Players from Mater Dei get a little crazy after they were presented with the 2023 CIF Open Division state title trophy. Photo: Scott Kurtz.
Here is the official updated list of the California high school football state teams of the year that goes back for more than 120 years with Mater Dei of Santa Ana now added for 2023. This is the first No. 1 finish for the Monarchs in the state with a different head coach than Bruce Rollinson.
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For the third time in four years, Mater Dei of Santa Ana has been placed on the all-time list of California No. 1 high school football teams.
This comes after the Monarchs blanked previously unbeaten Serra of San Mateo, the No. 1 team in Northern California, 35-0, in last Saturday’s CIF Open Division state championship game at Saddleback College.
Mater Dei’s 2021 squad also won in the CIF Open Division state final over Serra, but the 2020 team also is considered No. 1 for the state due to a win over arch-rival St. John Bosco in the 5-game COVID season that was played in the spring of 2021.
Brandon Baker (73), head coach Frank McManus and QB Elijah Brown can be seen just after Mater Dei team received its CIF state title trophy. Photo: Scott Kurtz / Cal-Hi Sports.
This also is the sixth time in school history for Mater Dei landing at No. 1 for California, according to the State Team of the Year selections by Cal-Hi Sports. Two others are for the back-to-back CIF Open Division state title teams in 2017 and 2018 while the only other year is for 1991. There were two other seasons (1994, 1996) when the Monarchs were ranked No. 1 in the nation by USA Today, but were No. 2 in the final state rankings behind De La Salle of Concord. The CIF did not have state games in the 1990s and didn’t begin to have them until 2006.
All of the previous No. 1 finishes in the state for Mater Dei came under previous head coach Bruce Rollinson, who was only in his second season in 1991 when the Monarchs won their first-ever CIF Southern Section top divisional title. This year’s head coach, Frank McManus, took over the top post last April due to Rollinson’s retirement.
As a former defensive coach himself, McManus talked about the greatness of this year’s defense after last Saturday’s game, in which not only did the Monarchs shut out Serra but only allowed 58 total yards.
“Coach (Erik) Johnson (longtime defensive coordinator) talked yesterday and told them that this could be the best defense he’s ever had,” McManus said. “We’ve constantly thought that all year. This was their fifth shutout but they also had playmakers. We had nine (defensive) scores called back, but still scored 13 defensive touchdowns.”
Junior linebacker Nasir Wyatt, who had 12 sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss on the season, gets most of the attention for that defense and is regarded as one of the top Class of 2025 prospects in the nation. Senior defensive back Jeilani Davis also led the team in interceptions with five, but what perhaps demonstrated the unit’s determination was senior linebacker and leading tackler Tanner Williams. He’s actually not one of those with Power 5 college offers, but he came back as a senior after missing last season with a knee injury. You wouldn’t think a team like Mater Dei with all that talent also has a comeback, glue-guy player like that, but it sure did.
Offensively, there was one hiccup in that 28-0 loss to St. John Bosco in the regular season, but the Monarchs were their usual selves with a mammoth offensive line led by big-time senior recruits Brandon Baker and DeAndre Carter blocking for senior QB Elijah Brown and a trio of running backs in Ajon Bryant, Jordon Davison and Nathaniel Frazier who could all break big chunk plays at any time. Brown became a starter as a freshman during that COVID spring season and pushed Mater Dei to 5-0, 12-0, 12-1 and 13-1 seasons. Both of the losses the team had with Brown at quarterback were to St. John Bosco, but he also ended 4-2 overall against the Braves.
McManus didn’t think the team was overconfident early in the season with all of the returning players it had, but was “peaking right now” due to him not getting the head coaching job until last April.
“They were only doing strength and conditioning until then and I think that put us behind of where we wanted to be,” he said. “We did make some changes and adjustments (after the loss) with practice schedules and different other things.”
Upon concluding a post-game interview from last Saturday, McManus also wanted to credit school president Michael “Mike” Brennan and principal Ms. Frances Clare for their support of the football program during the coaching transition.
There’s no transition now. McManus said he had work to do on the Sunday following the win over Serra setting up lifting schedules for some of the returning players. A great senior class will be moving on, but there’s no one in Southern California who doesn’t think that this era of the Monarchs and St. John Bosco being dominant is going to diminish any time soon.
CAL-HI SPORTS STATE
TEAMS OF THE YEAR
ALL-TIME HONOR ROLL
(Last 120 years listed, but it goes back further than that to 1891 in our files, as compiled from 1891 to 2003 by the late Nelson Tennis)
(*Forfeits not included; **Spring season 2021 due to worldwide pandemic in fall 2020)
Matayo Uiagalelei from last year’s No. 1 team at St. John Bosco is now playing at Oregon. Photo: Scott Kurtz.
