Division 1 Championship Preview: Mater Dei vs. St. John Bosco

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The two best teams in the nation, Mater Dei and St. John Bosco, will play at the Rose Bowl for the Southern Section Division 1 championship Friday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Since 2016, St. John Bosco is the only team to beat Mater Dei. Mater Dei has won 29 consecutive games since its last loss against Bosco in the 2019 Division 1 championship game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The two teams met earlier this season when Mater Dei beat the Braves 17-7 at Santa Ana Stadium.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mater Dei held St. John Bosco to 292 yards of total offense in that game. [player_tooltip player_id='195537' first='Jeilani' last='Davis'] led the Monarchs with 13 tackles that night. [player_tooltip player_id='147715' first='Zabien' last='Brown'] and [player_tooltip player_id='282700' first='Daryus' last='Dixson'] each had interceptions for the Monarchs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Let's break this game down in sections.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/Zack_Poff_MP/status/1578610963758354432?s=20u0026t=zlOd5SmRc4nR2mB1y6Pq2g","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/Zack_Poff_MP/status/1578610963758354432?s=20u0026t=zlOd5SmRc4nR2mB1y6Pq2g </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>ST. JOHN BOSCO OFFENSE</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One thing the Braves can point to as a reason for their loss to Mater Dei, is that starting quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='25367' first='Pierce' last='Clarkson'] left the game at halftime due to a concussion and [player_tooltip player_id='115464' first='Chauncey' last='Sylvester'] missed the game entirely. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='115455' first='Caleb' last='Sanchez'] filled in admirably but the Braves only completed 14 passes for 106 yards. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bosco got big plays in the passing game against Mission Viejo with long touchdowns to [player_tooltip player_id='145168' first='Israel' last='Polk'] and [player_tooltip player_id='25410' first='Jahlil' last='McClain']. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One thing I expect from Bosco is to use [player_tooltip player_id='25456' first='Matayo' last='Uiagalelei'] more in the passing game. He is a matchup nightmare, even for Mater Dei and the Braves will go to him when desperate for points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>MATER DEI FRONT 7</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I think Mater Dei's front seven on defense is one of the best units in the state. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The interior of the defensive line is big with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='147757' first='Zeus' last='Venegas']</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id='115434' first='Aydin' last='Breland']. [player_tooltip player_id='282774' first='Nasir' last='Wyatt'] has emerged as an elite edge player who is in the backfield constantly.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='25447' first='Levi' last='Sua'] is a favorite of <strong>Bruce Rollinson</strong> at middle linebacker. He's a sure-tackler and can drop into coverage well. [player_tooltip player_id='115438' first='Ramere' last='Davis'] has been playing well and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='942967' first='Rylan' last='Vagana']</strong> is a sleeper.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bosco's offensive line did not do a good job protecting its quarterbacks in the first game. [player_tooltip player_id='261803' first='Sean' last='Haney'] is a great pass blocker at center but the Braves will need a big game from [player_tooltip player_id='25417' first='Sean' last='Na'a'] and their other linemen.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/SteveFryer/status/1595080796787773441?s=20u0026t=zlOd5SmRc4nR2mB1y6Pq2g","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/SteveFryer/status/1595080796787773441?s=20u0026t=zlOd5SmRc4nR2mB1y6Pq2g </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>MATER DEI RUNNING BACKS</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bosco did a nice job containing the Mater Dei running backs in the first game except for a late touchdown run.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='282698' first='Jordon' last='Davison'] has been one of the best running backs in the state. [player_tooltip player_id='273546' first='Nate' last='Frazier'] is the fastest of the group and [player_tooltip player_id='115462' first='Ajon' last='Bryant'] had two big plays against Los Alamitos in the semifinals.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='115443' first='Kyngstonn' last='Viliamu-Asa'] is a stud at linebacker for the Braves and is a big reason they are difficult to run the ball against. [player_tooltip player_id='145191' first='Deven' last='Bryant'] and [player_tooltip player_id='115469' first='Jordan' last='Lockhart'] are other linebackers to keep an eye on.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/johnwdavis/status/1595273571495919616?s=20u0026t=zlOd5SmRc4nR2mB1y6Pq2g","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/johnwdavis/status/1595273571495919616?s=20u0026t=zlOd5SmRc4nR2mB1y6Pq2g </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>BOSCO SECONDARY</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bosco's secondary held Mater Dei to 119 yards in the first matchup. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='115432' first='Marcelles' last='Williams'] and [player_tooltip player_id='145132' first='Ty' last='Lee'] have been fantastic recently and [player_tooltip player_id='115433' first='Peyton' last='Woodyard'] covers a ton of the field. [player_tooltip player_id='25380' first='Jshawn' last='Frausto-Ramos'] and [player_tooltip player_id='25395' first='RJ' last='Jones'] are also great players.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mater Dei has deep threats in [player_tooltip player_id='282711' first='Marcus' last='Harris'], <strong>Marcus Brown</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id='115472' first='Jack' last='Ressler']. [player_tooltip player_id='384736' first='Jordan' last='Onovughe'] can make plays after the catch and I expect tight end [player_tooltip player_id='145241' first='Spencer' last='Shannon'] to get involved. But Bosco definitely has the talent edge in the secondary compared to the Mater Dei receivers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/johnwdavis/status/1595280127650189312?s=20u0026t=zlOd5SmRc4nR2mB1y6Pq2g","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/johnwdavis/status/1595280127650189312?s=20u0026t=zlOd5SmRc4nR2mB1y6Pq2g </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>QB FACTOR</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Despite being contained in the first game, Mater Dei quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='147708' first='Elijah' last='Brown'] is 29-0 as a starter and 3-0 against Bosco. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He makes very few mistakes and is one of the most poised high school quarterbacks I have ever seen. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bosco will need to pressure him but be sure to keep a spy on him to prevent him from making plays with his legs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>FINAL NOTES</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both teams are fired up for this game. Bosco wants revenge and wants to win its first title in three years.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mater Dei is motivated to win 30 games in a row and win one last championship for Rollinson, who is retiring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I have picked against Mater Dei before and learned my lesson. I will pick the Monarchs until they lose.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->