by Ethan Piechota

The St. John Bosco Braves improved to 9-0 on the year and continued their quest for a national championship with a 49-14 rout of Santa Margarita on Friday.

Coming off an emotional victory last week against Mater Dei, St. John Bosco showed no signs of a hangover and kept their foot on the gas, defeating Santa Margarita easily.

Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei continued his unreal season, going 10 for 13 from the field and throwing for 255 yards and two touchdowns, only playing roughly a half of the game as well.

Senior wide receiver Colby Bowman had a solid game as well, catching just three passes but taking them for a total of 142 yards and a touchdown.

Running back George Holani also added two touchdowns, rushing and catching one of each. Holani – a Boise State commit – continued his unbelievable season, amassing 94 yards on just nine total touches.

The game begin with Uiagalelei rushing for a one-yard touchdown to give the Braves a quick 7-0 lead. Santa Margarita quickly responded with a touchdown drive of their own, but this marked the last time this game would be close.

The Braves scored 42 straight unanswered points, putting them up 49-7 at one point in the fourth quarter.

The Braves continue to show out as the best team in America for high school football and will take on the Service Friars next week at Panish Family Stadium in their final league and homecoming game.

 

by Ethan Piechota

The St. John Bosco Braves defeated the Mater Dei Monarchs 41-18 last night at the Santa Ana Bowl, making it clear to everyone who the top team in the nation is for high school football.

If there was any dispute over who’s the clear number one team in America, it’s now settled.

It was a total beatdown from start to finish from the Braves, clearly outplaying the Monarchs in all three phases of the game.

Mater Dei’s weak pass defense was no match for Bosco five-star quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, who went 15/21 for 278 yards and FIVE touchdowns. Uiagalelei made it clear who was the best quarterback on the field last night, and maybe even in high school football.

Bosco’s offensive line came in and kept him clean as well, doing an excellent job of containing defensive end Bru McCoy amongst others.

The Braves started the game with a perfectly-executed, balanced drive that culminated with Uiagalelei throwing a 10-yard touchdown strike to star senior receiver Jake Bailey. Bailey was a star on the night for the Braves, catching six passes for 161 yards and THREE touchdowns (offer that man please).

Mater Dei would answer back on the next drive, with McCoy catching a screen pass for 39 yards and quarterback Bryce Young scrambling for 48 yards to set the Monarchs up at the 5-yard line. However, Bosco’s defense made a great goal line stand, ending with defensive back Kourt Williams II sacking Young to force Mater Dei into a field goal try.

Right away, the Braves high-powered offense answered back, as Uiagalelei threw a 24-yard touchdown to wide receiver Kris Hutson, giving the Braves a 13-3 lead after a missed extra point.

Still in the first quarter, Young drove his team down the field and threw a 8-yard touchdown pass to McCoy, trimming Bosco’s lead to 13-10.

But this was the last time Mater Dei’s supposed highly-skilled offense would be heard from, as Bosco’s defense shut down Young and company for the rest of the half, and really, until the fourth quarter.

Uiagalelei threw touchdowns on back-to-back drives to Bailey and star running back George Holani, as Bosco took a 27-10 lead into halftime.

 

Both teams drew a standstill for the third quarter, but Holani opened up the fourth with an electrifying 75-yard run, something we’ve seen so often from him this year. He finished the game with 12 carries for 118 yards, matching his 9.8 yards per carry average on the season.

In a final effort, Mater Dei put together a touchdown drive with a Young pass to tight end Mike Martinez for a 20-yard touchdown, and a following two-point conversion to him.

But from there, Bosco capped off the night with a Uiagalelei touchdown strike to Jake Bailey again for 30 yards, increasing their lead to 41-18.

Bosco would hold on to win the game 41-18 as well, proving to everyone who the number one team in the nation is. Head coach Jason Negro’s record is now 8-4 all-time against Mater Dei since his arrival at Bosco.

“I thought we did a great job tackling in space,” Negro said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. “The mentality of this football team is next level.”

The Tribe showed out as well last night, providing an excellent boost from the sidelines all night with constant cheers and noise towards the Mater Dei players.

The Braves continue their national championship quest next Friday, taking on Santa Margarita in an away game.

by Ethan Piechota

On October 5th, the St. John Bosco Braves remained undefeated and beat Orange Lutheran 63-28 at Panish Family Stadium behind three special teams touchdowns. 

The Orange Lutheran Lancers came into this highly-anticipated Trinity League matchup against the Braves ranked 10th in the nation, and they played Bosco tough for the first two and a half quarters.

Braves junior sensation DJ Uiagalelei showed out again, completing 22 of 27 passes for 264 yards and three touchdowns. Uiagalelei again played clean football, with no turnovers to his name.

Five star quarterback Ryan Hilinski threw for 258 yards and three touchdowns, but the Braves kept him in check, forcing him into two interceptions on the night.

The Lancers battled hard in the first half, tying the game at 21 right before halftime on a Hilinski touchdown strike to wide receiver JoJo Hawkins, one of his two touchdown catches on the night.

However, junior receiver Tyus Poyer returned the ensuing kickoff all the way to the house with no time left on the clock before halftime, giving the Braves a 28-21 lead and all the momentum heading into the locker room.

Junior Kris Hutson then followed up Poyer’s act by returning the opening second half kickoff for a touchdown as well, one of three Braves special teams touchdowns on the night. Huston also returned the opening kickoff for a score.

Hilinski and the Lancers answered back with a scoring drive capped off by a Logan Loya touchdown, bringing the Braves lead back to 35-28.

