Ranked No. 1 in the Preseason MaxPreps Top 25 released earlier this week,
Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) will travel to Texas for a showdown with No. 15
Duncanville on Aug. 27, the schools announced Friday. The Monarchs' first trip to the Lone Star State will be among the most highly-anticipated games of the 2021 high school football season.
Joe Maimone of
Prep Gridiron Logistics has played a major role in setting up heavyweight out-of-state matchups at the prep level and helped get this one done. Mater Dei is 45-3 over the past five seasons while Duncanville is 50-5 over the same span.
The last time a nationally-ranked California team traveled to Texas was in 2015 when Trinity (Euless, Texas) upset then-No. 1 De La Salle (Concord, Calif.), 26-21.
Duncanville head coach Reginald Samples counters with another talented squad that will compete for the 6A Division 1 state title.
Edge rusher
Omari Abor, offensive lineman
Jaylen Early and Oklahoma State commit
Jordan Crook are among the 10 players rated as three-star recruits or better in the Class of 2022 by 247Sports.
Mater Dei has notable games lined up against Centennial (Corona) on Aug. 20, No. 3 St. John Bosco (Bellflower) on Oct. 1 and No. 21 Servite (Anaheim) on Oct. 22.
Duncanville's schedule includes showdowns against district rivals DeSoto on Sept. 17 and Cedar Hill on Oct. 22 along with another out-of-state matchup against Bishop Sycamore (Columbus, Ohio) on Sept. 10.
MaxPreps will highlight the 10 biggest games of the 2021 season July 5 as part of our preview series. See the full lineup below.
Previewing the 2021 football season
June 29 — MaxPreps Top 100 high school football teams
July 1 — Best team in all 50 states
July 5 — Top 10 games
July 7 — Top 10 toughest schedules
July 9 — Top 10 quarterbacks
July 12 — Top 10 running backs
July 14 — Top 10 wide receivers
July 15 — Top 10 tight ends
July 16 — Top 10 offensive lineman
July 19 — Top 10 defensive lineman
July 20 — Top 10 linebackers
July 21 — Top 10 defensive backs
July 23 — Top 10 players
July 26 — Preseason Sophomore All-America Team
July 28 — Preseason Junior All-America Team
July 30 — Preseason All-America Team
Aug. 3 — Top football player in all 50 states