Video: Top 15 Games of the Week Two CIF Southern Section championship games are featured in this week's slate.
Even though St. John Bosco was ranked second in the state and nation, few gave the Braves much of a chance on Saturday night.
Certainly not late in the second quarter.
That's because Bosco trailed 28-5, plus, more importantly, it was playing the No. 1 team in the country, arch-rival Mater Dei, a team that already handed the Braves their only defeat earlier in the season.
Instead, behind 444 yards passing and five touchdowns from Clemson-bound quarterback
DJ Uiagalelei, Bosco did the unthinkable, scoring 34 unanswered points and holding the Monarchs to just six points in the second half to pull off a 39-34 victory in the Southern Section Division 1 finals at a packed Cerritos College in Norwalk.
Bosco now faces third-ranked De La Salle (Concord), which had no such problem in the North Coast Section Division 1 finals, with a 49-7 win over 15th-ranked Pittsburg.
On a cold and wet weekend in the Golden State, most of the section champonships went as planned among the state's Top 25 teams.
There were some upsets, including unranked Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills) upending No. 21 Monterey Trail (Elk Grove) 35-27 in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 1 finals. Monterey Trail had just stunned then eighth-ranked Folsom the week before.
Also, in Southern Section Division 5 playoff action, unranked Aquinas upset No. 25 St. Paul (Santa Fe Springs) 21-16. In another Southern Section championship contest, No. 24 Pacificia (Oxnard) held on for a 42-41 win over La Serna in the D6 final.
In other action,
Ethan Garbers and No. 6 Corona del Mar (Newport Beach) put on an offensive display beating the defending CIF Division 2-AA state champs, 56-28. The Sea Kings improved to 14-0 and won the school's first section championship since 2013.
No. 10 Central (Fresno) took down 2020 Georgia commit
Kendall Milton and No. 19 Buchanan (Clovis) in the Central Division 1 section championship. They won 28-21.
Top 25 California High School Football Scoreboard
No. 1 Mater Dei (Santa Ana) vs. No. 2 St. John Bosco (Bellflower)
Saturday, 7:30 p.m. at Cerritos College (Norwalk)
No. 3 De La Salle (Concord) vs. No. 15 Pittsburg
No. 6 Corona del Mar (Newport Beach) vs. No. 9 Grace Brethren (Simi Valley)
Friday, 7:30 p.m. at Newport Harbor high school (Newport Beach)
No. 7 Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) at Chaminade (West Hills)
Friday, 7:30 p.m.
No. 10 Central (Fresno) vs. No. 19 Buchanan (Clovis)
No. 14 Serra (San Mateo) vs. No. 16 Valley Christian (San Jose)
No. 21 Monterey Trail (Elk Grove) vs. Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills)
No. 24 Pacifica (Oxnard) vs. La Serna (Whittier)
Saturday, 7 p.m. at California high school (Whittier)
No. 25 St. Paul (Santa Fe Springs) vs. Aquinas (San Bernardino)
Friday, 7 p.m.
Season Complete: No. 4 Centennial (Corona), No. 5 Mission Viejo,
No. 8 Servite (Anaheim), No. 11 Helix (La Mesa), No. 12 La Habra, No. 13
Bishop Amat, No. 17 Alemany (Mission Hills), No. 18 Rancho Cucamonga,
No. 20 Calabasas, No. 22 Folsom, No. 23 JSerra Catholic (San Juan
Capistrano)