St. John Bosco vs. Serra preview, game tracker, live updates: Get high school football scores at MaxPreps

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Last year, Serra (San Mateo, Calif.) lost in its CIF Open Division Bowl Game to Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.). This Saturday, the Padres have the chance to knock off the team that defeated the previously top-ranked Monarchs in the 2022 CIF Southern Division I Championship when they take on St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.). The last appearance Serra made in a CIF championship bowl game came in 2017, when it defeated Cajon (San Bernardino, Calif.), 38-14.

Kickoff from Saddleback College is set for 11 p.m. ET. Bosco comes into the matchup ranked as the top team in the MaxPreps national high school football rankings, while Serra is No. 27. Find out more about this matchup and follow it at MaxPreps here.

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How to track St. John Bosco vs. Serra

St. John Bosco vs. Serra date: Saturday, December 10
St. John Bosco vs. Serra time: 11 p.m. ET
St. John Bosco vs. Serra game page: Follow game at MaxPreps

What you need to know about Serra

Things were close between Serra and Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.) early on in the CIF Central Coast Section Football Championship, but the Padres pulled away to finish with a decisive 41-14 win. Serra's success comes from an old-school double-wing back offense that produced a number of big rush plays. Junior athlete Danny Niu ripped off a 61-yard touchdown on Serra's second possession after a 51-yard scoring drive to open the game.

Junior running back Joseph Latu finished the game with 101 yards and two touchdowns on 12 attempts. Serra isn't a program loaded with big-time national recruits, but one of the reasons the Padres have such a potent rushing attack is senior three-star offensive lineman Ryan Silver. Their top prospect in the 2024 247Sports national recruiting rankings, quarterback Maealiuaki Smith, has completed 67.8% of his passes through all games this season for 2,546 yards and 34 touchdowns. Follow Serra's game here.

What you need to know about St. John Bosco

The Braves got the last laugh against rival Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) with a win over the Monarchs, and their longtime head coach Bruce Rollinson, 24-22 in his final game. Mater Dei defeated Bosco earlier in the season, but the Braves got revenge when it mattered most. Bosco quarterback Pierce Clarkson led his team to a win with 264 passing yards and two touchdowns.

The Braves needed Clarkson to step up, after running back Cameron Jones was held to just 38 yards on 10 carries. Clarkson, a composite four-star prospect in the 2023 247Sports national recruiting rankings, added 32 rushing yards on just four carries in the game. Although Jones was limited against the Monarchs, Serra should take him seriously, as the 2024 three-star had 1,046 yards and 18 rushing touchdowns in the 12 games leading up to the section championship game. Follow St. John Bosco's game here.