So you want to play Saint John Bosco, you say?
This experience is not for the faint of heart. But despite that reality, several teams in the San Francisco Bay Area have scheduled the Bellflower Braves, the No. 2 team in the MaxPreps high school rankings, in non-league competition this season.
Why do they do it? For one thing, it gives the Bay Area’s best players an early-season opportunity to test themselves against one of the best high school teams in the country.
Last week, it was Serra’s turn. The Padres, last season’s CCS Open Division champions, hosted Bosco and came away with a humiliating 56-16 loss. Yet throughout the contest, Serra coach Patrick Walsh thought holistically about the end result.
“Playing against the best, it’s a perfect reflection of what we need to do to improve and get better,” Walsh told this news agency on Saturday. “I think you saw flashes of a very good football team, and also flashes of a team that has a lot of work to do.”
This week, it’s Pittsburgh’s turn. The Pirates travel to Bellflower and will face the Braves on Friday under the Southern California lights. It will be a tough test for the Pittsburgh offense, which scored 56 points in a win over Archbishop Riordan last Friday.
“I wanted to make sure we had them scheduled because looking at who was coming back, we knew we had arguably the best quarterback in Northern California,” Pitt coach Charlie Ramirez said. “We have the best playmaker in the state in Jamar Searcy — not to mention a bunch of great defensive players.
“I knew we would have an opportunity to at least have a similar run to last year. So I think we could see, if it’s not Bosco or Mater Dei, we could play Mission Viejo or a San Diego team. … It gives our guys a chance to see what a dominant SoCal power looks like and be able to touch them, rather than just being impressed if you see it for the first time.”
After the Serra game, Bosco coach Jason Negro was asked what he thought about the upcoming game against Pitt. His response was mostly complimentary of the NorCal powerhouse.
“Their coach is not afraid to play anybody,” Negro said. “He does a really good job with his team, and they’ve played in the state championship and won state titles at their level. He wants to challenge his young guys, and I have a lot of respect for guys like that. Our program certainly respects them for being there.”
Negro had been trying to schedule a game against Pittsburgh for a while, and this year turned out to be the right fit.
“I wasn’t surprised (that Pittsburgh and Charlie Ramirez wanted to play) because the last couple of years, he and I have been playing phone games and trying to figure out the right week that would fit the game and the travel schedule,” Negro said. “And again, he’s not afraid of anybody, and I give him a lot of credit. They’ve got some tough kids in the Pittsburgh area, and they’re going to come in and give us everything we can handle.”
That’s exactly what the Pirates plan to do. After eliminating Riordan, Pittsburgh is confident heading into what’s sure to be a tough game in Bellflower.
“It really calms our minds and gets us ready for next week,” linebacker Juju Walls said after the game against Riordan.
The mood is positive as Pitt prepares for the biggest challenge of its season opener. But the Pirates are fully aware of what awaits them when they travel to Southern California.
“It’s a great feeling,” Searcy said last week, “but we know we have to really prepare (for Bosco).”
