SAN FRANCISCO >> Several directionally challenged Soquel High football fans likely double-checked the location on their smartphones once they stepped foot onto Archbishop Riordan’s field, confirming they weren’t at nearby City College of San Francisco.

That’s because the opposing players were big. Real big. Athletic looking, too.

The Crusaders, who feature a handful of NCAA Division I commits, more than passed the eye test. They also passed Knights defenders with great frequency.

Junior quarterback Michael Mitchell Jr., already committed to University of Vanderbilt, threw for 250 yards and five touchdowns — four to Washington-bound senior receiver Chris Lawson — and the No. 3 Crusaders trounced No. 6 Soquel 41-7 in the first round of the Central Coast Section Open/Division I playoffs on Saturday.

The lopsided matchup was a reward for the Knights after they became the first team from Santa Cruz County to win the Pacific Coast Athletic League’s Gabilan Division title outright.

“This is another world,” said Knights junior quarterback Sam Whelan, when asked about Riordan’s size and depth.

No. 1 St. Ignatius (9-2) faces No. 2 Saint Francis (9-2) of Mountain View for the Open Division title at San Jose City College on Friday at 7 p.m.

Riordan (7-4) hosts No. 5 Los Gatos (9-2) in the D-I semifinals on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Riordan-Los Gatos winner faces the St. Ignatius-Saint Francis loser the following week for the D-I title.

“I know what it is,” said Soquel coach Dwight Lowery, after his team made its Open/D-I debut. “I don’t look for excuses. Obviously, we have to do more if we want to compete at this level. If we’re going to be a team that’s gonna compete in the Gabilan for a Gabilan championship, this is what comes with it.”

The Crusaders totaled 199 yards rushing and 253 passing.

“We knew who was going to be getting the ball and stuff like that. It was just kinda hard to stop them, really,” Whelan said.

Entering postseason, Soquel hadn’t allowed any opponent more than 14 points all season.

“We’re pretty confident in our offense,” Riordan coach Adhir Ravipati said. “We have a big offensive line, we have good backs, and we have elite wideouts and quarterback play. Our big thing is, whatever you give us, we’re going to make to make you pay. And there were some times where they were trying to load up on the run and we had some chances to get some vertical shots. We talk to our guys about you have some chances to make some explosive plays, you have to make other teams pay the price for it, and we were able to do that.”

Ravipati heaped praise on Lowery, “You can tell he played (nine) years in the NFL. … That’s a good defense.”

The private-school Crusaders, the third-place finisher in the West Catholic Athletic League, led 20-0 lead in the first quarter and 34-7 at the half.

Lowery said he wasn’t intimidated by the Crusaders’ size and skill, but he realizes his players might have been.

“Me, personally, I don’t care; but that’s just how I played,” he said. “But for a teenager, right, that’s a whole different animal that they have to deal with.”

The Knights, who lost a fumble on their first red-zone possession in the second quarter, got on the scoreboard with 1.6 seconds left in the first half. Whelan, sacked three times and hurried throughout the afternoon, scrambled for a 34-yard gain to set up his 12-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Cash Moran.

The Knights’ score gave them a glimmer of hope entering the locker room, but reality awaited them in the second half.

“Sometimes we had a play that worked, but most of the time they had an answer,” Whelan said.

Lawson finished with six catches for 157 yards. After his fourth touchdown reception, which came on a 16-yard pass from Mitchell with 5:20 left in the third quarter, the Crusaders substituted heavily.

The teams played scoreless the rest of the way, thought the Crusaders dominated possession.

Soquel ran a total of 44 plays on offense to the Riordan’s 55.

“If you watch us all year, there’s certain things we like to do,” Lowery said. “And when you play in these games, in any playoff game at any level, they’re going to want to take away the things that you do well. And that’s what they did. Obviously, they had the manpower to be able to do that, and some. So, you almost have to beat a team left-handed. It’s just a tough situation.”

The Knights finished with 53 yards rushing and 92 passing. TyReis Lundy, a 1,000-yard rusher this season, was held to 44 yards on 12 carries.

“They’re good,” Ravipati said. “And I drilled that into our kids the minute we got the film on Soquel and asked around on them, that was the big thing: ‘They’re very well-coached, they’re physical, they know how to hide their weaknesses and play to their strengths.’ That’s a really good football team. There was no overlooking them.”

Lowery, who felt like he didn’t prepare his team well enough, told his players to hold their heads high after the loss. He also asked them to remember what they witnessed and endured when deciding how much to commit themselves this offseason.

“It is what it is, your matchup is your matchup,” he said. “These types of games, when you go through this, this is something you can only correct in the offseason. It’s not something you’re going correct in game.”