VarsityXtra

Emptying the vault from a wild Corona del Sol/Desert Vista tilt, and a wild Friday in general…

–I still had a gnawing feeling about the validity of this Corona team, and while Desert Vista should have won that game, “should” is probably why they didn’t.

Corona didn’t turn the ball over, committed fewer mistakes, and were less predictable on offense late in the game. The Thunder were in complete control midway through the third quarter, having put together the kind of drives and big plays state title contenders do when it’s time to seize control after halftime.

But mental mistakes and missed receivers who were wide open took its toll, and Dan Hinds joked afterward he might need protection getting himself from the field to the locker room.

It’s commonplace around Desert Vista, as it will be this week around Tom Joseph and Mesa Mountain View for their decision-making. Tell them something new.

As it stands, Corona is now a Thursday night win against Basha away from winning the Cetnral Region, a perplexing thought to everyone but the Aztecs.

Desert Vista ends its season against Mountain Pointe, a game they should win given the Pride’s injuries and what’s still at stake for the Thunder. a team reeling mentally from Friday night’s letdown. Forget getting a home game, they’re now clawing to get in.

–Congrats to Coolidge on winning another 3A South region title.

For better or worse, state championships are the standard there. But this was a team practically starting over from its state title teams the past two seasons, started 0-2, went a week without power in the city and had practically no equipment when practice began, or administrative direction until the beginning of September.

They may meet their ultimate match in Blue Ridge or Wickenburg later in the playoffs, but this journey to date should feel worthwhile.

–Shawn Cluff ended his coaching tenure at Florence Friday, and not the way he envisioned. He’d talked about the possibility of prioritizing his family and finding a better income at the beginning of the season. Once his mind was made up, however, he wanted to wait until after the season ended to tell his team, rather than distract his kids in October.

But the news was leaked, and the rumor mill around town forced him to discuss it with his players before Friday’s game against Fountain Hills. Clearly agitated by having to do so, he kept those emotions to himself.

It’s been a rough two season for the football team, but two years ago they were 8-2, and they won three games this year, with two other games early in the season which were theirs for the taking. He was honest, candid, accommodating and funny.

He’ll sit on a committee who’ll help hire the next football coach. He’s earned that privilege.

–Playoff time is here (or will be here). Tuesday’s Power Points will reveal much, and for a boatload of 5A teams, tell them exactly where they stand heading into the regular season finale.

We’ll keep you in the loop as best we can. And check out Friday’s Varsity Xtra section in the Tribune, where we’ll take a look back at some of the “bests” from this wild and wooly fall.

They’ve been under the radar much of the season. That’s due to slow starts  and tough schedules. Friday’s game between Phoenix Desert Vista and Tempe Corona del Sol is between teams just as capable of making a postseason dent as some others who started fast and have remained in the foreground.

Corona del Sol opened the season 0-2 (losing to Mesa Dobson and Mesa Red Mountain). The Aztecs have won six straight since. Desert Vista lost two of its first three and three of its first five (Gilbert, Chandler and Peoria Centennial). At No. 12 in the current power-rankings, Desert Vista would be a handful for No. 5 Phoenix Brophy.

The mystery of who will join Chandler Hamilton and, in all likelihood, Red Mountain, in the 5A-I semifinals could just as easily be the Thunder and Aztecs as it is the fast-starting Mesa schools, Chandler or Chandler Basha.

While doing some background reading for our VarsityXtra cover story this week, the Prep Czar (below) and I have dug through a few old-school media guides.

Les Willsey: The East Valley’s human archive for high school football.

Among them was a Tempe McClintock media guide from 20 years ago, when Karl Kiefer ran the Chargers.

Karl Kiefer, long before any current high school kids were ever dreamed about. 

Kiefer’s boss as Chargers athletic director: Dr. Harold Slemmer (now the boss of all the state’s high school athletic programs).

