St. John Bosco vs. Mater Dei Preview: Players to Watch

Finally! The biggest game of the high school football season in the country is this Saturday. St. John Bosco and Mater Dei are arguably the two best teams in the country and have both won National Championships in the past three years. Both teams and media have circled this date on the calendar ever since the season was announced. There are countless Division 1 signees and prospects in this game. Here are a few of the players I expect to be crucial in this game. I will be in attendance for this game. Make sure to follow me on Twitter @MikeHuntley63 for updates from the sidelines. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25253" first="Sione" last="Hala"], St. John Bosco, 2022</strong> Hala has been a ballhawk on defense all season long for the Braves and will be crucial in stopping Mater Dei’s very good passing offense. He covers so much of the field with his speed and his length at 6-foot-2 helps him in jump ball situations. He is the best player in the St. John Bosco secondary and his speed should make the freshman quarterback at Mater Dei think twice before throwing over the middle. https://twitter.com/LJ_Reyna/status/1370950265151442947?s=20 <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25233" first="Rayshon" last="Luke"], St. John Bosco, 2022</strong> The Braves have multiple Division 1 caliber running backs but Luke is the one with the best big play ability. He has the longest run of the season for the Braves, an 82-yard touchdown run against Santa Margarita. [player_tooltip player_id="25266" first="Jabari" last="Bates"] is also a big play guy but Luke has the speed to outrun Mater Dei defenders in space. He is banged up and has had limited carries the past few games, but I expect both teams to pull out all the weapons in this one. Luke has 12 offers and recruiting analysts expect him to commit to USC. https://twitter.com/Scott_Schrader/status/1373463311916748804?s=20 <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25456" first="Matayo" last="Uiagalelei"], St. John Bosco, 2023</strong> He is a two-way star that is already a national recruit. He doesn’t get a lot of targets as a tight end but he is a matchup nightmare for defensive coordinators in the redzone. He had two catches, both for touchdowns against man coverage in the Braves closest game of the season against Servite. He has drawn comparisons to Rob Gronkowski and it’s easy to see why. Uiagalelei can also impact the game as a defensive end as well. https://twitter.com/MaxPreps/status/1375668413759164416?s=20 https://twitter.com/MaxPreps/status/1373666634951442436?s=20 <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25226" first="Earnest" last="Greene"], St. John Bosco, 2022</strong> Bosco has the slight advantage at offensive line in this game and it’s largely due to Greene. He is the left tackle for the Braves and will be tasked with stopping the Mater Dei pass rush. He is around 6-foot-5 and 330 pounds and moves very well for someone of his size. He and [player_tooltip player_id="25067" first="Maximus" last="Gibbs"] are an elite run blocking duo as well. https://twitter.com/RyanYoungRivals/status/1371195979576217600?s=20 <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25245" first="Nathan" last="Burrell"], St. John Bosco, 2022</strong> Burrell is a great pass rusher who made the biggest defensive play in the game when Bosco played Mater Dei last year in the CIF-SS Division 1 championship game. He rushed quarterback Bryce Young in his own endzone and forced an intentional grounding penalty. Burrell also tipped a ball and intercepted it in that game. He also has the ability to deflect short passes and make plays in the running game. https://twitter.com/Scott_Schrader/status/1201967922089881601?s=20 https://twitter.com/prepzone/status/1201026132708978688?s=20 <hr /> <strong>Elijah Brown, Mater Dei, 2024</strong> Brown is the freshman quarterback for Mater Dei who is playing the biggest game of his young career so far. There won’t be a capacity crowd for this game like in years past, but media and scouts will be watching and the game is televised. He has played extremely well for the Monarchs this season, completing 71 percent of his passes for 770 yards and 11 touchdowns compared to just one interception. It will be interesting to see how he does against a top team like Bosco. https://twitter.com/RyanYoungRivals/status/1380717004114419715?s=20 <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25234" first="David" last="Bailey"], Mater Dei, 2022</strong> Bailey has only played in one game this season against Servite. In that game he had four sacks and proved that he is the best pass rusher in Southern California for his class. He did not play last week against Santa Margarita but I expect him to play and be very active against Bosco. The Braves have two quarterbacks, [player_tooltip player_id="25367" first="Pierce" last="Clarkson"] and [player_tooltip player_id="25273" first="Katin" last="Houser"] and they may have to extend plays with their legs due to Bailey being in the backfield. https://twitter.com/lfernando86/status/1379799119821070339?s=20 <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25223" first="Domani" last="Jackson"], Mater Dei, 2022</strong> Jackson is the best defensive back in this game and whoever he is playing man coverage on is going to have a long night. The Mater Dei secondary is so athletic and quick to the ball with Jackson, [player_tooltip player_id="25264" first="Josh" last="Hunter"] and [player_tooltip player_id="25176" first="Shoes" last="Brinkley"]. Jackson deflects a lot of passes but doesn’t have an interception yet this season. What better time to force a big turnover than in the biggest game of the season? Jackson is verbally committed to USC. https://twitter.com/Scott_Schrader/status/1378767649472012290?s=20 <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25051" first="Kyron" last="Ware-Hudson"], Mater Dei, 2021</strong> From one USC commit to another Monarch who signed with the Trojans. Mater Dei has used Ware-Hudson sparingly this season, probable because he is already signed, but he is heating up lately. He had a 21-yard touchdown catch against Santa Margarita and I expect the Monarchs to unleash him in this important game. With him, [player_tooltip player_id="25224" first="CJ" last="Williams"], [player_tooltip player_id="25281" first="Quincy" last="Craig"], <strong>Josiah Zamora</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id="25278" first="Cooper" last="Barkate"], the Mater Dei passing attack may overwhelm the Bosco defense. https://twitter.com/RyanYoungRivals/status/1380706890003349504?s=20 <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25026" first="Raesjon" last="Davis"], Mater Dei, 2021</strong> Davis is the best inside linebacker in this game and will be tasked with stopping the very good Bosco running game. He is so versatile and is a very good pass rusher, tackler and pass defender. He had a sack against Servite, an interception against JSerra and a fumble recovery against Orange Lutheran. I expect him to be near the ball on any play within the hashes in his last high school game. https://twitter.com/RyanYoungRivals/status/1380708697031143426?s=20