With only two games under its belt, the nation's No. 1 high school football team
Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) needed a tune-up Friday and for all but one quarter they looked very sharp during a 58-7 dismantling of La Mirada at Santa Ana Stadium.
Now the Monarchs (3-0) get their favorite Trinity League rival in third-ranked
St. John Bosco (Bellflower) for an annual national showdown featuring some of the best prep talent in the country. That game is slated for Oct. 1 at Bosco.
Mater Dei, which had two earlier games canceled by COVID-19, looked in midseason form taking a 21-0 lead late in the first quarter on a 6-yard TD run by
Raleek Brown, a 49-yard bomb from
Elijah Brown to
Cooper Barkarte and 3-yard TD burst by by freshman
Jordon Davison.
Raleek Brown rushed for two touchdowns Friday, including spectacular 82-yarder in the third quarter.
File photo by Michael Horbovetz
But Mater Dei coach Bruce Rollinson decided there was no sense in risking any injury to Elijah Brown (4-of-5 passes, 101 yards) with the Braves on the horizon. He lifted the talented sophomore with two minutes left in the first quarter and the Monarchs struggled mightily over the next 12 minutes with two turnovers and six penalties, including four major infractions.
A 34-yard field goal by
Chase Meyer (7-of-7 on extra points) was the only score the rest of the half for the Monarchs, who led 24-7. An interception, long return and then a 1-yard sneak by
Nehuel Garcia accounted for the score by the Matadores (3-3).
Evidently Rollinson had a stern message at halftime as
Ajon Bryant returned the second half kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown.
On the second play of its first possession, Oklahoma commit Raleek Brown (five carries, 108 yards) broke off a brilliant 82-yard touchdown run and the Monarchs were on their way. Backup running backs
Matthew Vaca and
Andrew Cervantes scored touchdowns and
R.J. Fineanganofo added a 20-yard scoop-and-score.
The 34-0 second half was played under a running clock and was just what the Monarchs needed heading into a collision with a Bosco squad coming off its best win of the year, a 49-0 thrashing of Virginia power Oscar Smith on the road. With a week off, the Braves (5-0) should be well rested.
Since 2015, the teams have faced off 10 times with Mater Dei winning six of them, including a 34-17 decision in the spring when Elijah Brown accounted for four touchdowns. The cumulative score in those 10 games: Mater Dei 296, St. John Bosco 284.
Other than last fall when California canceled sports due to the pandemic, the two major powers have finished among the top 10 teams in the country every year since 2016. Mater Dei won a MaxPreps national crown in 2017, finished No. 2 in 2018 and Bosco won the national title in 2019.
Over four seasons — 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 — the Braves and Monarchs have played eight times, twice each year. The winner of the second meeting went on to win the California State Open Division title.
"I can't speak for Bruce, but we won't be holding back," Bosco coach Jason Negro said Friday afternoon. "Each and every one of these games are something to treasure. This is a game we take a lot of pride in. I'm sure they do as well."
Mater Dei quarterback Elijah Brown, who led the Monarchs to a win over St. John Bosco in the spring as a freshman, played less than a quarter on Friday night.
File photo by Louis Lopez
