The Acorn's High School Football Game of the Year

MAJOR PLAYER-Oaks Christian quarterback Jimmy Clausen, who's bound for Notre Dame, should have a big role in the outcome of Friday night's game vs. St. Bonaventure. The matchup is so immense tickets are being auctioned on eBay, and they're not cheap.

On one sideline will be the Oaks Christian Lions, winners of 33 consecutive games and three-time CIF-Southern Section champions.

The Lions, who've outscored the opposition 109-6 in their first two games of the year, are led by the nation's No. 1 prep prospect, quarterback Jimmy Clausen (Notre Dame), and nearly a dozen other Division I-bound players, including Marc Tyler (USC), Marshall Jones (USC), Casey Matthews (Oregon), Anthony Gildon (Oregon) and Michael Ebbitt (Texas A&M).

On the opposite sideline will be the St. Bonaventure Seraphs, the regional football powerhouse that's won 98 of its last 101 contests and 27 games in a row. The Seraphs have captured eight CIF titles, including three of the last four Division IV championships.

On Friday night at a sold-out Larrabee Stadium in Ventura, barring a tie, one winning streak will live on and another will vanish into the crisp coastal breeze.

"This is the most important game in Oaks Christian history, and we're ready to play," Gildon said.

Added Matthews: "We've been looking forward to this ever since they scheduled it late last year. We've been counting down ever since. It's going to be a good game."

In its first three games of the year-wins against Hart, St. Paul and Canyon-the St. Bonaventure offense has rushed the ball 105 times and attempted only 48 passes.

Senior tailback Michael Lee leads the Seraphs with 421 rushing yards and three touchdowns, while sophomore Patrick Hall has chipped in 164 yards on 22 carries and scored once.

With sophomore quarterback Antonio Macarena lining up behind center and a potent Oaks Christian offense standing across the field, Lion defensive lineman Tommy Grillo said he expects St. Bonaventure to keep the ball on the ground in an attempt to control the clock.

"Every team tries to keep the ball away from (our) offense and every team says they're going to try to run out the clock," Grillo said. "We'll see how that goes. By the fourth quarter, they all end up passing the ball, too, so we'll see how it goes."

For the past few years, Oaks' offense has been capable of hitting big plays at any time.

While the Lion starting offense has played sparingly in a pair of blowout wins, Clausen has thrown eight touchdowns in just 26 passing attempts. He's connected on 65 percent of his passes and has one interception.

If St. Bonaventure tries to load up its secondary to slow down the Lions' aerial attack, they run the risk of being burned by Tyler, who's rushed for 255 yards on 20 carries for a whopping per-carry average of 12.7 yards.

Making his team one-dimensional will be a tough task, OCHS head coach Bill Redell said.

"If you take away the pass, we're going to run," Redell said. "If you take away the run, we're going to pass. I don't think they can say 'We're going to dominate on one side of the ball.' I really don't."

The winner will have the inside track for a bid to the Division III state title game in December.

Friday's game will be broadcast on Fox Sports West.