Metro League rivals brawl for it all in 6A.

Byline: Steve Mims The Register-Guard

P r e p f o o t b a l l p l a y o f f s

The first time Southridge played Jesuit, the game was broadcast on national television.

The rematch has even bigger stakes.

"National TV is nothing compared to a state championship," Southridge senior receiver Marcus Mathews said. "Nothing."

Jesuit defeated Southridge 38-0 in the final week of the regular season in a game televised around the nation on FSN.

With the loss, Southridge ended the regular season at 5-4 and finished third in the Metro League with a 3-2 record. The Skyhawks, who were ranked third in the state at the start of the season, were unranked entering the OSAA football playoffs.

Yet Southridge has turned around its season with four straight playoff wins to reach the first final in the short history of the school. Southridge (9-4) and top-ranked Jesuit (12-0) will play in the Class 6A championship game Saturday at Autzen Stadium at 5 p.m.

"We regrouped after the loss to Jesuit, that 38-0 thing," Mathews said. "We regrouped big time."

Southridge made a quarterback switch at the start of the playoffs, and sophomore Kellen Mastrud engineered wins over Roseburg, Redmond and Clackamas. The son of head coach Brad Mastrud completed 29-of-41 passes for 341 yards and two scores in those victories.

Mastrud was injured in the first half of Southridge's semifinal game against Lake Oswego, so former starter Tom Farinacci came off the bench to throw two touchdown passes as the Skyhawks defeated the Lakers 27-7.

"It's a dream come true," Farinacci said. "How many teams get to go to a high school championship? It's what we were hoping for all season long and we're glad it happened."

Jesuit brings a 25-game winning streak into the title game, but Southridge was the last team to beat the Crusaders. Southridge defeated Jesuit 28-20 on the opening week of the 2005 season.

"I couldn't be more excited to go play Jesuit again," Mathews said. "We'll come out strong, we can learn from our mistakes and play harder than we did."

Southridge, located in Beaverton, opened in 1999 and Mastrud was hired as coach after helping Roseburg win four state championships during 18 years as an assistant coach with the Indians. Southridge reached the playoffs for the first time last year and defeated Reynolds in the first round before losing to Tigard in the second round.

Southridge was ranked at the start of this season largely because of its strong passing combination of Farinacci and Mathews, who were ranked as the No. 2 and No. 8 college prospects in the state, respectively, by SuperPrep Magazine. Mathews committed to Brigham Young before the season.

Southridge's 5-4 record was a bit misleading because its losses came against Grant, Lincoln, Westview and Jesuit - four teams with a combined regular-season record of 34-2 and all ranked among the top six teams in the state.

Southridge had to travel to eighth-ranked Roseburg to open the playoffs, and the Skyhawks won 20-14 in overtime. Southridge defeated Redmond 37-0 in the second round before rallying in the second half for a 27-25 win over Clackamas in the quarterfinals.

Southridge fell behind Lake Oswego 7-0 but tied the game when Farinacci threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Harman with four seconds left in the first half. The Skyhawks outscored Lake Oswego 20-0 in the second half.

"We came out, we played like a team, played with passion and it showed," said Mathews, who capped the game with an 18-yard touchdown catch. "We've been coming out and beating people in the playoffs."

"We knew we had this in our heart," senior lineman Jordan Barta said. "We've grown up together as a team, so we are pretty much a family. We consider ourselves more of a family than a football team, and it has all come together."

Farinacci said that family includes both past and present players.

"It is unbelievable, it's hard to put into words what it means," Farinacci said. "The guys who came before us, we feel like we are playing for them too because this is an unbelievable opportunity."