Tag: st john bosco

Mater Dei redeems regular-season loss to St. John Bosco with championship win

Mater Dei won the CIF-SS championship by taking down St. John Bosco by 28 points — the same differential as the regular-season shutout.

It hasn’t been since 2017 that the winner of the regular-season game between Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) and St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) also won the championship game between those two teams. Over the last five years, the teams have rematched in the title game three times; the result was flipped all three times.

This year, the sixth season since 2017, it looked like there could be a flip in the script. No. 5 Mater Dei was shut out in the regular-season contest, and if No. 3 Bosco had truly figured out the Monarchs, the regular-season winner would wrap up the title game.

It was not to be. Mater Dei rolled over St. John Bosco 35-7 on Friday night, defeating them by the exact same margin in which the Monarchs lost to the Braves a month and a half ago. The Monarchs are back at the top of the California Interscholastic Federation-Southern Section (CIF-SS) as champions for the second time in the last three years.

Mater Dei’s defense set the tone early with a first-quarter pick-six when three-star linebacker Abduall Sanders returned an interception 52 yards for the first points of the game.

St. John Bosco was unable to move the ball efficiently in that first half, recording negative-one rushing yards, according to the Los Angeles Times. Mater Dei held the Braves to just one touchdown, a reception by four-star linebacker Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa while tacking on a pair of scores from four-star RB Jordon Davison and WR Kayden Dixon-Wyatt to take a 21-7 lead into the break.

Defense and special teams carried the Monarchs through the second half, as a muffed punt in the fourth quarter gave Mater Dei the opportunity for four-star defensive lineman Tomu Topui, lined up at tight end, to score a 14-yard touchdown. On the first play of the next drive, four-star cornerback Zabien Brown had a pick-six of his own to put the game away.

The LA Times reported that first-year Mater Dei head coach Frank McManus took a more active role in managing the defense during games after the defeat against Bosco in October. He succeeded in helping the unit prepare for this game, and the players put away the Braves. McManus has gotten through the beast that is Bosco, and Mater Dei is set to place its claim as the top team in California once again.

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Super 25 scoreboard

Game of the year? No. 3 St. John Bosco edges No. 18 Centennial in semifinal thriller

St. John Bosco stifled a two-point conversion with eight seconds left to beat Centennial in the high-scoring CIF-SS Div. I semifinals.

Centennial (Corona, Calif.) had a chance to take a leap toward the top of the California Southern Section in the semifinal game against St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) on Friday.

After scoring a touchdown with eight seconds remaining to cut the deficit to one point, the Huskies could choose whether to send the game to overtime with an extra point attempt or go for the win with a two-point conversion.

The Huskies went for the latter in a game with nearly 90 total points scored and a missed PAT already. Quarterback Husan Longstreet faked the handoff to running back Cornell Hatcher Jr., who had scored five touchdowns throughout the night. Longstreet took the ball himself, slightly slipped, and was tackled by a pair of St. John Bosco defenders.

Centennial had one more chance, recovering an onside kick at the Bosco 41-yard line, but was prevented from moving the ball any further.

With that, the Braves eked out a 43-42 win and secured yet another CIF-SS Div. I championship game appearance against Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.).

Bosco quarterback Caleb Sanchez led the offense by passing for six touchdown passes and 330 yards on 13-for-23 passing, according to the San Bernadino Sun. His first three completions of the game were touchdowns of 23 yards, 62 yards and 65 yards, respectively.

On Centennial’s end, Hatcher was unstoppable, rushing 221 yards for five touchdowns on 45 carries, according to the Los Angeles Times.

It’s hard to overstate how good Hatcher was this season. In 12 games, he rushed for more than 2,300 yards and 42 touchdowns. He had at least 100 yards in every game except one — when he got 99 yards on 10 carries.

As close as Centennial came, they missed out on opportunities that could have won them the game. The Huskies missed a field goal, an extra-point attempt, and a pair of two-point conversions trying to make up for the lost points.

The loss for Centennial represents the plight of playing in the Trinity League. During the regular season, the Huskies played a demanding schedule, testing themselves against Mater Dei, Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) and Liberty (Peoria, Ariz.). They cruised through division play and established themselves as a clear top-three team in California. They had a game plan that helped them put up 42 against Bosco.

Yet in the end, it ended the same way it has year in and year out for more than half a decade: Bosco vs. Mater Dei for the title.

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St. John Bosco and Mater Dei don’t appear to be evenly-matched programs this year

This was a shocker.

