Corona Centennial will play Santa Ana Mater Dei in 2019 prep football opener

Corona Centennial and Santa Ana Ana Mater Dei were having trouble finding zero-week opponents for the 2019 season when they came across an easy solution: Play each other.

Fans and college coaches will probably give the programs a standing ovation. They have reached agreement on a two-year contract. The first game will be played at Santa Ana Stadium on Aug. 23 and the second one in 2020 at Centennial.

“We were both looking for games and couldn’t find people,” Centennial coach Matt Logan said.

Centennial went 12-1 last season, losing only to the Monarchs 48-14 in last season’s Division 1 semifinal when Mater Dei returned four interceptions for touchdowns. Mater Dei went on to win the Southern Section title and the state Open Division championship.

Veteran coach Bruce Rollinson will be returning at Mater Dei with a team led by quarterback Bryce Young, who has committed to USC. The Monarchs will need a replacement for receiver Bru McCoy.

Centennial also will have lots of returnees, including receiver Gary Bryant.

The game should attract lots of media and fan attention.