Game of the Week: Familiar face returns as Sacred Heart Prep football hosts Riordan

In four years at M-A, Ravipati did not disappoint. He took over a perennial postseason contender and led the Bears to the playoffs all four years he was at the helm from 2015-18, a stretch that included two Northern California championships and a Division 3-AA state crown. Now, he has Riordan off to a 2-0 start. It’s a step in the right direction, for sure, for a Riordan team that hasn’t been to the postseason since 2015.

“He was at M-A when I first started and coached probably similar types of teams in terms of being athletic and spreads you out, challenges you on a lot of levels,” Grieb said. “But he’s a great coach and I have a lot of respect for Adhir, and I’m sure he’s going to get that program going in the right direction, which he already has.”

Ravipati echoed Grieb’s respect and joked that he has a Mark Grieb bobblehead from the Grieb’s days as a trailblazing quarterback with the San Jose Sabercats.

“He still hasn’t autographed it for me though,” Ravipati said.

Ravipati landed at Riordan as a late hire, accepting the job at the San Francisco private school in February. He spent the previous two seasons at College of San Mateo, as a video analyst in 2019 before taking over as quarterbacks coach in 2021. (There was no season at CSM in 2020.)

Prior to taking the job at Riordan, Ravipati interviewed at multiple four-year colleges, he said. But, when Riordan was tasked with replacing former coach Mark Modeste, the culture at Riordan struck Ravipati as quite familiar.

“I saw a lot of M-A in it,” Ravipati said. “It felt like M-A when I got here. It felt like a great place to build something special on and off the field, and in the end, it was just too good of an opportunity to pass up.”

The first matchup between the two coaches in 2017 was a 42-35 barnburner that saw each team score in every quarter. M-A enjoyed a balanced showing that saw a variety of scoring, including a pick-6 and two kickoff returns for touchdowns. In 2018, SHP had a better team that resulted in Grieb’s first Central Coast Section playoff appearance. But eventual Division 3-AA state champion M-A enjoyed a far more lopsided win 30-0 at SHP.

This time around, the game serves as Riordan’s final non-league tune-up before West Catholic Athletic League play opens next Friday, Sept. 23 at Valley Christian.

“We definitely think this is a game against a really good team that’s going to help us get ready for WCAL play,” Ravipati said. “I think we’re definitely a work in progress. For us as a team, we have some really good pieces. … It’s going to take time for us to get there but the kids have bought in.”

SHP is coming off a strong and diverse backfield showing against Mountain View, in which eight different Gators combined to rush for 318 yards. Senior Andrew Latu paced the team with 103 yards on 14 carries, but senior Brandon Hsing added seven carries for 69 yards, junior Anthony Noto totaled 55 yards on 11 carries and two touchdowns, and Luke Maxwell, Teo Casares and Ravu Savali each ran for over 20 yards.

The most effective technique the SHP fly offense has going for it is its deception.

“We want to be deceptive on offense and we want to make those linebackers have to be disciplined,” Grieb said. “So, we try to do a good job with faking, and carrying out our fakes, and all those things.”

Riordan is coming off a big backfield performance as well. Of the Crusaders’ 508 total yards against Tamalpais, 364 of them were on the ground. Senior running back King-Njhsanni Wilhite took 10 carries for 154 yards and three touchdowns, and senior Javius Redding added 104 yards on nine carries. But the previous game, in a 31-10 win over Granada, Riordan’s freshman quarterback Michael Mitchell Jr. opened the season going 14-of-20 passing for 301 yards and three touchdowns.

Kickoff Saturday at Gator Nation Stadium is scheduled for 2 p.m.