You never know which of St. John Bosco’s many talented football players might put on a show. On Saturday night in Chatsworth, it was junior receiver Madden Williams providing the entertainment against a feisty Sierra Canyon.
Williams turned a short slant pass into a 96-yard touchdown in the first quarter, doing some high stepping to escape one final tackle attempt before securing the score. Then he made an even more spectacular play, leaping to pull down a 45-yard reception between two stunned Sierra Canyon defenders.
Then, in the fourth quarter, with Sierra Canyon threatening to pull off an upset, Williams caught a 23-yard touchdown pass from freshman quarterback Koa Malau’ulu on fourth down to help the Braves secure a 38-28 victory. Williams finished with 10 catches for 255 yards and three touchdowns.
“I said he was unguardable,” St. John Bosco defensive coordinator Chris King said of the junior receiver. “They guarded him, but he still makes plays you can’t teach.”
Said Williams of his 96-yard touchdown: “I just felt [the defender] was behind me and wanted to high step because he was going for an ankle bite.”
Sierra Canyon (2-2) made an inspiring comeback after being down 17-7 at halftime to get its boisterous home crowd excited. The Trailblazers’ only points in the first half were provided by Jae’on Young, who returned an interception 74 yards for a touchdown.
In the third quarter, De’Markus Barnes scored on a one-yard run to pull the Trailblazers within 17-14. After a 16-yard touchdown reception by Williams, Madden Riordan came up with an interception on the St. John Bosco 26, his sixth of the season. Jaxsen Stokes ran 26 yards for a touchdown and the St. John Bosco lead was down to 24-21.
Sierra Canyon had St. John Bosco in fourth and two from the 23 with 5:44 left. Malau’ulu, filling in for an injured Matai Fuiava, found Williams for the decisive touchdown.
“Just go to my athletes,” Malau’ulu said. “It was a read and I saw him and we connected.”
Sierra Canyon coach Jon Ellinghouse was irate at officials for not calling an illegal-procedure penalty on the play. He and an assistant were given 15-yard penalties on the ensuing kickoff, then Sierra Canyon picked up a five-yard encroachment penalty. The Braves kicked off from the 25, recovered the kick and added another touchdown to seal their third win in a row to start the season.
Wyatt Becker passed for 200 yards for Sierra Canyon and Ashton Zamani kept delivering punts with impressive hang time and distance. St. John Bosco committed three turnovers (two interceptions and a fumble) along with close to 100 yards in penalties. Fuiava passed for 280 yards and three touchdowns before he got hurt.
St. John Bosco coach Jason Negro told his players afterward they needed more maturity. The team travels to Northern California next Saturday for a day game against San Mateo Serra.
“We’re learning to come together and lift each other up,” Williams said.
