Slow-starting Jaguars overpower Desert Shields

Desert Pines shook off a sluggish start Thursday night and scored 35 unanswered points for a 35-7 win over host Cheyenne in the first round of the Division I-A Southern Region playoffs.

The Jaguars (8-2) gained only 32 yards in the first quarter and trailed 7-0, but were ignited by Isaiah Morris and Trevor Nofoa in the second quarter and seized control of the game.

"We wanted to establish our run and I think we threw the ball a little too much in the first half; Cheyenne's defense is phenomenal," Desert Pines coach Tico Rodriguez said. "We had to make some adjustments at halftime. In the second half we imposed our will ... and we beat 'em up a little bit with the run game."

Nofoa scored three times for the Jaguars, running for two touchdowns and catching another, while Morris led Desert Pines with 140 yards on 24 carries, including a 23-yard touchdown run.

The Desert Shields (7-3) dominated the first quarter and took an early 7-0 lead when Ashton Lawson grabbed a 6-yard pass from Anthony McConnico.

Desert Pines finally got on the board when Nofoa plunged in from 2 yards out early in the second quarter. Both defenses were tough, stifling one another and keeping each other from gaining an edge. But moments after Nofoa scored his second touchdown of the night, Cheyenne fumbled away the ensuing kickoff, and Desert Pines recovered on the Desert Shields' 23-yard-line.

On the first play from scrimmage, Morris sprinted 23 yards for a touchdown, and the Jaguars suddenly had a 21-7 lead with 2:30 left until halftime. It was the type of aggressive play expected from a Jaguars team that Rodriguez indicated was playing with a chip on its shoulder.

"Us being the No. 3 seed and being bumped down three places in the coaches poll, the kids really saw that (and felt) we were being disrespected," Rodriguez said. "That really fired our kids up. And their kids played extremely hard. This is playoff football, they ran to the ball and they gave us all kind of issues.

"(But) with our culture and our kids, we have great senior leadership. Our kids really buy into the program — it's a family. They pick each other up when they're down."

Nofoa added a 17-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter, and Jordan Simon iced the contest with a 7-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Marckell Grayson in the fourth quarter.

Grayson completed 12 of 22 pass attempts for 162 yards and the two touchdowns.

Next week Desert Pines travels to play Sunrise League No. 1 seed Moapa Valley (9-1), which routed Spring Valley on Thursday, 52-12.