Huddle up: Elijah Zabludoff on high school football

Editor’s note: Elijah Zabludoff is a senior football player from Bellflower St. John Bosco High and an aspiring journalist. Each week during the high school football season, he will be blogging about his personal experiences and also his thoughts about prep sports in general. Zabludoff is a returning starter at center for the Braves, who are Southern Section Pac-5 Division champions, undefeated and ranked No. 1 in the Southland by the Los Angeles Times.

I looked up to more than 7,000 St. John Bosco High football fans as they counted down “five, four, three ...” The screams and shouts of parents, coaches and players echoed around Angel Stadium and became a slur.

When the count hit zero, the Braves rushed the field to celebrate the 34-7 victory over Santa Ana Mater Dei, ending in a 70-man dog pile on the biggest guy in uniform, offensive tackle Damien Mama.

Before the game, Coach Jason Negro had told us that “if we execute, we’re going to be holding up a plaque in the middle of Angel Stadium. It’s going to be special, fellas.”

Coach Negro was absolutely right. When it was over, everything seemed so surreal. No one on the team knew what to do. Everyone was running around looking for someone to hug or high-five. Or they searched for a television camera to focus on them as they soaked up the glory.

Senior defensive end Malik Dorton put it best: “All the hard work, all the dedication; after the game, the tears just ran out.” There really was no other way to handle it other than to just let your emotions run free and take in the atmosphere.

After all the commotion ended, I walked to the 40-yard line, lay flat on my back, and thought about all that was going on and what brought us to that point. Everything was worth it: the grind, the long days, the bumps, the ice baths; it all had finally paid off.

To me, the game reinforced the fact that the Trinity League is the best high school football league in the country. Mater Dei and St. John Bosco made it to Angel Stadium by playing fast, hard-nose and physical Trinity League-style football.

The five league games from October to November move so fast and hit you so hard that your body becomes used to the bumps and bruises that each game generates. Trinity League play prepared us well for the playoffs. During those five games we saw all kinds of defensive and offensive looks. By the end of the league season, you feel as if you’ve pretty much seen it all.

After the game, Coach Negro reminded us, “it’s not over.” Next week, we play Corona Centennial at Cerritos College in a state regional playoff game. Both teams run the spread, a no-huddle, up-tempo offense that potentially scores tons of points. Over the last few weeks, the Braves defense has been stout and it will have to be. Corona Centennial has been rolling up the points.

Monday morning, our team will dive into scouting reports and pour over hours of film as we continue our path to perfection. A victory over Corona Centennial would put us in the state championship game.

Saturday was a fun night to be a St. John Bosco Brave. We took home the first Southern Section football title in school history, and did it against a respected, rival league opponent. However, that celebration is over, and now we anticipate the possibility of two more as we close in on our ultimate goal.