A lot is made of USC’s inability to recruit from St. John Bosco. The inability to secure a commitment from Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, who ultimately chose Notre Dame over USC and Ohio State, deeply stung the Trojans. USC needs to fortify its Southern California pipeline and keep more key prospects home. Whenever Bosco plays Mater Dei in the big Southern California high school game of the year, USC football is reminded of the challenge it faces to build a fence around its best local prospects.

In some years, Bosco and Mater Dei stand on equal footing, but this year, they don’t appear to be the same. St. John Bosco demolished Mater Dei, 28-0, a few days ago. Mater Dei carried a No. 1 ranking into the game, but the Monarchs looked nothing like an elite team against the Braves, who controlled the action throughout. It will be fascinating to see how both teams respond in the next several weeks of the high school season.

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No. 9 St. John Bosco shocks No. 1 Mater Dei in shutout victory

St. John Bosco gave Mater Dei its first shutout in more than a decade and created a seismic shift in the Super 25 rankings.

Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) vs. St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.), one of the biggest rivalries in high school football, almost always has massive national champion implications. Typically ranked among the top five teams in the country (and frequently the top two), the Monarchs and Braves trade blows and pry for weaknesses as they try to get the upper hand in the regular season with the expectation that there will be one more matchup for the championship.

There very well may be one more game for the championship.

St. John Bosco created a seismic shift in the national ranking landscape with a victory that was anything but the usual tight-fought battle fans and teams expect. The Braves shut out Mater Dei 28-0, the Monarchs’ first time being shut out since 2011, and completely flipped the tenor of the season.

“We’re still a champion until someone knocks us off,” Bosco head coach Jason Negro said to the Los Angeles Times.

It’s a good reminder. Mater Dei has been ranked No. 1 in the nation all year despite Bosco winning the title last season. The Braves fell further in the rankings after losing to Kahuku (Hawaii) on Sept. 16, suffering a rare loss to a non-Monarchs team.

Any perceived shakiness was proven incorrect. That loss to Kahuku was simply a loss. In dismantling Mater Dei — a team that was not only undefeated so far this season but had not yet trailed in a single game — Bosco re-asserted itself as the top team in California.

Mater Dei quarterback Elijah Brown was held to just 10 completions on 21 passes for 115 yards, and he was picked off by cornerback Frankie Edwards. The Braves defense held Mater Dei below 100 yards in the first half, according to MaxPreps.

On offense, Bosco running back Cameron Jones rushed for 134 yards on 21 carries and had a pair of touchdowns, including a 20-yard reception.

Bosco scored a pair of touchdowns in the second quarter to take a 14-0 lead into the second half.

The Braves pulled a trick play out of its bag in the third quarter, with Stacy Dobbins catching a lateral behind the line of scrimmage, rolling right, and then throwing a touchdown pass to the wide-open Tommy Maher downfield.

Bosco iced the game in the fourth quarter with a rushing touchdown by Chauncey Sylvester.

With this shutout, St. John Bosco takes possession of first place in the Trinity League with just two games remaining in the regular season. All the momentum will be on the Brave as they seek another championship, one that may have to run through Mater Dei once again.

They’ve shown they’re ready.

Mater Dei will have to reckon with this shutout to the heated rival. In losing in this fashion, the No. 1 team in the nation will be vying to recover from this shock.

The shock ripples across not only California but the national Super 25 rankings.

Even if Mater Dei wins the Southern Section Division 1 championship, in which they may need to face the Braves again, a loss like this will be nearly impossible to recover for national championships consideration.

Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) is now 9-0 and has dismantled its opposition. Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood, Fla.) is 7-0 with a handful of strong wins, and Duncanville (Texas) improved to 6-0 with a 51-0 shutout of its own.

That’s not counting St. John Bosco, either, who has found new life with this convincing victory. The Braves are back in contention for national glory.

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Kahuku upsets reigning national champion No. 3 St. John Bosco with TD in final minute

Kahuku became just the fourth team since the start of 2017 to beat St. John Bosco, the reigning high school football national champions.

St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) football has been all but unbeatable over the last several years. From 2018 through the first for games of 2023, the Braves lost just six games, five of which were to equally spectacular Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.). Bosco hadn’t lost to a non-California team in more than six years (Aug. 25, 2017).

On Saturday, Kahuka (Hawaii) did what almost no other team had done since its players were in elementary school. Raiders quarterback Tuli Tagovailoa-Amosa scored an 18-yard touchdown with 23 seconds left and the team converted on a two-point conversion to take a 30-23 lead that would stand.

