Mater Dei No. 1 in Nation

The Mater Dei football team was awarded its second mythical national championship in the past three years Monday, when the Monarchs finished No. 1 in the final USA Today poll.

Mater Dei, which finished its season 14-0 by defeating Los Angeles Loyola in the Division I championship game Dec. 14, moved up to the top spot when Jacksonville (Fla.) Bolles lost the state 4A title game to Bartow, 14-13. Both teams finished their season 14-1, but the loss dropped Bolles completely out of the newspaper’s Top 25.

Mater Dei Coach Bruce Rollinson could not be reached for comment Monday.

In an interesting twist, the Monarchs finished as the second-ranked team in California by Cal-Hi Sports. Concord De La Salle, which won the North Coast Section 3A championship, was top-ranked. The Spartans have won 64 consecutive games, eight shy of the national record for consecutive victories set by Hudson (Mich.) from 1968-75.