Mater Dei Football in Jeopardy of Third Straight Incomplete Regular-Season Schedule

America's top high school football program has been unlucky the last two seasons when playing 10 regular-season games, it could happen again in 2026.

Mater Dei could be in jeopardy of not playing a full-season schedule for the third season in a row. / Robson Lopes

Mater Dei is looking for a home football game to play on September 9 this upcoming season.

Assistant coach Rudy Cambero posted on Twitter/X that the Monarchs are looking to full its regular-season slate in 2026.

"We are looking for a 9/4 home game. Please DM if you are open." the post reads.

The Monarchs, a perennial high school football powerhouse, is in jeopardy of not playing a full, 10-game regular-season schedule for the third straight season if they can't find someone to play in early September.

In 2024, new coach Raul Lara was tasked with looking for a 10th game when he took over in the spring, which is a near-impossible job when most other teams have their schedule set. It got to the point where Mater Dei offered 'financial assistance' to any team that would be willing to play at the Santa Ana Bowl.

Mater Dei never found a 10th game and went 9-0 that fall en route to a 13-0 season which saw the Monarchs win the CIF Southern Section Division 1 title, a CIF State Open Division crown and national championship.

UNLUCKY IN 2025

Mater Dei had 10 games scheduled for the 2025 season, but then the debacle with Bishop Montgomery resulted in their game being forfeit by the Knights due to a fight in Hawaii the week prior and the eventual 'Money Man' scandal that forced the school to cancel its season.

So, once again, Mater Dei was forced to play a 9-game regular-season schedule. Mater Dei was scheduled to play Bishop Montgomery on Aug. 29, 2025. But it never happened.

Bishop Montgomery got into a fight in Hawaii against Saint Louis on Aug. 23 that saw most of its players leave the sideline which resulted in so many one-game suspensions, the Knights didn't have enough players to compete againt Mater Dei the following week.

Within two weeks, the 'Money Man' scandal broke. Football booster Brett Steigh admitted to paying football families upwards of $50,000 plus expenses to play football, which is a major CIF infraction.

ST. JOHN BOSCO 2026 SCHEDULE RELEASE

While Mater Dei is looking for a 10th game in 2026, St. John Bosco has officially announced its 2026 slate. The Braves will start things in Las Vegas against powerhouse Bishop Gorman in August.

Here's a look at St. John Bosco's 2026 football schedule: CLICK HERE.

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