Bishop Gorman must put close loss to Mater Dei behind

For three seasons from 2014 to 2016, Bishop Gorman was the gold standard in high school football.

The Gaels won the national championship each of those seasons and won 55 straight games before having that run ended by Mater Dei (California) in 2017. Mater Dei went on to the national title that season, repeated in 2018 and added another last season to take the mantle as the nation’s preeminent program.

Gorman had a chance to insert itself into the national championship picture when it welcomed Mater Dei to Fertitta Field on Friday night in a showdown of top-10 teams.

The Gaels jumped to leads of 14-0 and 21-7, but Mater Dei responded like the champion it is and scored 17 unanswered points in the second half to edge Gorman 24-21.

“They’re a great team, and it was just a razor-thin difference,” Gorman coach Brent Browner said. “A couple penalties and some amazing catches by them. One guy’s floating, and he’s got maybe one toenail inbounds and catches the ball reaching back the other way. Then you’ve got one diving, full extension and dragging a leg. They made some plays that were spectacular. Our kids played hard. They played well, and I’m proud of them.”

Gorman’s stated goal all offseason was to win the national championship. With Friday’s loss, those hopes are likely gone.

That’s why Browner’s message to the Gaels after the game was “stay together.”

They’ll need to, since there’s still plenty to play for in their last three nonleague games and the rest of the season.

“There’s a lot left to do, and you never know,” Browner said. “Mater Dei won a national championship one year with one loss. Some of the top teams have to play against each other, and if they start splitting games, we could have a chance.”

Next week, Gorman is off to Hawaii to meet St. Louis, another team that is perennially ranked nationally. St. Louis beat Gorman the last time they met on the islands, a 31-19 decision in 2019. Gorman avenged that loss with a 42-21 win over St. Louis last season at Fertitta Field.

After that, it’s a game that will certainly have Gorman’s full attention, a Sept. 9 home rematch against Hamilton (Arizona). Last season, the Gaels were in complete control and on their way to a comfortable win that would have given them a sweep of their nonleague games for the first time since 2016.

Hamilton kicked a field goal with 1:05 left to get within two scores, and that began the Gorman collapse. Hamilton recovered two onside kicks, scored touchdowns after both, and quarterback Nicco Marchiol ran in a two-point conversion with eight seconds left to complete a jaw-dropping comeback in a 25-24 win.

Browner said before the season the Gaels are “100 percent” looking forward to a shot at redemption against Hamilton.

The Gaels will close their nonleague slate with their first meeting against a team from Georgia when they host Brookwood before turning their sights toward a 12th state championship in the last 13 years.

SLAM Nevada hangs with 5A Palo Verde

SLAM Nevada, a Class 3A charter school, has shown in recent years it’s not afraid to take on anyone — to the point that it lined up against Gorman for a game during the spring season of 2021.

The Bulls took on another 5A challenge against Palo Verde on Friday and almost came away victorious. They rallied from a 28-7 deficit with 20 straight points but missed the extra-point try after being hit with an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty on their last score with less than a minute remaining to come up short 28-27.

Palo Verde coach Joe Aznarez was highly complimentary of SLAM Nevada after the game.

“SLAM didn’t deserve to lose, and we didn’t deserve to win,” Aznarez said. “All credit to SLAM. Those kids played very well. We made enough mistakes to let them hang around, and they took full advantage of them.”

Look ahead

In addition to Gorman’s trip to Hawaii, there are several other valley teams facing out-of-state foes next week. Liberty and Arbor View will play Saturday games in California, with Arbor View meeting Pittsburg and Arbor View taking on Campo Verde. Green Valley will host a California team in Sierra Canyon on Friday.

SLAM Nevada and Shadow Ridge are off to Arizona, with SLAM Nevada to play at American Leadership Academy-Gilbert North, while Shadow Ridge has a showdown against a team with the same name — Shadow Ridge — on Friday.

Contact Jason Orts at jorts@reviewjournal.com. Follow @SportsWithOrts on Twitter.