The Eagles are 6-1-1 and 1-0 in league play as they enter Week 9 of their 13th varsity season. Their start is the best since they began the 1998 campaign 7-1.

This is the third meeting between the Mater Dei Monarchs and the Santa Margarita Eagles and also the third in Serra League play. Last year, The Eagles jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead behind two touchdowns by Tyler Thompson and made enough big plays on offense, defense and special teams to hold on and defeat the nationally ranked Monarchs 21-14 before 6,700 fans at Cal State Fullerton. In 1999, Mater Dei piled up 400 yards and punting only three times in 11 possessions while limiting the Eagles to 155 total yards in an impressive 34-0 victory. (Recaps of both games are included herein.)

The Monarchs are 5-3 on the season, including a 1-0 league mark after a 19-0 win over Servite, and are ranked 4th in OC. Last year, they finished 9-3 and advanced to the Division I semi-finals. Mater Dei is led by 13th-year coach Bruce Rollinson who is 137-27-2 (.831) with the Monarchs.

The Monarchs and Eagles are tied atop the Serra League standing with 1-0 records. The winner claims sole possession of first place in league. Overtime will be used if necessary to determine a winner.

Santa Margarita is ranked 3rd in CIF-SS Division I, and have been ranked in the Top 10 by the CIF office in 26 of the 29 weekly polls since joining Division I in 1999 including 23 in a row. They are currently ranked 3rd in Orange County and have been ranked in the Orange County Top 10 in 68 of the last 76 polls including 13 in a row. The Eagles are ranked 6th in the LA Times' Top 25 Regional Poll.

Their .747 winning percentage is the best in Orange County. View Here.

Serra League play concludes next week when the Eagles host the Servite Friars at Saddleback College.

Eagle - Monarch History (Tied 1-1)
1999 MD 34, SM 0 @ Edison International Field
2000 SM 21, MD 14 @ Cal State Fullerton

Head Coach Jim Hartigan
Jim Hartigan, 41, is 114-38-2 (.747) in his 13th season as varsity Head Coach. Overall, Coach Hartigan has a 130-41-3 (.756) record if you include 10-0 and 6-3-1 lower level teams that he led in 1987 and 1988 respectively before the Eagles fielded varsity teams. He has won three League Championships and two CIF Titles - all coming in the past five years. Jim was honored as the both the 1996 and 1997 Daily Pilot Sea View League Coach of the Year, CIF-SS Division V Coach of the Year and the National Football Foundation Orange County Coach of the Year. Coach Hartigan has directed his squads into the playoffs in 11 of their 12 seasons and has never posted a losing season. Jim has coached six High School All-Americans, 68 players who have gone onto play in the collegiate ranks and three who have played in the NFL. His 28-game winning streak from 1996-98 is the second best in Orange County history.