‘Beat the best’: No. 1 Gorman ready for battle against Mater Dei
To many people outside of the Bishop Gorman and Mater Dei football programs, Friday night’s highly anticipated matchup between the two high school football powers might have lost some luster.
Mater Dei (California), last year’s mythical national champion, had its 21-game winning streak snapped in a wild 43-36 loss to Centennial (Corona, California) last Friday. The Monarchs lost their No. 1 ranking and fell several spots in many national polls.
But none of that matters to Gorman. Nothing about last week has changed the significance of Friday’s game for the Gaels.
Gorman (4-0) is the new No. 1 team in the country, as ranked by USA Today. It hosts No. 9 Mater Dei at 7 p.m. at Fertitta Field. The game will be streamed on MaxPreps’ website and YouTube channel, as well as the NFHS Network.
Gorman is ranked No. 2 by MaxPreps behind St. John Bosco (California). Mater Dei is No. 8.
“It’s not just another week, but we all put in the same amount of time that we put in for every single week before that,” Gorman coach Brent Browner said. “They’ve been putting in the same amount of time in this for everything. It’s been the same kind of circus since Week 1. It’s not like this is a different circus.
“(Our players) want to play the game. They asked to play the game. That’s why we’re playing the game.”
‘Our Super Bowl’
There are two significant reasons for Friday’s game, regardless of Mater Dei’s record.
First, the Monarchs (2-1) are 4-0 all time against Gorman. They have won three of the four matchups by double digits, including the most recent meeting, 31-15 last year in Santa Ana, California.
That loss was Gorman’s only defeat in 2024 and ended its chance at a fifth mythical national title, which is the other significant reason. A win Friday would put Gorman in better position for a second national title in the past three years. Mater Dei will play St. John Bosco on Oct. 31 and most likely a second time in the playoffs, which could help Gorman’s national title hopes.
Gorman’s schedule has gradually increased in competition with programs that are rated as top-100 teams by MaxPreps: A 38-0 win at Kahuku, Hawaii, (No. 91), a 35-14 win over Lone Peak, Utah, (No. 65) and a 35-10 win last week over East St. Louis, Illinois (No. 37).
Browner said he has seen a lot of growth each week in the step-up in competition with a younger group compared with last year’s team.
“We made the schedule with that in mind, where they’re progressively playing bigger and bigger games,” Browner said. “It’s not that it’s not different, you have to treat it how you always treat it. It doesn’t matter who they are. The kids understand that no matter who they’re playing, it’s going to be a big game, it’s going to be somebody’s Super Bowl. It’s our Super Bowl, too.”
‘We’re ready to go’
Mater Dei’s win over Gorman last year marked a turning point in the Gaels’ season. Maika Eugenio came on in relief at quarterback and threw touchdown passes for both Gorman scores.
The senior Hawaii commit never let go of the starting spot. This year, Eugenio has completed 80.5 percent of his passes (66 of 82) for 1,044 passing yards and 14 touchdowns with just two interceptions.
“It’s a great opportunity,” Eugenio said. “We had the opportunity last year, and obviously we didn’t get the job done. But this year, I feel like we’re ready to go. Everyone has matured more. We learned from last year a lot. We’re going to go out there, attack and be ready.”
Eugenio said he feels more mature as a player and a leader, which is why he believes Gorman is better prepared for this meeting with Mater Dei.
“I’m very confident in (Eugenio), confident in our team,” said senior wide receiver and New Mexico commit Massiah Mingo, who faced Mater Dei last year at Sierra Canyon (California). “(I haven’t seen) no weaknesses or fear of anybody. We just got to come in playing confident. It’s just a fight between both teams. They’re really good, and we got to do what we got to do.”
Senior safety and Oregon commit Jett Washington and the Gorman defense will have a tall task against Mater Dei’s loaded receiver room, with Ohio State commits Chris Henry Jr. and Kayden Dixon-Wyatt and five-star USC commit and tight end Mark Bowman.
Gorman is used to playing in big games. A win could be one of the best in program history.
Washington said it’s not easy to say Friday is just another game, but added that having the mindset of treating every week like a big game helps to keep the team focused.
“That’s what we all came here for,” Washington said. “We came here to play those big games, and that’s what we put the work in for. You got to beat the best to be the best. That’s something we just look forward to and embrace. It’s just exciting to go out there and play on a big stage.”
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.