Five takeaways from St. Frances Academy (Md.) dominant performance against Chaminade-Madonna

The Panthers rushed for more than 300 yards and made a statement that they're as good as any team in the country

Denari Hill of St. Frances Academy runs free during the Panthers' 42-13 rout of Chaminade-Madonna, Saturday night in South Florida. / Robson Lopes

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla.  – The finale of the Broward County National Football Showcase turned into a statement game for St. Frances Academy (Md.).

From start to finish, the Panthers put on a show in a dominating 42-13 victory against fellow national power, Chaminade-Madonna.

In front of an ESPN 2 audience, St. Frances was unrelenting.

Unlike the two previous showcase games televised on either ESPN or ESPN 2, there was no frantic second-half comeback.

In the first game on Saturday, top-ranked Mater Dei held off St. Thomas Aquinas, 26-23, after leading by 23 points at the half. And on Friday night, American Heritage Plantation rallied from 28 points down in the second half and stunned St. Joseph’s Prep (Philadelphia).

High School on SI was on hand, and offers these five takeaways from St. Frances’ convincing performance.

Who is really No. 1 in the nation?

Let the debate begin.

By all accounts, St. Frances is a top 10 team in the nation. Most, if not all, credible preseason rankings list, Mater Dei as the best in the country.

Well, both schools were on display at the same venue on Saturday. As talented and physically imposing as Mater Dei is, a strong case can be made that St. Frances put on the best overall performance at the Broward Showcase.

Both teams played top 10 caliber opponents.

St. Thomas Aquinas (Class 5A) and Chaminade-Madonna (Class 1A) are defending state champions. St. Thomas has won six in a row, while Chaminade has a string of four.

On Saturday, Mater Dei watched a 23-point lead nearly disappear, but held on at the end for a 26-23 victory.

St. Frances, up 21-7 at intermission, never let up in the second half, and made it a running-clock game in the fourth quarter.

Yes, it’s one week, and one game. But in the prestigious Fort Lauderdale event, St. Frances looked worthy of wearing the No. 1 ranking.

Time will tell. On Sept. 5, St. Frances goes on the road again, this time to California, to face No. 2-ranked St. John Bosco.

How will Chaminade-Madonna bounce back?

 Don’t be misled by one disappointing performance by the Lions.

If we’ve learned anything about Chaminade-Madonna, it’s not to count them out. This is still a championship-caliber team.

Still, for the second straight year, the Lions suffered a setback at the Broward Showcase. A year ago, they came up short against St. John Bosco, 34-27.

Saturday became another contest that will be used as a learning experience moving forward.

A year ago, Chaminade lost its first two games. In Week Two, the Lions dropped a 35-34 decision to Blanche Ely.

From there, they won 13 in a row, and comfortably handled Clearwater Central Catholic, 42-7, in the 1A state championship game.

Chaminade will have to regroup quickly, with McArthur High School on tap next week, followed by a visit to American Heritage on Sept. 5.

St. Frances Has a Grueling Ground Game

In a classic football sense, Saturday’s contest was won in the trenches.

St. Frances rushed for more than 300 yards, with Jaylen Burke and Sa’Nir Brooks each unofficially gaining more than 120 yards.

Brooks opened the scoring in the first quarter with a 40-yard scoring run on a play he was barely touched on his way to the end zone.

Quarterback Jae’Oyn Williams, a Virginia commit, was equally as difficult to tackle. Williams had a 7-yard scoring run and gained more than 70 yards rushing.

Chaminade Going with Multiple Quarterbacks

 A year ago, the Lions realized the importance of having more than one reliable quarterback. Tyler Chance started the season at quarterback, but was injured, and eventually the Lions used three different quarterbacks in the first few games.

Against St. Frances on Saturday, the Lions gave extended looks to two quarterbacks – Chance and freshman Malik Leonard.

Both had their moments, but also their miscues.

With St. Frances ahead by a touchdown early, the left-handed throwing Leonard was victimized by a pick six. Khmari Bing, a Maryland recruit, intercepted Leonard’s pass and returned it 49 yards for a touchdown, giving the Panthers a 14-0 lead.

Leonard then bounced back, and led the Lions down field, completing the drive with a 25-yard touchdown pass to Jasen Lopez, committed to Florida State.

Chance, a standout in the 2024 state title game, on Saturday threw a touchdown pass to Kentucky commit, Denairius Gray, in the closing minutes.

Jesse Legree Scores Two TDs

Amassing more than 300 yards rushing clearly has a way of opening up the passing game.

Panthers receiver Jesse Legree was the beneficiary on Saturday.

St. Frances put an exclamation point on the first half with Legree scoring on a 35-yard pass from Williams with 36 seconds left in the second quarter. Wide open, Legree weaved his way into the end zone, giving his team a 28-7 advantage at intermission.

At the start of the third quarter, Legree again made his presence felt.

The Panthers took the opening kickoff and marched 80 yards on nine plays. The first eight were running plays, chewing up clock.

Play No. 9 went to Legree, who caught a 25-yard scoring pass from Williams.