No. 5 Desert Pines holds off No. 9 Centennial on late stop — PHOTOS
It appeared Desert Pines and Centennial were heading for overtime when the Bulldogs scored a touchdown with 32 seconds left.
But after a Desert Pines penalty following a missed extra point, Centennial gambled for the win and went for the 2-point conversion.
The gamble didn’t pay off. Desert Pines swarmed Kolton Silbernagel in the backfield, and the Jaguars, No. 5 in the Review-Journal’s Class 5A rankings, held on for a 34-33 home victory over No. 9 Centennial on Friday night.
“We found a way,” first-year Desert Pines coach Jose Flores said. “Our kids dug deep, and the guys up front had to make a play (on the 2-point conversion), especially No. 55, RJ Brown. It was just a great feeling to see the boys earn what they had and that opportunity to make a play.”
Desert Pines (1-0) leaned on its two running backs. Sophomore Marcus Williams rushed for 285 yards and two touchdowns, and senior Isaiah Te’o rushed for 95 yards and two scores in the first half.
“They played for each other,” Flores said. “I think this team realized today we have to play for each other, and that’s the only way you win games at the end of the day, even if you’re talented. Everyone needs to be locked in, and everyone needs to follow their role.”
Williams produced what proved to be the game-deciding score for the Jaguars. He broke off a 95-yard rushing touchdown late in the third quarter to give the Jaguars a 34-20 lead over Centennial (0-1).
The Bulldogs cut into the lead early in the fourth quarter when quarterback James Monaghan IV hit Jayden Thomas for a 36-yard touchdown to make the score 34-27.
With only 29 players dressed and most of Desert Pines’ key players playing both ways, the Jaguars held on and had one final play left in them after Silbernagel scored from 2 yards out in the final minute.
Williams and Te’o were several of Desert Pines’ key players who played both ways.
“They are great players, making plays and putting less stress on us as coaches. We can call whatever, and they can make a big play,” Flores said of his running backs. “It’s just awesome to see because those two guys work their tails off. I’m proud of them.”
Freshman Michael Taylor, who has a UNLV offer, also played both ways. He had a touchdown catch at tight end and had a sack on defense at linebacker.
“We’ve done a great job during practice, managing the reps,” Flores said. “We have depth in key pieces in certain positions like our running backs and linebackers. We had depth and we rotated them all night.”
Desert Pines worked nearly five minutes off the clock on its opening drive. After six penalties on their first drive, the Jaguars found the end zone on a 21-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Zeyshawn Martin to Taylor. The Jaguars jumped ahead 14-0 later in the quarter on their ensuing possession when Williams broke free on an 81-yard touchdown run.
The two-score lead didn’t last long when Monaghan hit Thomas for a 61-yard touchdown connection.
Desert Pines turned to Te’o, and the senior recovered a bad snap and raced to the end zone for a 63-yard touchdown to put Desert Pines ahead 21-7 late in the first quarter.
The scoring in the first 12 minutes didn’t stop as senior Khy Harris returned the ensuing kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown to cut the deficit to 21-13 after a missed extra point.
Te’o scored again for the Jaguars on an 8-yard run on fourth-and-4 to put the Jaguars ahead 27-13 with over eight minutes left in the second quarter.
After a big kickoff return from Centennial’s Brogan Church to Desert Pines’ 20-yard line, the Bulldogs got a 10-yard touchdown run from Harris. Desert Pines went into halftime with a 27-20 lead.
“I told (the offensive and defensive lines) it’s going to be between you guys,” Flores said. “And Zeyshawn Martin, our quarterback, stepped up big time and delivered some great balls. We just have to catch them.”
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
