St. John Bosco returned to the field on Friday night and announced its presence with authority, scoring three touchdowns in the first six minutes of a 35-12 win over Miami Central in a battle of national powerhouses.
Three-star senior running back Jabari Bates scored two touchdowns in the first four minutes and tacked on another in the fourth quarter as St. John Bosco throttled Miami Central throughout the night. Bates kicked off the scoring with a touchdown after a Miami Central fumble. He then found paydirt from 31 yards out after a Miami Central three-and-out to quickly put the Braves up 14-0. Four-star junior quarterback Pierce Clarkson then tossed a three-yard touchdown pass to make it 21-0 midway through the first quarter.
St. John Bosco’s early lead was ultimately too much for Miami Central to overcome, but the Rockets did not roll over easily. Miami Central held St. John Bosco scoreless for the remainder of the first half after its six-minute onslaught and cut its lead to 13 with a pair of field goals. The Rockets missed a golden opportunity to cut St. John Bosco’s lead to one possession after a Caleb McKenzie interception took them down inside of the Bosco 20, though, as they fumbled inside of the five-yard line.
Bates scored on a 31-yard touchdown with 11 minutes to go to make it 28-6 before Miami Central notched its first touchdown of the night to cut the lead to 28-12. Clarkson put the icing on the cake with a late 55-yard touchdown pass to Chedon James.
Next up for St. John Bosco is a matchup with Bishop Alemany next weekend. Miami Central has a bye week before returning to the west coast to take on Las Vegas power Bishop Gorman.
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