PREP FOOTBALL : Tonight’s Feature Game : Bishop Amat Nears Another Title

Bishop Amat High School can move a step closer to its fourth consecutive Angelus League title tonight at 6:30 when it meets Servite in Gahr’s Hanford Rants Stadium in Cerritos.

Bishop Amat (6-1, 1-0) has won 35 of its last 36 regular-season games dating back to the eighth week of the 1984 season. Servite (6-1, 0-1), which won the league title in 1984, must win all its remaining games if it hopes to win the title in 1988.

“Another loss may jeopardize our playoff status in a 5-team league,” Servite Coach Jerry Person said. “We don’t want to finish at 2-2, tied with 3 other teams and get into a coin-flip situation.”

Servite is coming off a 34-18 loss to St. Paul, marking the third consecutive year that St. Paul has beaten the Friars. St. Paul has scored 100 points in the 3 victories.

“My biggest fear is Servite coming off a big loss,” Bishop Amat Coach Mark Paredes said. “I’m sure they also remember our game last year (a 34-0 Bishop Amat victory). It’s going to take our best game of the season to beat them.”

Bishop Amat, once known for outstanding running backs, is led this season by quarterback Brian Harmon. He has completed 85 of 125 passes for 1,187 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Servite will counter with tailback Derek Brown, Orange County’s leading rusher with 1,137 yards and 14 touchdowns. He is ranked fifth among the county’s career rushing leaders with 3,711 yards and needs only 56 yards to pass former El Modena back Ross Bauer (1984-86) at 3,764 yards.

“Our game plan is to stop Brown,” Paredes said. “He’s one of the best backs in Southern California, if not the best. If we keep him out of the end zone, he can have his yards. Our greatest challenge all year will be to contain him.”