St. John Bosco, Mater Dei both win setting up No. 1 vs. No. 2 high school football showdown next Friday

The biggest high school football game of the 2022 season is set. No. 1 St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) and No. 2 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) both did their part Friday with wins leading into the Oct. 7 showdown at Santa Ana Bowl. Bosco improved to 6-0 with a 49-3 win over Servite (Anaheim) while Mater Dei, also now 6-0, won a tough Trinity League matchup 21-13 against JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano).

It was the 23rd consecutive victory for Mater Dei — all with Elijah Brown under center. The four-star junior quarterback has thrown for nearly 1,500 yards yards and 17 touchdowns this season and was named the MaxPreps Sophomore of the Year in 2021 after leading the Monarchs to a wire-to-wire finish as the No. 1 team in the country.

The Braves have dominated through their first six games outscoring the opposition 291-31. They have put a running clock on five of six opponents and this team is as talented as any Jason Negro has had during his 13-year tenure as the head coach at Bosco. The two teams have a combined 74 players that are rated as a two-star recruit or higher by 247Sports or that have landed at least one FBS offer. St. John Bosco has 41 while the Monarchs have 33.

This has become the biggest and best rivalry in high school football since 2016. The two schools have combined to produce over 150 players that have played at the FBS or FCS level over the last seven years.

Some notable Monarchs include Bryce Young, Amon-Ra St. Brown, J.T. Daniels, Bru McCoy, Mase Funa, Elias Ricks, Raleek Brown, Domani Jackson, David Bailey and C.J. Williams.

D.J. Uiagalelei, Beaux Collins, Trent McDuffie, Kourt Williams, Wyatt Davis, Earnest Greene, Chris Steele, Kris Hutson, Jaiden Woodbey and Drake Metcalf are some of the notable Braves.

Mater Dei has won the last two meetings and seven of the last 10. Brown is 2-0 against Bosco and led the Monarchs to a 42-21 win last season. He completed 13-of-18 passes for 263 yards and five touchdowns. In his fifth career start as a freshman, in the Spring of 2021, he threw for 203 yards and four scores in a 34-17 win.

The last time St. John Bosco beat the Monarchs was a wild 39-34 comeback win in the 2019 CIF Southern Section Division 1 championship. Uiagalelei threw for 446 yards and five touchdowns as the Braves erased a 28-5 first half deficit. St. John Bosco went on to finish that season as the No. 1 team in the final MaxPreps Top 25.

2016 – Mater Dei 26, St. John Bosco 21
2016 – St. John Bosco 42, Mater Dei 28 *
2017 – Mater Dei 31, St. John Bosco 21
2017 – Mater Dei 49, St. John Bosco 24 *
2018 – St. John Bosco 41, Mater Dei 18
2018 – Mater Dei 17, St. John Bosco 13 *
2019 – Mater Dei 38, St. John Bosco 24
2019 – St. John Bosco 39, Mater Dei 34 *
2021 – Mater Dei 34, St. John Bosco 17 **
2021 – Mater Dei 42, St. John Bosco 21
* Playoff game / ** Spring 2021 season due to pandemic

Both programs have finished ranked in the top 10 every season since 2016 (excluding 2020 because California did not play in the fall). The Monarchs were named MaxPreps National Champions in 2017 and 2021. Both were wire-to-wire finishes. Mater Dei finished No. 9 in 2016, No. 2 in 2018 and No. 2 in 2019.

The Braves currently have the longest active streak of finishing ranked in the MaxPreps Top 25 at eight and the last time they finished ranked outside the top 10 was in 2014.

Mater Dei is 77-3 since 2016 and all three losses have come against the Braves. The last time the Monarchs lost to an opponent not named St. John Bosco was in 2015 against Centennial (Corona) in the CIF Southern Section Pac-5 Division semifinals.

The Braves are 71-10 since 2016 with seven of the losses coming against Mater Dei.

The powerhouse programs have combined to win six CIF Open Division state championships. St. John Bosco won in 2013, 2016 and 2019 while the Monarchs did in 2017, 2018 and 2021.