In the most spirited rivalry game of the season, Jesuit High School will battle Christian Brothers High School in the 49th annual Holy Bowl this Saturday, Sept. 14, at Hughes Stadium.

The Marauders have dominated the game over the past few decades as Jesuit looks to win its 10th consecutive Holy Bowl. The Falcons, entering as the underdogs, are trying to win for just the third time since 1993.

Although the Marauders remain favored as they have been in recent years, this season’s Holy Bowl seems more evenly matched.

So far this season, the Marauders are 0-2, losing to Folsom High School and Granite Bay High School. In both games, Jesuit’s offense struggled to score without Daniel Susac ’20, the expected starting quarterback. His replacements, Jacob Peluso ’21 and Charlie King ’22, have only completed 11 of 42 passes.

While the quarterback position remains an open question for Jesuit, Christian Brothers is led by their junior quarterback, Jacob Stewart ‘20, who has commanded the Falcons to a 2-1 record after defeating Vanden High School last week. Stewart was sensational against Vanden, completing 19 of his 26 passes and throwing for over 252 yards along with three touchdowns.

With the Falcons having a good chance to upset the Marauders, Jesuit wide receiver Jacob Hall ’21 wants his team focused on the game.

“The key to success in this game is to not let outside noise distract us,” Jacob H. said. “Our team knows what we must do in order to accomplish our goal. We must stay focused and mentally prepared for us to stay locked in for the game.”

Even in a rivalry game so old and full of tradition, Jesuit Scout and Film Coordinator Jonathan Isaac approaches Holy Bowl the same as all games.

“Playing against Christian Brothers is no different than playing any other school, or taking a test, or interviewing for a job,” Coach Isaac said. “We must prepare to the best of our ability: magnifying our strengths and mitigate our weaknesses.”

Besides the game itself, Holy Bowl is about the fans. Both schools will need to be loud and full of energy to propel their team to victory. Jesuit head cheerleader Taj Shokar ’20 wants the Galley Crew to be rocking with spirit.

“Come out and support the boys,” Taj said. “If you are confused at all about a cheer, come ask me for help or just be as loud as possible.”

The freshman game starts at 2:00 p.m., the junior varsity game is at 4:30 p.m., and the varsity game is at 7:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased on the Holy Bowl Website.

Correction: the original version of this article incorrectly identified Christian Brothers quarterback Jacob Stewart as a senior; he is a junior.

This story originated in the Plank on September 12, 2019. Click Here to read the original article

Photo Credit: Colin O'Donnell '20