Mater Dei vs. St. John Bosco: Top Defensive Performers
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The top two teams in the state met at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the CIF-Southern Section Division 1 championship game. Mater Dei and St. John Bosco played each other for the championship for the sixth time in seven…
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Continue ReadingThe top two teams in the state met at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum for the CIF-Southern Section Division 1 championship game.
Mater Dei and St. John Bosco played each other for the championship for the sixth time in seven seasons.
The defenses for both teams shined for much of the game. Mater Dei won the game 35-7 and had two interception returns for touchdowns. Here are the defensive players that stood out for both teams.
MATER DEI
The interior of Mater Dei’s defensive line was the most dominant unit of the game.
The trio of Semi Taulanga Semi Taulanga 6’1″ | 295 lbs | DL Mater Dei | 2025 State CA , Zeus Venegas Zeus Venegas 6’3″ | 260 lbs | DL Mater Dei | 2024 State CA and Tomu Topoui were constantly in the backfield and creating blitzing lanes for the Mater Dei linebackers.
Sanders had an interception he returned for a touchdown, which was the first touchdown of the game. The inside linebackers for Mater Dei held Bosco to zero rushing yards on 20 attempts.
One of the best under the radar moves Mater Dei made this season was moving Tanner Williams Tanner Williams 6’1″ | 210 lbs | LB Mater Dei | 2024 State CA from the edge to inside linebacker.
He showed leadership at the position and was clearly making calls and identifying trends for the Mater Dei defense.
Williams had a team-high six tackles.
Mater Dei frequently had Dixson at strong safety and playing in the box to stop the Bosco run game and blitz.
He was very impressive as a blitzer, a part of his game I hadn’t seen in person before, and had two tackles for a loss.
Zabien Brown Zabien Brown 6’1″ | 180 lbs | DB Mater Dei | 2024 State CA had a pick-six for Mater Dei’s defense and locked down his side of the field.
He spent most of the game in man coverage and even when he gave up catches he flew up the field to prevent big gains.
He and other cornerback Chuck McDonald III Chuck McDonald III 6’1″ | 180 lbs | DB Mater Dei | 2025 State CA were very effective stopping passes outside the numbers.
ST. JOHN BOSCO
Max Amasio
Max Amasio
Amasio was the most dominant defensive player for St. John Bosco throughout the game at nose tackle.
He had three tackles for a loss with a sack.
Tamal Johnson Tamal Johnson 6’0″ | 170 lbs | DB St. John Bosco | 2024 State CA led Bosco in tackles with six along with Sir Tyler Thomas Sir Tyler Thomas 6’0″ | 210 lbs | LB St. John Bosco | 2024 State CA .
Marcelles Williams Marcelles Williams 6’0″ | 185 lbs | DB St. John Bosco | 2024 State CA was playing on the field where he will play during his college career.
He locked down his side of the field and while he had safety help for much of the game, nobody made big plays against him and he made some tackles on the outside.
Highlights
The numbers weren’t fantastic for Viliamu-Asa, but his presence in the middle of Bosco’s defense was notable and Mater Dei clearly knew where he was on the field at all times.
He showed he has sideline-to-sideline speed and made tackles all over the field.