3 things to know about St. John Bosco ahead of Bishop Gorman showdown

It has been 10 years since Bishop Gorman and St. John Bosco (California) last faced off, and both programs have remained among the top high school football teams in the country.

St. John Bosco is ranked No. 1 nationally by MaxPreps and will face No. 2 Bishop Gorman at 7 p.m. Friday at Gorman’s Fertitta Field in the third matchup between the programs.

The game is being called the de facto high school football national championship in the 16th meeting between No. 1- and No. 2-ranked teams in MaxPreps’ rankings.

Here are three things to know about St. John Bosco before Friday’s showdown against Bishop Gorman:

1. Longtime head coach

St. John Bosco’s ascension as a national powerhouse has coincided with Jason Negro’s tenure as the Braves’ head coach.

Negro is a 1991 graduate of the school and joined the staff in 1998. He became the Braves’ head coach in 2010, and the program burst onto the national scene with a 16-0 2013 season when it was the CIF Open Division state champion.

St. John Bosco won other CIF titles in 2016, 2019 and 2022 in the grueling Trinity League in California. The Braves were coined national champions by MaxPreps and USA Today in 2019 and 2022.

“When I first started 17 years ago, I was taking over a program that was struggling at the time,” Negro said in an interview with the High School Football America Podcast. “I think I’ve built enough equity in the performance and the success that we have had to feel a little more confident in the decisions that I’m making and I’m better off for that. I don’t think there’s anything that I’m not prepared for.”

2. Solid all-around

St. John Bosco has talent at every position. The Braves might not have four- and five-star college prospects at every position, but they have multi-year starters at every position who are Division I talents.

Offensive lineman Elisha Mueller is St. John Bosco’s lone four-star recruit, according to 247Sports, and the site has 15 other Braves as three-star prospects.

Among those three-star prospects are multi-year starters Koa Malau’ulu (QB), Josiah Poyer (LB), DJ Tubbs (WR) and Isala Aisa Wily-Ava (DB).

“We’re going to continue to be a young football team, which I’m OK with, but we got a lot of balance there,” Negro said in the High School Football America Podcast. “We have some older guys, some experienced veterans that are going to mix well with the young guys.”

3. Las Vegas ties

A few St. John Bosco players will have a little bit of a homecoming when the Braves come to Las Vegas this week.

St. John Bosco added two incoming transfers in the offseason from Southern Nevada schools — former Gorman defensive back Justin Colin and former Sloan Canyon defensive lineman Simote Tupou.

Colin, a 6-foot, 170-pound cornerback, played in six games with the Gaels last year as a junior and recorded 15 total tackles. He recorded 29 tackles in 14 varsity games played for the Gaels.

Tupou was a first-team Nevada Preps All-Southern Nevada defensive lineman last year for Sloan Canyon as a sophomore. The 6-foot-1, 235-pound defensive lineman has 131 tackles, 66 for loss and 35 sacks in two seasons with Sloan Canyon.

One of Gorman’s new transfers is familiar with St. John Bosco. Gorman junior running back Corey Hinton Jr. transferred to the Gaels after spending two seasons with the Braves. As a sophomore, Hinton rushed for 410 yards and six touchdowns with St. John Bosco last year.

Hinton, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound back, rushed for 43 yards on three carries with a touchdown for the Gaels last Friday. Hinton is a three-star recruit with notable offers from Missouri, Oklahoma, Utah and Wisconsin.

Up next

Who: No. 1 St. John Bosco (California) vs. No. 2 Bishop Gorman

When: 7 p.m. Friday

Where: Gorman's Fertitta Field

Stream: MaxPreps' website and YouTube channel

All-time series: Bishop Gorman 2-0 (34-31 in 2014 and 35-20 in 2016).