2023 — Santa Ana Mater Dei (13-1)
2022 — Bellflower St. John Bosco (13-1)
2021 — Santa Ana Mater Dei (12-0)
2020 — Santa Ana Mater Dei (5-0)**
2019 — Bellflower St. John Bosco (13-1)
2018 — Santa Ana Mater Dei (14-1)*
2017 — Santa Ana Mater Dei (15-0)
2016 — Bellflower St. John Bosco (13-2)
2015 — Concord De La Salle (13-1)
2014 — Concord De La Salle (15-0)
2013 — Bellflower St. John Bosco (16-0)
2012 — Concord De La Salle (15-0)
2011 — Concord De La Salle (13-1)
2010 — Concord De La Salle (14-0)
2009 — Concord De La Salle (13-2)
2008 — Corona Centennial (15-0)
2007 — Concord De La Salle (13-0)
2006 — Westlake Village Oaks Christian (15-0)
2005 — Ventura St. Bonaventure (14-0)
2004 — Mission Viejo (14-0)
2003 — Concord De La Salle (13-0)
2002 — Concord De La Salle (13-0)
2001 — Concord De La Salle (12-0)
2000 — Concord De La Salle (13-0)
1999 — Concord De La Salle (12-0)
1998 — Concord De La Salle (12-0)
1997 — Concord De La Salle (12-0)
1996 — Concord De La Salle (12-0)
1995 — Concord De La Salle (13-0)
1994 — Concord De La Salle (13-0)
1993 — Rialto Eisenhower (14-0)
1992 — Concord De La Salle (13-0)
1991 — Santa Ana Mater Dei (13-1)
1990 — Merced (14-0)
1989 — Fontana (14-0)
1988 — Carson (12-1)
1987 — Fontana (14-0)
1986 — El Toro (14-0)
1985 — Vista (13-0)
1984 — Riverside Poly (13-1)
1983 — Mountain View St. Francis (13-0)
1982 — Anaheim Servite (11-1)
1981 — San Jose Bellarmine (12-0)
1980 — Wilmington Banning (12-0)
1979 — Huntington Beach Edison (12-2)
1978 — Visalia Mt. Whitney (13-0)
1977 — Rancho Cordova (12-0)
1976 — Wilmington Banning (12-1)
1975 — Rancho Cordova (11-0)
1974 — Vista (13-0)
1973 — Hacienda Heights Los Altos (12-1)
1972 — Santa Fe Springs St. Paul (13-0)
1971 — Carson (12-0)
1970 — La Puente Bishop Amat (12-1)
1969 — Pasadena Blair (13-0)
1968 — Alameda (9-0)
1967 — Anaheim (12-1)
1966 — Pico Rivera El Rancho (13-0)
1965 — San Jose Bellarmine (9-0)
1964 — Stockton Stagg (10-0)
1963 — Los Angeles Loyola (12-0)
1962 — Los Angeles Loyola (12-0)
1961 — Monterey (8-0)
1960 — Redwood City Sequoia (9-0)
1959 — Long Beach Poly (11-0)
1958 — Long Beach Poly (11-0-1)
1957 — Berkeley (8-0)
1956 — Downey (12-0-1)
1955 — San Diego (11-0-1)
1954 — Vallejo (9-0)
1953 — Santa Monica (10-0-1)
1952 — Santa Monica (11-0-1)
1951 — Pomona (12-0)
1950 — Compton (11-1)
1949 — Compton (10-1)
1948 — Long Beach St. Anthony (11-1-1)
1947 — L.A. Washington (8-0)
1946 — Alhambra Keppel (8-0)
1945 — Santa Ana (11-1)
1944 — Alhambra Keppel (8-0)
1943 — Redondo Beach Redondo (6-0)
1942 — La Verne Bonita (11-0)
1941 — Piedmont (9-0)
1940 — Piedmont (8-0)
1939 — Alhambra (10-0)
1938 — Stockton (8-0)
1937 — L.A. Manual Arts (8-0)
1936 — L.A. Manual Arts (8-0-1)
1935 — Long Beach Poly (9-0)
1934 — Piedmont (8-0)
1933 — S.F. Galileo (8-2-1)
1932 — Inglewood (10-2)
1931 — Santa Ana (13-0)
1930 — Berkeley (11-0-1)
1929 — Berkeley (11-0-1)
1928 — Lodi (9-0)
1927 — Bakersfield (12-0)
1926 — San Mateo (9-1-1)
1925 — Los Angeles (10-0)
1924 — Berkeley (11-0)
1923 — Bakersfield (10-0-1)
1922 — Bakersfield (10-0-1)
1921 — Bakersfield (9-0-1)
1920 — Bakersfield (9-1)
1919 — Long Beach Poly (12-0)
1918 — L.A. Manual Arts (9-0)
1917 — L.A. Manual Arts (11-1)
1916 — San Diego (12-0)
1915 — Pasadena (7-1)
1914 — Pomona Rugby (12-0)
1913 — Pomona Rugby (11-0)
1912 — Berkeley Rugby (7-2-1)
1911 — Los Angeles Rugby (9-0)
1910 — Alameda (5-0)
1909 — Los Angeles Poly Rugby (8-0-2)
1908 — Belmont Academy (8-0-1)
1907 — Los Angeles (5-1)
1906 — Belmont Academy (5-0)
1905 — Berkeley (5-1-3)
1904 — Belmont Academy (1-0-1)
1903 — Belmont Academy (5-1)
1902 — Belmont Academy (4-0-2)
1901 — Belmont Academy (3-2)
1900 — San Francisco Lowell (5-1-2)
Mark Tennis is the co-founder and publisher of CalHiSports.com. He can be reached at markjtennis@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow Mark on the Cal-Hi Sports Twitter handle:
