Battle of Unbeatens Could Turn Out to Be Real Hare-Raiser

Bruce Rollinson shook his head as he left Weingart Stadium at East Los Angeles College last Saturday night.

Rollinson, football coach at Santa Ana Mater Dei High, had just watched Long Beach Poly defeat Loyola, 24-17, in the Southern Section Division I semifinals. The Jackrabbits’ victory set up a championship game between Long Beach Poly and Rollinson’s defending champion Monarchs, who have won 27 consecutive games and three titles in the ‘90s.

Long Beach Poly’s performance left Rollinson a bit anxious. So did an unsolicited comment from one of the spectators making his way to the parking lot.

“As I was leaving the stadium, this Loyola fan, who didn’t know who I was, goes, ‘I hope somebody gets Mater Dei,’ ” Rollinson said with a laugh earlier this week. “I say to myself, ‘Great.’ I don’t even think the Catholics pull for each other anymore.”

Many in the crowd at the Coliseum tonight will be pulling for Long Beach Poly as the Jackrabbits try to become only the second public school to win the title this decade.

Long Beach Poly (13-0), which lost to Mater Dei in last year’s semifinals, 42-13, is the first public school to even reach the Division I championship game since 1993, when Rialto Eisenhower defeated Mater Dei for the title. The dominance of parochial schools, such as Mater Dei, Bishop Amat and Loyola--which have no residential enrollment boundaries--has some public school administrators intimating that they should be put in a separate division.

In Orange County earlier this year, principals took a step in that direction when they proposed making Mater Dei and Santa Margarita quasi-independents--schools that would be eligible for the playoffs but could not compete for league titles in several sports. The proposal was shot down, but may be reintroduced in January.

Long Beach Poly Coach Jerry Jaso disagrees with the sentiment.

“What Mater Dei has is a great program, great coaches, great kids and great athletes,” Jaso said. “You have to play up. If you want to be the best, you have to play the best.

“They’re a benchmark program. We don’t need to say, ‘It’s unfair.’ We need to step up.”

Jaso’s players agree. The Jackrabbits are making their first appearance in the final since 1985, when they shared the title with Huntington Beach Edison in what was then the Big Five Conference.

“I want to be playing the best people who are out there,” junior quarterback Chris Lewis said. “That’s going to reflect on me and show people what I’m capable of.”

Said junior cornerback Darrell Rideaux: “Playing a solid team like Mater Dei, Bishop Amat and Loyola is great, not only for the players but for the fans. People want to see how public schools compete with private schools.”

Long Beach Poly has the talent necessary to compete with Mater Dei. The Jackrabbits average 42.3 points a game and surrender 14. Lewis has passed for 2,624 yards and 29 touchdowns. Senior running back Herman Ho-Ching has rushed for 1,411 yards and also plays linebacker for the Jackrabbits, who defeated Fountain Valley, Redlands and Loyola en route to the championship game. Long Beach Poly also features junior running back Larry Croom, who has gained 1,204 yards and scored the game-winning touchdown on a 72-yard run in the fourth quarter against Loyola.

“In 1991, we played an Eisenhower team and we thought they were pretty athletic,” Rollinson said. “In 1994, we played Bishop Amat and we thought they were pretty athletic. [Long Beach Poly] is the best football team, athletically and skill-wise, that we’ve played in my nine years as head coach.”

Mater Dei (13-0), which has defeated St. John Bosco, Los Alamitos and Bishop Amat in the playoffs, also is skilled and experienced. The Monarchs average 37.7 points a game and give up 9.6. They have recorded five shutouts. Senior running back Mike McNair has gained 2,527 yards and scored 32 touchdowns. Quarterback John Leonard has passed for 2,330 yards and 21 touchdowns, and receiver Joey Boese has 55 receptions for 972 yards and 11 touchdowns.

“We have to have almost zero mistakes to be able to even play with them,” Lewis said. “They are solid. If you make a mistake, they are going to burn you.”

Poly players are speaking from experience. Ho-Ching, Lewis, Croom, Rideaux and others were part of the semifinal loss to the Monarchs last season.

“They taught us a lesson,” Rideaux said. “This year, we’re a little more focused and know how to deal with the pressure. We’re still a young team, but we come back with a lot of experience.”

Rollinson recognizes the threat.

“They’re the same talented kids, but a year later,” he said. “They exploded on Loyola in those last five minutes and Loyola has a great defense. They never dropped their heads. They knew they were going to pull things out.

“We’re going to have to play a flawless game. We made four mistakes against Bishop Amat and still won [28-14]. If we make those mistakes against Long Beach Poly, we’re going down.”

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Championship Games

SOUTHERN SECTION

* Division I: Santa Ana Mater Dei (13-0) vs.

Long Beach Poly (13-0) at Coliseum.

* Division V: Santa Margarita (13-0) vs. Tustin (13-0) at Cal State Fullerton.

* Division VII: Yucaipa (12-1) vs. Bloomington (11-2) at Yucaipa.

* Division IX: Monrovia (12-0-1) vs. Manhattan Beach Mira Costa (11-2) at El Camino College.

* Division X: Santa Monica St. Monica (10-3)

vs. Moorpark (12-1) at Moorpark.

All games start at 7:30 p.m.