From there however, Bosco’s offense and defense clicked simultaneously, with back-to-back throws from Uiagalelei to Huston for touchdowns and a George Holani 40-yard touchdown run. The Braves finished the game with a 63-28 commanding victory.

A great second half performance from both units gives Bosco some great confidence heading into this week’s matchup of the year against rival Mater Dei.

Both teams are ranked at the top of the nation, with Bosco getting the majority of votes for the number one spot. The game will be the ultimate test for both teams, who are both in contention for a national championship at the end of the year.

The game will be played at the Santa Ana Bowl on October 12th, and both schools expect limited seating, so get your tickets in advance.

It’s Mater Dei week at Bosco, and it’s time for the Braves to assert their dominance as the number one team in the nation in high school football this year.

by Ethan Piechota

The number one ranked St. John Bosco Braves defeated the JSerra Lions on Friday in their Trinity League opener behind four touchdowns from George Holani.

Welcome to the Trinity League. A quest for a national championship is never easy through one of the best leagues in high school football across the country.

It wasn’t a pretty win from the Braves last night, but the most important thing to realize at this time of the year is that they got the win and battled through some intense adversity from a talented JSerra squad.

The Braves led 7-0 at the end of the first quarter, credited by an early George Holani touchdown, one of four on the night for the senior running back.

In the second quarter, the Lions came out firing and dropped 21 unanswered points on the Braves, tying up the game at 21 heading into the half.

In the third quarter, the Braves came out and on their second drive, quarterback DJ Uiagalelei connected with Holani on a 15-yard touchdown strike, giving the Braves a 28-21 lead.

The Braves defense held strong for pretty much the entire quarter and almost the entire rest of the game after that, showing their true talent and potential on that side of the ball.

Holani would put the icing on the cake for the Braves, running through the entire JSerra student body, faculty, staff, players, and alumni with a beast mode-esque run for a 57-yard score, giving the Braves a 35-21 lead in the fourth quarter.

Holani finished the game with a ridiculous stat-line of 24 carries for 158 yards and 3 touchdowns, also adding two catches for 30 yards and a score in the passing game.

In a game where junior five-star quarterback DJ Uigalelei struggled a bit, Holani stepped up and delivered the game of his career for the Braves, guiding them to victory.

However, Bosco was sloppy on special teams and the defense underperformed in the first half, which is something that will need to be cleaned up heading into the coming weeks against top Trinity League opponents in Orange Lutheran and Mater Dei.

Mater Dei is coming off a stellar victory over top-ranked IMG last week and a beatdown of Servite this week, showing their talent. Bosco needs to deliver a good performance on both sides of the ball next week against Orange Lutheran to show they’re ready for the Monarchs in Santa Ana on October 12th.

Orange Lutheran QB Ryan Hillinski will provide a test for the Braves top-ranked defense next week, and it’ll be interesting to see how they fare against him at home at Panish Family Stadium.

At the end of the day, the Braves are still the top team in the nation and undefeated, and with a national championship on their minds, it’s going to take a lot to knock off this talented group going forward.

 

by Ethan Piechota

The number one high school football team in America dominated again last night in West Hills against Chaminade, winning 56-20 and capping off an undefeated preseason before league play begins.

Bosco started hot again behind star junior quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, who led the team to a huge lead at halftime. Uiagalelei is still near-perfect on the season, going a ridiculous 52/69 in passing attempts with 16 touchdowns through the preseason.

The Braves offense got a great contribution from senior running back George Holani last night, who punched in three touchdowns on the ground for the team, all in the first half. Junior Keith Savage also had a rushing touchdown.

Senior tight end Jude Wolfe and senior wide receiver Colby Bowman also caught touchdown passes in the first half from Uiagalelei, as the Braves offense routed Chaminade’s defense.

Bosco’s defense also did it’s job – as it has all preseason – last night. Both units are working very well and cohesively at the moment, which is a great sign leading into league play in just two weeks.

The Braves have a bye week next week to rest and time to prepare for their first league game, September 28th at Panish Family Stadium against JSerra. The game has already been pre-labeled as the Fox Sports “Game of the Week” and will be televised.

This game should be the first true test Bosco receives this year, and it will be exciting to see how this talented Braves squad reacts to potential adversity. “The Tribe” will need to be out in full force and in heavy support for this one.

by Ethan Piechota

Another week, another dominating performance for the number one team in the nation the St. John Bosco Braves.

At this rate, Bosco should only have their games played for one half, because every game is over by then. The Braves defeated the Division 4 Paramount Pirates by a score of 56-12 last night at Panish Family Stadium, pushing their record to 4-0 on the season.

The Braves led this one 49-0 at halftime, as backup quarterback Isaiah Saldana had already come in to relieve DJ Uiagalelei midway through the second quarter. Uiagalelei finished the game going 6-8 with 74 yards, 4 of his completions going for touchdowns.

USC commit tight end Jude Wolfe had 2 catches for 49 yards and 2 touchdowns as well for the Braves, and junior wide receiver Tyus Poyer reeled in 8 catches for 51 yards and a score.

Starting running back George Holani dominated again, rushing the ball just 4 times for a whopping 89 yards. Keith Savage scored a touchdown on the ground for the Braves.

This one got ugly quick and was over early, as the Braves once again handled business for the fourth straight week. It was also a much more disciplined performance from the Braves, who cleaned up on the 21 penalties they had last week against Mililani.

Bosco is now 4-0 on the season and still the clear number one team in the nation. They will travel to West Hills next week to take on Chaminade High School as they look to continue their national championship run.