Game of the Week: ‘Niu’ era in classic football rivalry between Serra and St. Francis

Pay that no nevermind come the WCAL opener’s 7 p.m. kickoff Friday night in Mountain View. Even with Serra off to an impressive 3-0 start, and garnering the No. 1 ranking in Nor Cal, the records tend to go out the window when the Padres and the Lancers clash. And despite St. Francis’s 1-2 start, while scoring just 45 points in three weeks, Serra head coach Patrick Walsh is most mindful of the Lancers’ Week 1 win.

“I watched the Central Catholic game and [any lacking offense] wasn’t the case,” Walsh said. “They were running the ball well. [Quarterback Matthew Dougherty] was throwing the ball to [receivers Riley Long and Andrew Adkison]. They looked really sharp. They were scoring a lot of points that night. The other two games they had, they struggled against Monterey Trail and De La Salle, which are two of the stronger defenses in Northern California.

“More importantly, it doesn’t matter because whenever we play St. Francis, we always get their A-game,” Walsh said. “In the 22 years we’ve played them, I’ve played them multiple times in a season, it’s A-game time for St. Francis. And we’re going to have to match that with an A-game defense.”

Last year was a perfect example of the unpredictability of the rivalry. The WCAL regular-season championship was decided by the Lancers’ 44-21 victory. Three weeks later, the Padres claimed the Central Coast Section Division I championship with a 16-12 win over St. Francis.

“It’s kind of a cliché but it’s actually true,” Walsh said. “Everyone is 0-0. And the preseason for all these great coaches is about lessons. That’s how we’ve always treated it at Serra. … Realistically, we are starting at ground zero, playing our first WCAL game against arguably our biggest league rival in the last 10 years.”

Much has changed for both teams since the 2021 season split between the rivals.

Serra has been tasked with finding itself on defense. And while the middle linebacker duo of juniors Jabari Mann and Danny Niu has fortified the heart of said defense, the Padres have still yielded 63 points through three games.

Mann was hampered by injuries through the first two weeks, departing games against each Folsom and De La Salle with leg cramps. Man returned to full force for last week’s home opener, a 42-30 win over Central Catholic, while Niu has impressed each of the past two games.

“It’s been a team effort ever since Folsom really at that linebacker spot,” Walsh said. “Because at Folsom, we had some guys go down — Jabari and Danny went down with cramps a lot during that game, and then Jabari still kind of the aftermath … went down with cramps (at De La Salle) — so, Danny really stepped up and has done an amazing job at our [middle] linebacker position, while also playing some offense.”

Serra’s linebackers will be tasked with stopping the Lancers’ fast strike pass attack. But the killer Ks out of the backfield — senior running backs Keala Keanaaina and Kamau Julien — will work to keep the Padres honest.

But keep an eye on Serra linebacker Michael Pedrotti, a junior who has stepped up in the absences of Mann and Niu to give the Padre defense a blessing of extraordinary depth.

“Week 1 he had a ton of reps,” Walsh said. “Week 1, he was the surprise star of the game filling in for both of our linebackers going out.”

While St. Francis graduated the WCAL Player of the Year in running back Viliami Teu, Serra has had to reinvent its offense as well. Moving on from the Dominque Lampkin era at quarterback, the Padres have seen Maealiuaki “Maui” Smith arrive in splendid fashion. With the junior under center, the Padres have evolved into a versatile spread option offense with seven different receivers on the prowl for catch attempts.

“I think he’s thrown touchdowns to seven different players,” Walsh said, “which causes problems defensively. And that’s also a testament to [offensive coordinator Darius Bell’s] scheme, and his ability to express that scheme through our quarterback. And, also, unselfish wide receivers who any time can get five balls or zero.”