Ask Farrell: Who wins clash of high school titans?
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It’s the game of the year in high school football, and it pits arguably the two best teams nationally - and two of the best programs as well - against each other.
There are so many storylines that go into Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei vs. Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco.
Let’s start with the biggest ones: The game sold out within hours. According to reports, at least one ticket is on Craigslist for $200. Bosco quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei is the nation’s No. 1 player, while Bryce Young is the top-rated dual-threat quarterback. It’s a quarterback battle between Clemson and Alabama commits. That says enough.
Bosco is beating teams by an average score of 44-12. Mater Dei is outscoring foes by about 52-13. Both have played eight games and both teams are not only undefeated but every win has come by double digits except for Bosco’s win over a talented Anaheim (Calif.) Servite team.
Mater Dei’s most impressive victory came in mid-September, when it totally dominated a loaded Baltimore (Md.) St. Frances team that is one of the best in the nation as well. In that 34-18 victory, which was more lopsided than the score indicated and interestingly enough was played on Bosco’s home field, Young rushed for four touchdowns.
Bosco’s receiving corps is led by Oregon commit Kris Hutson, four-star Logan Loya and 2021 phenom Beaux Collins. Mater Dei’s defense is led by 2021 four-stars LB Raesjon Davis and CB Jaylin Davies, among many others.
It could be one of the best high school games in recent memory.
FARRELL'S TAKE
We ask Rivals National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell, who has seen almost all of these players in person during the camp season, to pick a winner and final score.
“I’ve bet against Bryce Young enough and that has to stop. He leads Mater Dei to a close victory by a score of 41-35. Uagalelei will have a good game as well, but in this case Alabama gets the best of Clemson.”