For the first time since 2019 the top-two ranked teams in high school football will face off as No. Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) hosts No. 1 St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) Friday at the Santa Ana Bowl. The last time No. 1 and No. 2 faced off it was between these two programs.
D.J. Uiagalelei led the Braves to a 39-34 win over
Bryce Young and Mater Dei in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 championship. St. John Bosco erased a 28-5 first half deficit and scored 34 unanswered to take a 39-28 lead early in the fourth.
Kris Hutson intercepted a Young pass in the endzone on the final play to seal the win for Bosco.
This is the 12th meeting since 2000 between the top-two ranked teams in the country. Three of the last four have featured Mater Dei vs. St. John Bosco.
St. John Bosco has outscored the opposition 291-31 and has put a running clock on five of six opponents. Mater Dei is one of two teams in the country that has two wins against MaxPreps Top 25 opponents and has outscored its first six opponents 207-61.
This is one of two games featured from California and all 10 matchups are in-state contests. Games in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Utah and Washington are also included.
Elijah Brown, Mater Dei
Photo: Jules Karney
Friday, 7:30 p.m. (All times local) at Santa Ana Bowl - Listen Live
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The Monarchs have won seven of 10 meetings since 2016, including two in a row. Brown has started his high school career 23-0 as the starting quarterback for Mater Dei and is 2-0 against St. John Bosco. There is a good chance these two meet again at the Rose Bowl on Nov. 25 in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 championship. The winner on Friday controls its own destiny when deciding who finishes the year at No. 1 in the final MaxPreps Top 25.
Friday, 7:30 p.m. at Traz Powell Stadium
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Anytime these two Miami powers square off it is a can't miss matchup. They have been two of the premier programs in the country. Northwestern has been dealing with some injuries and it is unclear who will be able to suit up on Friday. Dickens got hurt in the Bulls 23-19 loss against Columbus (Miami) in their last game. Moore and Ford also did not play in that loss. After the Rockets 20-14 season-opening win over IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) they have outscored their last four opponents 154-26. This will be the 14th meeting since 2012 and the Rockets have won 7 of the previous 13, including two straight.
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This one features the Nos. 2 and 3 teams in Arizona and both are just outside of the MaxPreps Top 25. Basha checks in at No. 29 in our expanded
top 100 while Liberty is at No. 43. The Lions are 4-0 and got a big 26-17 win over Saguaro (Scottsdale). The Bears started the season with a 33-28 win against Los Alamitos (Calif.) and have outscored their last four opponents 222-24. Basha is 15-1 since last season and the only loss came against Liberty 38-20 in the quarterfinals of the Open Division playoffs.
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Dillard's two losses this season came against No. 4 Central (Miami) and No. 6 Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood, Fla.). Now they get to face the fifth-ranked team in the country. The Raiders had a notable 48-37 season-opening win over the top-ranked team in Pennsylvania, St. Joseph's Prep (Philadelphia), and have outscored their last four opponents 143-21. Aquinas has gone 8-1 against the Panthers since 2004 and in last year's 23-13 win Hussey returned a blocked field goal to ice the game in the final minutes.
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The Pioneers 25-24 win over Corner Canyon (Draper) continues to look better each week, especially after the Chargers beat Skyridge (Lehi) 21-17 two weeks ago. Lehi has outscored the opposition 365-31, while shutting out six of eight opponents. They have not allowed a point in 13 consecutive quarters heading into Thursday. Timpview's only loss came against Skyridge 20-13 and they have scored at least 42 points in five of seven games. The winner clinches at least a share of the 5A Region 8 title.
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The Winnersville Classic is one of the best rivalries in high school football. They first played each other in 1968 and Valdosta has gone 37-23 against Lowndes, but the Vikings have won the last five meetings. After a 2-2 start this season Lowndes got a huge 24-14 win over Grayson (Loganville) and are riding a ton of momentum. This is the best start for Valdosta since 2013 when they started the year 7-0.
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De La Salle is a few plays away from being 5-0 this season but could not hold onto fourth quarter leads against Serra (San Mateo) and Folsom. The Rams are trying to solidify themselves as one of the best teams in NorCal and get that opportunity on Friday. They have outscored their first six opponents 276-66. St. Mary's is 0-7 against the Spartans since 2010.
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The Crusaders got a huge 24-17 win over O'Dea (Seattle) last week and face another big-time opponent on Friday. The Bulldogs have outscored their first five opponents 233-38 and had a notable 26-16 win over Lake Stevens in their season opener. Eastside Catholic is the top-ranked team in Washington in the
computer rankings while Garfield checks in at No. 3. The Crusaders are also the only team in the state ranked in our
top 100.
Friday, 8 p.m. - ESPNU
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New York's Zach Wilson got the spotlight last week in his first start of the season leading the Jets to a 24-20 comeback win over Pittsburgh. Now younger brother Isaac gets the spotlight on ESPNU this Friday. Wilson has accounted for 2,430 yards of total offense (2,065 passing, 365 rushing) and 24 touchdowns in his first season as the starting quarterback for the Utah power. This is a rematch of last year's 6A state championship and Lone Peak won 49-42 in a game that featured over 1,000 total yards.
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North Cobb lost its starting quarterback and preseason all-state first team selection
Malachi Singleton in a tough 21-14 loss against No. 7 Buford earlier this season. He broke his foot but still finished that game. He recently got surgery and could be back during the playoffs. The Warriors have gone 2-1 without Singleton. Walton's only loss came in its season opener against No. 18 Mill Creek (Hoschton) 44-41. The Raiders pulled off a wild 51-49 win over North Paulding (Dallas, Ga.) last week and will be going for their fifth straight win on Friday.
