Edison, Mater Dei will clash in football

Perennial prep football powers Mater Dei and Edison highs have

signed a two-year home-and-away contract to meet in football during the

next two seasons, Edison Coach Dave White said Wednesday.

The Chargers will host the Monarchs at Orange Coast College in the fourth

week of the 2000 season, and Mater Dei will entertain Edison in 2001 at

Santa Ana Bowl.

‘We’re excited about renewing our rivalry with Mater Dei,’ White said.

‘Both schools have had great success on the football field, and this

should be two more exciting games in the series.’

Mater Dei, the defending CIF Southern Section Division I champion, is in

the midst of preparations for Friday’s semifinal date with Eisenhower at

Santa Ana Bowl.

Edison, which finished 3-6-1 in 1998, rebounded this year to go 7-3, but

the Chargers did not qualify for the playoffs.

The two schools are no strangers to one another, although the Monarchs

and Chargers last meet 11 years ago.

Seven of the 12 meetings between the two schools have been held in the

fourth week of the season, the other five came during the fifth and final

week of nonleague play.

Here is a look at outcome of the previous 12 meetings between Mater Dei

and Edison in a series the Chargers lead, 8-3-1:

1976 -- Mater Dei 28, Edison 20.

In the first meeting between the two schools, Edison, in just its fifth

year of playing varsity football, gave the Monarchs all they could

handle. It would be just one of three losses suffered by Bill Workman’s

Chargers en route to a 7-3 season, which included a Sunset League

championship and a first-round playoff loss to Pius X.

1977 -- Edison 42, Mater Dei 21.

The Chargers were just 5-5 that season, but had more than enough to

double the score on the Monarchs. The win started Edison’s streak of

success in the series.

1978 -- Edison 14, Mater Dei 6.

The Chargers finished the year 9-2 and reached the second round of the

CIF playoffs before being eliminated by Chaffey.

1979 -- Edison 14, Mater Dei 7.

In a hard-fought contest, the Chargers beat the Monarchs prior to

dropping their final nonleague game against Newport Harbor. However, they

went on to rout their four Sunset League opponents, outscoring them,

120-19, en route to the league crown. A 12-2 season culminated with the

school’s first CIF Southern Section championship. The Chargers destroyed

Redlands, 55-0, in a game that still stands as the largest margin of

victory in a major division title game.

1980 -- Edison 35, Mater Dei 7.

This time, it was no contest for the Chargers, who whipped everybody on

their schedule. Edison’s defense posted three shutouts and held eight

other foes to a touchdown or less. The landmark season included a 14-0

record and another Big Five Conference title. It was during the ’80

season that the Chargers twice defeated archrival Fountain Valley, the

final time in the Big Five Conference title game, 14-0. Coach Bill Workman, however, recalled the regular-season meeting between the two

teams, a 15-14 Edison victory in which the Chargers scored two late

touchdowns and a two-point conversion in the closing seconds, as perhaps

his most favorite during his 13 years as head coach.

1981 -- Edison 48, Mater Dei 24.

Again the Chargers doubled up on the Monarchs, with the win prepping

Edison for another Sunset League title run -- the school’s fourth in a

row. But the 10-0 Chargers were denied a third consecutive Big Five

championship when Servite pulled off a stunning 14-7 victory in the

opening round of the playoffs.

1982 -- Edison 7, Mater Dei 7.

The tie during the final week of nonleague play left the Chargers with a

2-2-1 record, but Edison (8-4-1) went on to win another -- ho-hum --

Sunset League championship, and reach the playoff semifinals before being

eliminated by Long Beach Poly.

1983 -- Edison 22, Mater Dei 7.

In what would be the final meeting between the schools for the next three

years, the Chargers scored a big victory in a season that saw them

struggle to a 4-4-2 finish. It marked the first time in six years that

Edison had not worn the Sunset League crown.

1986 -- Edison 34, Mater Dei 17.

White took over the reins from Workman, and picked up where his

predecessor left off -- with an easy win over the Monarchs. White’s first

team went 8-3, and dropped a first-round playoff game to Crespi.

1987 -- Mater Dei 20, Edison 10.

There was plenty of cheering in Santa Ana following this Monarch victory,

which ended Mater Dei’s eight-game winless streak to Edison. The Chargers

were just 2-8 that year.

1988 -- Edison 21, Mater Dei 9.

Edison’s comeback season included a big win over the Monarchs. The

Chargers went 9-2 that year, one of the two losses coming in a

first-round playoff game with Fontana.

1989 -- Mater Dei 21, Edison 14.

In what was to be the last game between the two schools until the 2000

season, the Monarchs pulled out a seven-point victory. Edison, however,

went on to win its first Sunset League title in four years, finished 10-3

overall, and ended its season with a semifinal loss to Fontana.