BELLFLOWER, Calif. — Under the brightest of lights, thousands of cheering fans were in the stands and lined up against the very best of the best.

It’s for moments like these that senior wide receiver Deandre Moore Jr. transferred to St. John Bosco. After attending Los Alamitos High School for his junior season, he made the move this summer.

“[St. John Bosco] has a history of winning,” Moore Jr. said. “You know, I have a lot of friends here, so they were telling me a little about the winning culture here and the program here, and this is really something I wanted to be a part of.”

Watching the Braves from afar over the last three seasons, there was always one game he longed to be a part of — a rivalry game that head coach Jason Negro says makes kids choose St. John Bosco.

“I think one of the reasons why kids choose to come to St. John Bosco or choose to go to Mater Dei is to be able to play in this game,” Negro explained. “We’re national brands, and we’re competing on a national stage.”

“And I think that’s kind of natural rivalry as well. You know, the kids are hungry and they want to play at the highest or the biggest stage possible.”

The Friday night kickoff will feature a combined 70 players who hold Football Bowl Subdivision offers. Tickets for the showdown sold out in less than five minutes. 

For Moore Jr.’s senior teammates like RJ Jones or Jshawn Frausto-Ramos, it’s the game of the year, every year. For those coming into the program, you’re taught pretty quickly that Mater Dei is the team to beat. 

“I know our coaches are a lot harder on us that week, for sure,” Jones said with a laugh. “That week of preparation for practice, though, he’ll learn in that week. And then the warm-ups he’ll learn fairly quickly that this game is a serious game for us as a team and us as a staff and really us as a program.”

Because while the hallmark of every great team is the mentality of taking it one week at a time, this one means just a little more.

“My first experience, it was definitely fast,” Frausto-Ramos said. “I felt like I was playing like an NFL game. So, he really knows like, how much that game means to us. Especially, you know, the outcome we got last year, falling short and then losing to Servite.”

It’s why this week, stepping on this football field, there’s a new sense of energy around the team. 

“I think our kids, you know, as seniors, are very hungry,” Negro said. “Certainly, it’s something that when you go on to college, you want to have some bragging rights. Our kids are certainly prepared to get a win and take that with them to college.”

And through the first six games of the season, the Braves have built up quite the resume. Not only is their defense holding opponents to an average of 5.1 points per game, but their offense has put a running clock in five of their six games.    

Ask anyone on the roster though, and aside from talent and ability, it’s their brotherhood and connection they will lean on against Mater Dei. 

“It’s a real brotherhood here with these guys,” Jones said. “And our coaches are helping us grow. They work for us every day and they put us in the right position to succeed. Most people think of us just as athletes, but we’re really more than that. Us just being together as a team. It really builds this program up.”

“You know, I feel very confident about this team this year,” Frausto-Ramos added. “Our bond is just really, really good with this team. You know, I feel very special about this team.” 

To Moore Jr. this week is a reminder of why he wanted to be a Brave in the first place — marked by a desire to play harder, to work smarter, to win. 

“I want to leave my mark on Bosco football and on the Bosco community,” he said. “So you know, with this senior group, we’re really holding true to that. And we’re gonna go in and work.”

Working toward his first taste of what some are calling, the best rivalry game in high school football.