His assistants:  Phil Abbadessa (now the Phoenix Mountain Pointe coach) and Dick Baniszewski (now the Chandler Hamilton athletic director).

But the real kicker came from a St. Mary’s program circa 1967, a state championship team which included a sophomore cornerback in Pat Farrell (the hair hasn’t moved) and a senior prankster who couldn’t tackle in safety Jim Ewan (now the coach at Chandler).

Believe this: If we could successfully transition those photos into the computer age, it would have happened long ago.

But we can’t, so we’re left to enjoy the grainy, black-and-white Polaroid of yester-year.

Word is the Mesa Community College football recruiters at Friday night’s game between Apache Junction and Scottsdale Saguaro had never heard of Sabercat quarterback Tim Ruben beforehand.

The soft-spoken senior did his talking where he usually does - on the field. Ruben threw for 294 yards and five touchdowns in a 55-0 rout that saw Saguaro put up 48 points by halftime.

It seems odd that Ruben isn’t more widely known in college circles after leading Saguaro to the 4A-I state title last season as a junior and an undefeated season so far this year. At 6-feet he’s a bit undersized for a quarterback, and that may be the biggest sticking point.

Saguaro’s offensive line is the team’s strength, but after watching his team fall to the Sabercats, Chaparral coach Charlie Ragle said it was Ruben who really made that team go. He is getting some interest from Penn, but nothing near the attention of some of his teammates.

Saguaro uses a spread offense, and Ruben runs it to perfection. If colleges need a reference, they should simply be directed to any defensive coordinator that has attempted to slow Ruben down this season, because nothing has worked thus far.

Emptying the vault from what was supposed to be one of the better E.V. games in Desert Vista/Basha. Except it wasn’t.

Thumbs down to Basha fans, or lack thereof. There were no more than 100 people on the visiting bleachers, and that included the band. Either they’re psychic, or didn’t notice Friday’s game was pretty darn important.

Everyone and their pet rock is recruiting Desert Vista junior Devon Kennard (ASU, LSU, Florida, etc…..), and for very good reason. Stanford folks were at the school and roaming the sidelines Friday, not just to watch Kennard, but a couple others from Desert Vista and Basha. My gut says he’s going to let this process play out through next fall. He’s only a junior, what’s the hurry?

On a related topic, there’s a reason the BCS schools are watching: He’s an absolute nightmare to stop on either side of the ball.

Don’t let Devon Kennard’s smile fool you

Desert Vista looked the part of a state championship contender Friday. But they won’t be unless this becomes the norm from here on out. And they don’t fumble twice near the goalline. And they don’t commit nearly 100 yards in penalties.

Basha’s offense looks much-improved from a year ago. Troy Graham is a solid quarterback and Dusty Rush can’t be tackled by one person. But the defense just isn’t the same that dragged the Bears to the state semifinals last year, and it wasn’t going to be given the unit’s youth and inexperience.

Steve Figueroa is one of the best tight ends in the state, which is why he’s headed to ASU, but most wouldn’t know it because the Thunder have barely thrown the ball. They haven’t needed to the past few weeks, but one of these Fridays….

It’s a rare sight, but the matchup between Scottsdale football powers Saguaro and Chaparral actually lived up to the hype Friday, with the Sabercats escaping with a 31-28 victory.

Hopefully we’ll see these two squads face off again in the state tournament, and hopefully it’s not until the 4A-I title game. As of today, Saguaro was second in power points and Chaparral tied for fourth.

If the Sabercats finish up undefeated - as they should - they’ll undoubtedly be No. 1 at season’s end. If the Firebirds win out as well they shouldn’t finish any lower than third because two teams ahead of them, Cactus and Millennium, face off on Oct. 26.

If that’s the case, the two teams would be on a crash course for the title game, and the estimated 7,000 fans in attendance at last week’s regular season game would be sure to make University of Phoenix Stadium a rocking joint in December.

Chaparral’s toughest test will be Paradise Valley on Oct. 26.