The Raiders are now 5-1 and made up for their bad 55-8 loss at the hands of Mater Dei the week prior.

 

The upset almost didn’t happen. Kahuku led 22-3 in the first half behind a pair of touchdowns by wide receiver Mana Carvalho and and 53-yard pick-six by Aiden Manutai, but St. John Bosco isn’t the reigning national champion for nothing. The Braves stormed back with 20 unanswered points, taking a lead and needing one final stop in the final minute.

They couldn’t hold on.

While it was an upset win, Kahuku certainly didn’t come out of nowhere. The Raiders have been an excellent team for quite a while now, going undefeated in 2021 and repeating as champions in 2022. They were considered in the Super 25 national rankings earlier in the season, but being routed by Mater Dei pushed them down national rankings.

But this is their official entrance. Only three different teams had beaten Bosco since the beginning of the 2017 season. Kahuku is now the fourth.

USA TODAY Sports Super 25 Regional Football Watchlist: West region

Keep an eye on these teams out West …

The 2023 high school football season has arrived, with teams kicking off across the country in August.

That means the first USA TODAY Sports Super 25 is nearing, which marks another start to an iconic franchise that began back in 1982.

Last year’s Super 25 was one of the tightest races of all time, as St. John Bosco narrowly won out over Mater Dei and Bishop Gorman, among others.

How will things stack up this season? Ahead of the opening Super 25, USA TODAY HSS is looking around the country at the five regions we use to create the national rankings:

Next up is the West region, which comprises of Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming

St. John Bosco 5-star safety Peyton Woodyard flips from Georgia to Alabama

Yesterday Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide successfully flipped one of the top defensive recruits in the Bulldogs’ class of 2024

Georgia may be the two-time reigning college champions on the field, but Alabama is still giving them a run for their money in the recruiting race. Yesterday Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide successfully flipped one of the top defensive recruits in the Bulldogs’ class of 2024.

Here’s how St. John Bosco’s five-star safety Peyton Woodyard announced that he was changing his commitment from Georgia to Alabama.

Woodyard (6-foot-2, 188 pounds) is ranked No. 6 at safety, No. 9 overall in California and No. 81 nationally, going by the 247Sports composite.

Woodyard explained his decision, telling Hayes Fawcett at On3 that Saban has done a great job coaching up defensive backs.

“Coach Saban has done a great job with DBs and it’s evident and that’s something that definitely played a role in me picking alabama. Specifically the safety position, from Minkah Fitzpatrick, Brian Branch to Eddie Jackson. I feel no one does it better than Bama.”

Georgia’s class of 2024 is still No. 1 in the nation in the recruiting rankings. However, their lead over No. 2 Ohio State has dwindled to 23 points. Meanwhile, Alabama has risen to No. 4.

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Stream live or watch the high school football season on-demand: Subscribe to the NFHS Network

High School Football: ESPN announces doubleheader for Aug. 26

ESPN will be broadcasting a couple of major high school football games at the outset of the 2023 season.

ESPN will broadcast several prominent high school football games at the outset of the 2023 season.

Sportscenter NEXT shared the announcement today on their Twitter page – the two games will feature St. Frances (Md.) vs. Chaminade-Madonna (Fla.), followed by St. John Bosco (Calif.) vs. St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.).

All the teams have been perennial USA TODAY Sport Super 25 teams.

St. Frances may be the best high school team on the east coast. Last season they posted a record of 9-1 and finished at No. 10 in our final Super 25 of 2022. Meanwhile, Chaminade-Madonna went 13-1 and finished one spot higher.

St. John Bosco spent most of the season in second place in national rankings, but a win over Mater Dei (Calif.) in November helped them climb the top of the pile. They ended the 2022-23 season with a 13-1 record and ranked first on the final Super 25 list. Meanwhile, St. Thomas Aquinas went undefeated at 14-0 and finished in the No. 6 spot.

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Making the case for 4 teams that were under consideration for National Champion

St. John Bosco was named the high school football National Champion, but three other teams could make a case that they deserve that No. 1 spot for the 2022 season.

High school football doesn’t have the luxury of college and the NFL in which the best teams go head-to-head in a defined championship game, so it falls on the media to fulfill the excruciating task of deciding which team is the best in the nation.

On occasion, it’s fairly straightforward. For example, when Mater Dei went 15-0 in 2017 with an offense led by JT Daniels and Amon-Ra St. Brown, all seven media outlets voted for the Monarchs; similarly, in 2021, when they went 12-0.

