High School

St. John Bosco stuns Mater Dei; 4 takeaways

Cameron Jones ran for 134 yards on 21 carries to lead St. John Bosco to a shutout victory over Mater Dei

Tarek Fattal

BELLFLOWER, CALIFORNIA - There’s a new No. 1, well at least there should be.

St. John Bosco stunned Mater Dei 28-0 Friday night at home to dethrone the Monarchs from their top spot in the national polls, including the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25.

The Braves (7-1) came into the game ranked No. 7 in the country. Mater Dei dropped to 7-1 and was shutout for the first time since 2011, when it lost to Orange Lutheran by the same score.

Here are five takeaways from the game.

CAM JONES DOMINANCE

St. John Bosco running back Cameron Jones - a UCLA commit - was the most impressive offensive player in the game Friday night. 

He rushed for 134 yards on 21 carries, including 84 yards on 10 rushes and a score in the first half. He also caught a 17-yard touchdown from Caleb Sanchez to give the Braves a 14-0 lead in the second quarter.

Jones is a physical runner that sheds tacklers at 6-foot-2, 235 pounds.

BOSCO DEFENSE IS FAST

The St. John Bosco defense made Mater Dei quarterback Elijah Brown look like he was running in quicksand. If the Braves’ defensive line wasn’t sacking Brown, the linebackers were bringing pressure, and the defensive backs were breaking up passes.

The Braves had three sacks in the first half and multiple pass deflections from defensive backs.

Epi Sitanilei Usumalil and Maxwell Amasio were outstanding up front. Notre Dame commit Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa was dominant at linebacker. Peyton Woodyard and Tay Lockett were everywhere in the secondary.

COACHING EXPERIENCE

Welcome to the rivalry, Frank McManus.

The Mater Dei first-year head coach will have a lot to think about in his coaching debut as the front man for the Monarchs after being shutout for the first time since 2011.

St. John Bosco coach Jason Negro is in year 14, and it showed.

"I remember coaching in my first St. John Bosco-Mater Dei game. We lost by 43 points the year before I took over. My first year, we closed the gap and had a chance to win it in the fourth quarter," Negro said. "These games are different (than others)."

PATIENCE A VIRTUE FOR SANCHEZ

St. John Bosco senior quarterback Caleb Sanchez didn’t play his best game, but his story is a beacon of refreshing hope that all should know about.

Caleb Sanchez seeing patience, loyalty pay off

In an era of heavy transfers where players and parents are always looking for greener grass, Sanchez waited his turn to be the starting quarterback of the Braves after being a backup for three full seasons.

He threw for 112 yards and one touchdown. No interceptions.

Photo: Heston Quan
Photo by Heston Quan
Heston Quan, SBLive Sports
Photo by Heston Quan
Photo: Heston Quan
Photo by Heston Quan
Published
Tarek Fattal, SBLive Sports
TAREK FATTAL

Tarek Fattal has been covering high school sports since 2015 in Southern California and primarily in Los Angeles, covering notable athletes such as Bronny James, Kayvon Thibodeaux and Alyssa Thompson. He was with the LA Daily News for eight years, which included being the beat reporter for the UCLA men's basketball team. Tarek can be seen on TV regularly on CBS/KCAL as a sports analyst with Jim Hill.

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