Two dominant backs in Adonyae Brown and Lazaro Faraj-Washington are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Archbishop Riordan Crusaders will look to defend their home field on Saturday against the Archbishop Mitty Monarchs at 1:30 p.m. Archbishop Riordan knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 31 points or more in their past eight games -- so hopefully Archbishop Mitty likes a good challenge.
Archbishop Riordan will bounce into Saturday's contest after beating Bellarmine College Prep, who they had gone 2-7 against in their nine prior meetings. The Crusaders blew past the Bells 35-13 on Friday. The Crusaders' offense checked out after the first half but had enough points banked to take the game anyway.
Michael Mitchell Jr.
| 10/24/25 @ Bellarmine College Prep | 159.8 |
| 10/18/25 vs Valley Christian | 152.6 |
| 10/11/25 vs St. Ignatius College Preparatory | 129.9 |
| 10/03/25 @ Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory | 115.3 |
| 09/26/25 @ Saint Francis | 147.3 |
| + 8 more games |
Michael Mitchell Jr. produced another solid performance throwing for 202 yards and four touchdowns while completing 82.4% of his passes. What's more, he racked up 159.8 passer rating, the most he's had since back in October of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Judge Nash, who picked up 55 receiving yards and a pair of TDs.
Archbishop Riordan's defense stepped up as well, laying out the QB three times. The team can thank three different players for their defensive prowess: Zachary Kleppin, Pita Tanielu, and Weston Rinker, who each picked up one sack apiece.
Meanwhile, Archbishop Mitty entered their matchup against Junipero Serra on Friday without any home losses, but there's a first time for everything. The Monarchs took a hard 28-13 fall against the Padres. While losing is never fun, the Monarchs can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 85th, while the Padres are ranked 30th).
Although Archbishop Mitty took the loss, they still got scores from Kai Sniffen and Joseph Engin.
Archbishop Riordan's win was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 8-0. The team's perfect season has a lot to do with their offensive performance: the team's won by an average of 26 points thus far. As for Archbishop Mitty, their loss dropped their record down to 5-3.
The upcoming game will be a clash of competing strengths. Archbishop Riordan has relied on air attacks this season and has averaged 294.2 passing yards per game. Archbishop Mitty, on the other hand, has relied on a stout run game: they average 165.9 rushing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Saturday? There's only one way to find out.
Everything came up roses for Archbishop Riordan against Archbishop Mitty when the teams last played back in October of 2024, as the team secured a 42-13 victory. Will the Crusaders repeat their success, or do the Monarchs have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
