In this ranking breakdown last week, I said Notre Dame probably couldn’t hang with Paradise Valley this season. Umm, whoops.
The Saints dominated from the opening kickoff on Friday night (Literally. Notre Dame recovered a fumble on the opening boot) and jump up to No. 1 in the 4A-II rankings this week. The top two teams are the ones from last year’s title game, and Notre Dame and Santa Rita look solid early on.
In 4A-I, Saguaro won a big game against Peoria to move its win streak to 36 games.
4A-I
1. Canyon del Oro: Ka’Deem Carey ran all over Queen Creek on Thursday as the Dorados strengthened their hold as the team to beat in 4A-I. The drive to Phoenix can cause slow starts for some teams, but Canyon del Oro didn’t miss a beat.
2. Saguaro: The Sabercats won a close one over Peoria, 13-0. Quarterback Kyle Faunce returned to action after missing the first two games for an unspecified reason, but he was mediocre. Two more big tests in the next two weeks (Cactus and at Canyon del Oro) as well as a couple more (Cactus Shadows and Apache Junction) in region play.
3. Apache Junction: The Prospectors rolled over Higley and remain undefeated. Rich Milligan likes what he sees so far, but the schedule toughens considerably in the next three weeks with games at Mingus, at Greenway and at home against Cactus Shadows.
4. Cactus Shadows: The Falcons are 3-0 after a 53-7 romp over Shadow Mountain last week. Cactus Shadows faces off with Paradise Valley this week in another big test.
5. Cienega: Sabino only beat Marana Mountain View by seven points, so I moved Cienega back in at No. 5. After Cactus Shadows’ impressive start, the loss by Cienega doesn’t look nearly as unforgivable as it did that week.
4A-II
1. Notre Dame: The Saints looked great against Paradise Valley. After that performance, a three-peat becomes a definite possibility.
2. Santa Rita: How does Santa Rita match up with the big boys from the East Valley? That will be the great unknown until the postseason, as the Eagles won’t be making any trips to Phoenix this regular season.
3. Cactus: The Cobras would love to end Saguaro’s winning streak next week. They have a shot.
4. Buckeye: Played Peoria tough early, followed up by impressive wins over Thunderbird and Arcadia moves Buckeye into the rankings.
5. Paradise Valley: The Trojans take a tumble down the rankings, and must find a way to fix their secondary woes. Also, the loss of running back/linebacker/kicker Jake Brown is huge if his ankle injury keeps him out for a substantial amount of time.