Saguaro cruised past the Trojans in their game, but the Sabercats are built perfectly to stop run-oriented P.V. The Firebirds, on the other hand, might have some trouble containing an effective ground game with their limited experience on the line. Barring big mistakes, Chaparral should still have enough talent to dispatch a talented but young Trojan group.

And let’s hope so. It’d be a shame to see the two best teams in 4A-I face off before the title game.

While browsing through the list of this week’s prep football games, I noticed there are a higher-than-normal number of marquee individual matchups on tap.

Here are my top four, in no particular order.

Corona de Sol’s J.R. Hamm vs. Mountain Pointe’s Marquese Wheaton: Bragging rights for “the best running back in the region” are on the line when the Aztecs and Pride square off in the 5A Central opener for both teams. Hamm (862) and Wheaton (819) are both closing in on 1,000 yards and rank Nos. 3 and 4, respectively, in rushing among 5A

East
Valley backs.

Coronado’s Travis Huff vs. Seton Catholic’s Jon McDonald: Two of the top pure football talents in 4A, Huff and McDonald are their team’s statistical and emotional leaders. Huff, a running back, is the ninth leading rusher in the state (among all classes) with 1,088 yards while McDonald, a linebacker/running back, leads his team in tackles (64) and  touchdowns (five) and is second in rushing 495.

Desert Ridge QB Josh Cain vs. Pinnacle QB Evan Johnson: It’s hard to find a team which likes to throw more than Desert Ridge, and Cain’s statistics reflect that. He is not only third in the state in both passing yards (2,029) and touchdowns (18) but is also one of
Arizona’s most accurate passers. His 66.1 completion percentage (154 of 233) is the highest among quarterbacks who have attempted at least 150 passes. Pinnacle, meanwhile, doesn’t go to the air nearly as much, but Johnson is just as accurate (85 of 128, 66.4 percent). He is also a threat with his feet – he is the Pioneers leading rusher – and has been responsible for 14 touchdowns.

Saguaro QB Tim Ruben vs.Apache Junction RB Shane McCullen: Two of the leading candidates for the 4A Desert Sky’s player of the year award will be on display in this tilt. Ruben and McCullen rank sixth and seventh in the state in rushing, respectively, and are separated by only four yards (1,124-1,120). They are also first and fourth in the region in scoring with 78 and 62 points, respectively.

We told you this week’s football would be a treat. (What’s the line about a stopped clock being right twice a day?)

From Chapparal to Corona del Sol, Coronado to Dobson, Gilbert to Mountain View, there were more than a half-dozen Friday night delights.

None more delightful than Horizon’s toppling of undefeated Marcos de Niza. On the road.

To recap: Horizon was down 9-0 midway through the first quarter to a Padres team which puts up points in its sleep.

The Huskies held the Padres to 75 rushing yards in the final three quarters, completed their only pass on a fake punt and got two field goals in the second half to win, 13-9.

Steve Casey’s team has its lowest enrollment in years, particularly in the younger ranks, and though they moved down to 5A-II, the Huskies hadn’t seen a 1-5 start to a season since a different Bush was president.

One game later, Horizon won its toughest region test and is now a contender.

This season could become Casey’s greatest circus act if Horizon squeezes itself into the playoffs, and, if so, the most underrated coach in the East Valley will get his due.

Nothing pains me more than concuring with the prep football Czar and all-around adonis

Scottsdale Chaparral’s Mike Cummings received his first scholarship offer earlier this week from Colorado State, and it’s been a long time coming. He has been one of the state’s top receivers this year and is also a shutdown cornerback.

The offers have been slow because Cummings’ likely spot in college is at safety, and he hasn’t played there much in high school. Chaparral coach Charlie Ragle believes this is the first of multiple offers Cummings will receive.

“It’s a lot about keeping up with the Joneses,” Ragle said. “Now that somebody’s offered him, it’s hey, ‘We better get in on the sweepstakes.’”