quarterback Nick Montana (Joe Montana’s son) and senior left tackle Erik Kohler are committed to Washington. Senior inside linebacker Zac Stout and senior tight end Alani Fua are going to Brigham Young. Redell said Jones is choosing between Stanford and UCLA, while senior defensive lineman Cassius March is weighing offers from California, Louisiana State, Oklahoma and USC.

Be sure to check out Varsity Times later tonight for quarter-by-quarter updates and postgame tidbits.

-- Mark Medina