Look: St. John Bosco QB Caleb Sanchez interview - 'We'll be ready for them next time'
BELLFLOWER, CALIFORNIA — St. John Bosco football coach Jason Negro couldn't have been more proud or happy Friday with his team's stunning 28-0 home win over national No. 1 Mater Dei at Panish Family Stadium.
Addressing the team after the resounding victory, he kept hammering home "you have to be able to handle success," he said.
St. John Bosc quarterback Caleb Sanchez heard the message loud and clear.
The 6-foot-3, 220-pound senior told SBLive Sports reporter Myckena Guerrero: "We got the 'W' and we're going to enjoy this but we know we'll see those guys again. ... and we'll be ready for that game as well."
There's a history of the teams splitting, including last season when Mater Dei won the regular-season matchup, 17-7, but lost in the Southern Section Division 1 finals, 24-22. The teams split in 2016, 2018 and 2019 as well.
Sanchez, who missed a wide-open receiver for a sure touchdown on a flea flicker play in the first half, didn't flinch. He knows something about staying patient and fighting through adversity.
St. John Bosco quarterback Caleb Sanchez threw for 112 yards and one touchdown but no interceptions.
Photo: Heston Quan
He sat behind a couple college-bound quarterbacks for three years, before getting his chance in 2023. His numbers Friday were pedestrian — 112 yards and one touchdown — but he threw no interceptions. He executed another trick play to perfection, throwing a backwards pass to Stacy Dobbins, who completed a 28-yard touchdown to Tommy Maher, making the score 21-0 in the third quarter.
He also fired a perfectly-placed 16-yard touchdown to Cameron Jones, the game's offensive standout with 134 yards rushing and two touchdowns.
Sanchez came in completing a remarkable 78 percent of his passes in 2023 for 1,856 yards and 17 touchdowns.
On Friday, he leaned and praised all the players around him, especially a defense that recorded the first shutout against Mater Dei since 2011.
"The defense was incredible," Sanchez said. "They just shut out a really great Mater Dei offense. Elijah (Brown) is a really great quarterback. But coach (Chris) King had our defense in all the right places. ... The defense made it even easier for our offense to do our job. I mean, we just needed to score once to win."
See entire interview at top of the page.
