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The wild momentum swings Mater Dei’s football team experienced at Centennial — trailing by 28 points in the first quarter and exploding for 29 points in the third to take the lead — felt different to Monarchs wide receiver Kayden Dixon-Wyatt.
“That’s definitely an experience that I’ve never (encountered) before,” the senior said after a 43-36 loss at Centennial last week. “So I’m adjusting as a player. You go down. You have highs and lows, but at the end of the day, we still got to hang our head up high regardless of the outcome.”
Mater Dei coach Raul Lara echoed the comments of the Ohio State commit as he discussed the loss and the objective against Bishop Gorman of Las Vegas, Nev. on Friday.
The Monarchs (3-1), who were toppled as the No. 1-ranked team in the nation, face a Bishop Gorman team (4-0) ranked No. 2 in the nation to St. John Bosco (4-0) by MaxPreps.
The game, scheduled for 7 p.m. PST, will stream live on MaxPreps as the national game of the week.
“To me, it’s just the process,” Lara said last week of the momentum shifts. “We need to get better. And I think when I’m cool and collected, the coaches and players, I think, do the same. But again, these kids are learning.”
“It’s all about the fight,” the coach added. “If we’re down, let’s go. Let’s continue fighting.”
Lara also mentioned that Mater Dei — ranked No. 8 in the nation this week — needs to cut down on turnovers.
Centennial forced seven turnovers — five fumbles and two interceptions — against Mater Dei, leading to 30 points.
Mater Dei, the reigning national champion. also had nine penalties for 70 yards to raise its season total to 34 penalties for 280 yards.
“We just got to limit our mistakes and we’ll be fine,” Lara said.
The positive for the Monarchs against Centennial was their 29-point third quarter that led to a 36-33 lead going into the fourth.
“We turned up the tempo,” Dixon-Wyatt said of the third quarter, which included his 71-yard TD reception from Wisconsin commit Ryan Hopkins. “We got the crowd rocking. That (tempo) is just something we’re working on.”
Mater Dei is 4-0 against Bishop Gorman since the schools met for the first time in 2017.
Last season, Mater Dei beat the Gaels 35-21 at Santa Ana Stadium in a clash of the top-two ranked teams in the nation.
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