SAN FRANCISCO - It's like Christmas in Hawaii.
Your birthday at Disneyland.
A fantasy football draft at the Super Bowl.
Think up any favorite or monumental event and host it at . ... a favorite or monumental destination.
Sacred Heart Cathedral senior Tino
Miles has accounted for more than
2,000 yards and 21 TDs in 2011.
Photo by David Stephenson
That is what the football teams at
St. Ignatius (San Francisco) and
Sacred Heart Cathedral (San Francisco) will experience today.
Only better. Times two.
"Christmas is coming 22 days early," Sacred Heart Cathedral coach John Lee said.
That's because for the first time in the storied, bitter 118-year history of the San Francisco rivalry, the schools will be playing in a championship game, in this case the Central Coast Section Division III title.
And to put a little icing in this cake, some cream in the pie, a pretty bow on this package, the game will be played at AT&T Park, home of the 2010 World Series champion Giants.
The game is tonight at 7 p.m. and more than 10,000 fans are expected to stop by and purchase a $10 ticket, which is cheaper than going to the movies in San Francisco.
"To be honest, this is once in a lifetime," said eighth-year head
coach Lee, 45, a Sacred Heart Cathedral graduate. "We're playing our
rivals for a title. We're playing in a world-class facility. It's
Christmastime. The stars have all aligned."
Some are calling it the biggest game in the series, which dates back
to 1893. St. Ignatius, which has featured such stars as Pro Football
Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Fouts, Dolphins defensive lineman Igor
Olshansky and Cal junior offensive lineman Matt Summers-Gavin, owns a
54-25-7 series lead.
But Sacred Heart Cathedral - which boasts former NFL All-Pro guard
Kevin Gogan and current Jaguars receiver Jason Hill as alumni, and Super
Bowl-winning head coach Mike Holmgren as a former assistant - won 38-14
on Oct. 21 to break a five-game series skid.
"It's been a lot of work, but moreso it's been really exciting and
fulfilling," St. Ignatius athletic director John Mulkerrins said. "It's
going to be a fantastic experience, especially for the players, families
and fans at both schools."
Keeping players restrained and focused are major challenges
for both teams, though St. Ignatius coach John Regalia prides the program on
composure.
The Wildcats had to maintain their wits during a regular
season that featured three losses by a total of eight points and a tie that
included two missed PATs. All were against ranked teams.
St. Ignatius quarterback Jack Stinn
has passed for almost 2,600 yards.
Photo by Ted Walker
But St. Ignatius, led by junior quarterback
Jack Stinn (2,597
yards passing), righted the ship and recorded two hair-raising last-minute playoff
victories, including 43-42 at Valley Christian on Saturday.
Valley Christian scored three straight TDs to take a 42-35
lead with 1:35 left, but Stinn led an 80-yard drive finished off with a TD pass
and 2-point conversion toss, both to Travis McDow.
“We’ve experienced a lot this season and all of it helped us
persevere the last two weeks,” Regalia said. “We’ve done a great job of
responding. We have a very tough group of players.”
They were no match the first game with Sacred Heart, which
rode the legs of 6-foot, 210-pound running back Valentino Miles (26 carries,
315 yards, two TDs). Jack Harrington also threw for 121 yards and three scores.
“We know (St. Ignatius) is going to come at us like banshees
after what happened the first game,” Lee said. “They’re peaking at the right
time and playing great football. But we are too.”
What makes the venue so remarkable is it took a fight to get it.
The game was originally scheduled at Terra Nova High School in
Pacifica but considering the stadium holds only 3,000 fans – with
standing room – CCS had second thoughts. This titanic rivalry, which
dates back all the way to 1893, figured to demand at least 5,000, and
now at the AT&T, probably closer to 10,000.
On Tuesday, Central Coast Section commissioner Nancy Lazen Blaser, Sacred Heart Cathedral
co-Athletic Director Phil Freed, Mulkerrins and San Francisco Giants
officials worked on the deal all afternoon.
Alumni from both schools work in the Giants organization so the right people were connected. Giants President Larry Baer also was instrumental in getting the deal done.
“This was a great example of four institutions – both schools, CCS
and the Giants – working together to get this done,” Mulkerrins said Tuesday.
“It’s a great day for all of us.”
Freed stopped
by the football team’s practice Tuesday afternoon to give Irish head coach Lee the good news.
“When I told him, his exact words were ‘Are you kidding me?’
“Now we're able to make anyone and everyone who wants to
watch perhaps the biggest game in San Francisco history happy. This is an old classic matchup … and now we're able to play it at a beautiful
setting like AT&T Park. How great is that?"
