Big men are the ones to watch in St. John Bosco-Centennial big game

There are two weekends of high school football left in 2013, and what a treat fans are about to experience with the CIF state championship bowl games.

Yes, the focus will be on the quarterbacks, the running backs, the receivers and anyone who scores a touchdown or makes a great tackle.

But the most intriguing story involves the big guys up front. Several belong to the 300-pound club and are so powerful they look like college linemen.

For Saturday’s Southern California Open Division final between Bellflower St. John Bosco (14-0) and Corona Centennial (12-2) at Cerritos College, perhaps the two best blockers in Southern California will get to put on a show.

On one side will be St. John Bosco’s 6-foot-5, 360-pound Damien Mama, who UCLA and USC are fighting to sign. On the other side is 6-3, 310-pound Viane Talamaivao, originally an Alabama commit who’s now committed to USC.

Incredibly, they were once teammates playing side by side for the Riverside North freshman team in 2010.

“They were pretty big boys and took care of their side of the field,” recalled former North varsity coach Mark Paredes. “They’re great players and great kids, and I’m looking forward to seeing them on TV.”

They went their separate ways after that one football season, and the rest is history.

Larry Baker, the coach at Norco, said of Talamaivao, “That young man is one of the best offensive linemen I’ve ever seen. He’s unbelievable. He’s big, he’s strong, he’s got great feet, he’s got great technique. That kid is the whole package.”

Said former Centennial teammate Cameron Hunt: “The best high school lineman I have ever seen. He is so strong, when he gets his hands on you it’s probably ending with you on the ground.”

Jason Negro, the coach of St. John Bosco, said of Mama, “Damien has a tremendous upside. He’s a big finisher. That’s one of the things colleges really like. Whenever you’re 360 pounds and finish blocks the way he does, and as devastating and as powerful as he is, he’s going to turn a lot of heads, and he does that constantly during games.”

Mama said he’s looking forward to a mini-reunion with Talamaivao. “I’m sure we’ll go get something to eat,” he joked.

The two teams might have the best offensive lines in the Southland.

Centennial had to regroup after the graduation of Hunt, a freshman starter at Oregon. “They’ve really come together,” said Centennial Coach Matt Logan.

There are left tackle Sid Acosta (6-0, 260), center Buddy Britain (5-11, 260), left guard Eric Binyon (6-0, 250) and right guard C.J. Bynum (6-3, 310).

As for St. John Bosco, when its offensive linemen walk together side by side, it seems as if the ground should shake. Joining Mama are right guard Matt Katnik (6-2, 296), center Elijah Zabludoff (6-2, 286), left guard Emery Sefo (6-1, 307) and left tackle Javier De Los Santos (6-1, 269). Off the bench, there are Zach Robertson (6-5, 308) and Eric Golston (6-4, 292).

Maybe for halftime entertainment, there could be a tug-of-war competition among the linemen, with the winning team getting prime rib for dessert.

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com