But most years, it’s a near-impossible task. Who can say with certainty that one elite team full of Division I talent would beat another elite team full of Division I talent? Who can even say with certainty that a rematch wouldn’t flip the script in a game between those teams?

This year, four teams had a case for the No. 1 spot in the country. USA TODAY High School Sports selected St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.), as did the other six outlets that voted, but history should not show that this decision was made lightly.

The top four spots were:

No. 1 St. John Bosco (13-1)

No. 2 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) (14-1)

No. 3 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) (12-1)

No. 4 Central (Miami) (14-0)

High school football playoffs: Top 5 matchups of the week

Here are the top-five games on the schedule.

This week, several other Super 25 teams will be lining up across from each other, setting the stage for more playoff drama. Here are the top-five games on the schedule.

(Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images)

California: No. 1 St. John Bosco vs. No. 19 Serra

St. John Bosco (12-1)

To get here the Braves beat out the Monarchs in dramatic fashion last Friday night, winning 24-22 after holding off a late rally by Mater Dei. In the end, it was quality line play that won the day for Bosco. On defense, they stood tall in the red zone with several successful goal line stands. Their offensive line also played a key role in crunch time.

Serra (13-0)

Still undefeated on the season, Serra hasn’t really been challenged since back in Week 2, when they defeated De La Salle (Calif.) by a field goal. The Padres have beaten every team they’ve faced since by at least 12 points, including a 41-14 route of Archbishop Mitty (Calif.) last week.

Watch live or on-demand on the NFHS Network

(PAUL RYAN / CORRESPONDENT)

Florida: No. 4 Central vs. No. 13 American Heritage (12/16)

Central (13-0)

The Rockets began their 2022 campaign with a 20-14 win over IMG Academy (Fla.), getting their journey off on the right foot. That was about as tough as it’s gotten for Central this year. All together, they have beaten seven of their opponents by 30 points or more. Last week they took out Lakewood (Fla.) 39-21 to advance.

American Heritage (13-1)

(USA TODAY Network)

Texas: No. 8 Westlake vs. No. 10 North Shore

Westlake (14-0)

They have some strong competition for the title, but Westlake might be the most-dominant high school football team in the nation this year. Their season began with a 30-point blowout over Ridge Point (Texas) and they haven’t looked back. Along the way, they’ve posted several lopsided wins by scores of 73-7, 66-17, 70-0, 45-0, 70-10 and 58-10. They did it again last week against Brennan (Texas), winning 47-7 on the road.

North Shore (14-0)

While not quite as dominant as Westlake, the Mustangs are also undefeated on the season. They have done it by running up the score on their opponents. They have put up at least 38 points in 12 different games this season. Last week they put up 38 again vs. Atascocita (Texas) in a 31-point landslide.

Watch live or on-demand on the NFHS Network

(Fiel)

Georgia: No. 20 Carrollton vs. No. 24 Mill Creek

Carrollton (14-0)

If you get to this point in the schedule and you still haven’t lose a game, you’re doing something right. The Trojans won their first game this year against Gadsden City (Ala.) 69-7, setting the tone for a dominant campaign. Carrollton boasts one of the top defenses in the country, holding eight opponents to 14 points or less. They beat Colquitt County (Ga.) on Friday, 35-27.

Mill Creek (13-1)

With the exception of a close call Week 1 against Walton (Ga.) and a 12-point loss to Buford (Ga.) in mid-October, Mill Creek has been rolling over their competition all year. They won their next two games by a combined score of 99-0 and have blown out every other opponent by at least 24 points. Last week they beat Milton (Ga.) 48-14.

Watch live or on-demand on the NFHS Network

(USA TODAY Network)

Arizona: No. 18 Basha vs. Saguaro

Basha (11-1)

The only team that’s beaten Basha this season is Liberty (Ariz.), a 35-7 blowout back in early October. Since that point their defense has tightened up considerably, not allowing more than 25 points in a single game. It’s getting better with time, too. To get here Basha pitched a shut out against Chandler (Ariz.) in a 13-0 playoff win last weekend.

Saguaro (9-3)

The Sabercats had a shaky start to their 2022 season, losing their first game and three of their first five matchups overall. However, since then they have gone on a tear, winning seven straight games, including a one-point road victory over Liberty on Saturday, 43-42. That avenged a 26-17 loss to Liberty on September 30, which was the last time Saguaro lost a game.

Watch live or on-demand on the NFHS Network