The St. Patrick-St. Vincent High varsity football team will try to put its first setback of the season behind them when the Bruins take on the host St. Mary’s Panthers on Saturday afternoon.

The Bruins had won six straight games to start the season before getting humbled in a 34-7 loss at Salesian last Saturday. SPSV’s six-game winning streak was its longest since 2008.

The Bruins (6-0, 1-1 Tri-County Athletic League) got off to a good start against the Pride when Marquel Johnson ran for a 6-yard touchdown for a 7-0 SPSV lead, but Salesian responded with a touchdown in the second quarter, then scored 27 unanswered points in the second half.

St. Mary’s hasn’t been kind to the Bruins lately, winning five straight meetings by an average margin of 32 points. SPSV lost 50-22 last year at St. Mary’s and hasn’t won at St. Mary’s since 2007.

SPSV’s offensive line must do a better job protecting quarterback Michael Pappas, who was under near-constant pressure from the Pride defense last week. The senior completed 16-of-33 passes for 149 yards but threw four interceptions and rushed for minus-64 yards. Marshel Martin rushed for a meager 42 yards to lead the Bruins.

The Panthers (2-5, 1-1 TCAL) have had their problems this season. St. Mary’s lost its first four games of the season by an average margin of 26 points before beating Albany, 21-6. The Panthers opened the TCAL season with a tough 19-14 victory over Salesian but lost 27-6 at home to El Cerrito last week.

The St. Mary’s offense has been held to seven points or less in 4-of-7 games this season but the Panthers do have some weapons. Junior Omar Miller and seniors Ryan Jenkins and Sanjay Kettles lead a backfield that can do some damage. Jenkins plays quarterback and likes to throw to senior Miles Joyner and junior Dylan Wyatt.

Jean Pierre Pitre, a 6-foot, 270-pound lineman, leads a big defensive line. The St. Mary’s defense is allowing an average of 30 points per game. SPSV’s offense is averaging 44 points per game despite scoring only seven points last week.

All six teams in the TCAL Rock Division go into this week’s schedule with 1-1 records in league play.

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