Football Game Preview: Mater Dei Monarchs vs. De La Salle Spartans

Mater Dei has won 13 straight games at home (dating back to last season), while De La Salle has won 13 straight on the road also dating back to last season, but those streaks won't matter much on Saturday. After both having extra time off, both will shake off the cobwebs and take on one another at 8:00 p.m. Mater Dei knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 31 points or more in their past six contests -- so hopefully De La Salle likes a good challenge.

Mater Dei is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup two weeks ago. They came out on top against St. John Bosco by a score of 31-24.

It was another big night for Jordon Davison, who rushed for 196 yards and three touchdowns. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 102.4 rushing yards per game. Another player making a difference was Dash Beierly, who threw for 119 yards and one touchdown.

Meanwhile, De La Salle and Pittsburg (ranked 21st and 37th in the MaxPreps national rankings respectively) squared off in a high-profile match back in November. De La Salle skirted past Pittsburg 10-7. The ten-point effort marked the Spartans' lowest-scoring game of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.

Mater Dei better keep an eye on Dominic Kelley. He was instrumental in De La Salle's win, rushing for 173 yards and one touchdown while picking up 9.6 yards per carry. Those 173 rushing yards gave Kelley a new career-high.

De La Salle was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 324 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 154 rushing yards in 24 consecutive contests dating back to last season.

Mater Dei's victory bumped their record up to 12-0. As for De La Salle, their win bumped their record up to an identical 12-0.

Saturday's match will pit two of the most dominant backs against one another: Davison and Derrick Blanche. Davison just won't slow down this season and has run in 17 touchdowns while averaging 102.4 rushing yards per game. Blanche has been a dominant force too and has averaged 82.2 rushing yards per game.

Mater Dei strolled past De La Salle in their previous meeting back in December of 2018 by a score of 35-21. Will Mater Dei repeat their success, or does De La Salle have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.