Faith Lutheran, Centennial among favorites as football playoffs begin
Temperatures are cooling down, but the intensity on the football fields is heating up.
The high school playoffs begin across Southern Nevada for most teams Friday with league quarterfinals. Class 5A Division I concludes its regular season Friday and begins its playoffs next week.
An eventful regular season saw several league titles go down to the final week of the regular season and multiple tiebreakers needed for playoff seeding.
Here’s a breakdown of how the playoffs shape up:
5A Division II Southern League
League champion: Faith Lutheran
Favorite: Faith Lutheran
No one has beaten Faith Lutheran this season. The Crusaders (9-0) won the league title last year, but lost to Northern champion Bishop Manogue for the state title.
Running back Cale Breslin, a BYU commit, averages 104.4 rushing yards per game to lead a dynamic offense. Quarterback Alex Rogers has found his rhythm as Faith Lutheran’s permanent starter with 21 touchdown passes against three interceptions.
A constant for Faith Lutheran has been its defense. The Crusaders are giving up just 11.67 points per game. The unit has combined for 113 tackles for loss, 29 sacks and 19 turnovers.
Dark horse: Shadow Ridge
Nothing gives a team fits like Shadow Ridge’s triple-option offense. The Mustangs (7-3) are averaging 341.1 rushing yards a game, and senior Tyrell Craven has 19 of the team’s 42 rushing touchdowns.
In the regular season, Shadow Ridge had one-score leads against Faith Lutheran at halftime and late in the fourth quarter before the Crusaders pulled away. Should the Mustangs get another shot at Faith Lutheran, they would first need to defeat second-seeded Legacy (6-4) in the semifinals and avenge a 43-14 regular-season loss to the Longhorns.
Potential first-round upset: None
Legacy, Shadow Ridge and Green Valley beat their quarterfinal opponents by at least 14 points in the regular season. The three higher seeds should roll and create thrilling league semifinals.
5A Division III Southern League
League champion: Centennial
Favorite: Centennial
It wasn’t the best start of the year for Centennial. The Bulldogs started 0-4. But they turned things around when it counted most.
Centennial (4-5) won four of its final five games, all against league opponents, and clinched the league title on a tiebreaker after a 36-28 win at Las Vegas High last week.
Centennial is battle-tested after winning the 4A state title last season and moved up to 5A Division III. Among notable returners is senior running back Khy Harris, averaging 92.5 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns.
Dark horse: Desert Oasis
Desert Oasis (6-3) has won its past two games after blowout losses to Centennial and second-seeded Las Vegas.
Quarterback Vincent Hales gives the third-seeded Diamondbacks an edge. Hales has passed for 1,566 yards and 21 touchdowns in eight games.
Potential first-round upset: Clark over Durango
This should be the closest of all the 5A league quarterfinals. Clark played Durango tough in the regular season. The Trailblazers escaped with a 27-21 win.
Clark (4-5) has a +63 point differential and has lost two of its league games by a total of seven points, including a 28-27 defeat at Desert Oasis on Oct. 18.
Class 4A
League champions: Mojave (Desert), Spring Valley (Mountain)
Favorite: Mojave
Mojave showed it was the team to beat in 4A after defeating Losee 32-21 last week in its regular-season finale to clinch the Desert League title.
Mojave (9-1) has relied on its stout defense this season. The Rattlers are outscoring opponents 332-79 and have recorded six shutouts. Senior AJ Tuitele, who has notable Division I offers from Arizona, Washington State and New Mexico, is second in the state with 143 tackles.
Dark horse: Canyon Springs
Canyon Springs only lost to Mountain League champion Spring Valley 15-13 in the regular season. That was the only loss for the Pioneers in their past six games.
The Mountain League was one of the closest leagues in the state with the top six teams separated by three games in the standings. Canyon Springs came a game short of reaching the 4A title game last season and returned several key players.
Potential first-round upset: Western over Cheyenne
Western (2-7) won its first game in 749 days when it defeated Bonanza 48-27 on Oct. 10. The Warriors won two of their final three games to end the regular season. The Warriors adopted the triple-option offense midway through the season and found success.
Cheyenne defeated Western 34-24 on Oct. 18. The Desert Shields have lost three of their past four. The second meeting between the two should be closer.
Class 3A
League champion: SLAM Academy
Favorite: SLAM Academy
SLAM Academy claimed its third straight league title. The Bulls (6-4) won six of their past seven games to earn the No. 1 seed in the Southern League playoffs. Damien Nevil leads the state with 21 total touchdowns.
SLAM Academy is looking to get to its third straight state title game. The Bulls lost the past two years to Northern champion Truckee. By having the No. 1 seed, the Bulls would host a state semifinal and avoid Truckee, winners of 32 straight, until the state title game.
Dark horse: Virgin Valley
Virgin Valley might be the most talented team in 3A. The Bulldogs lost to Moapa Valley in their regular-season finale and a double-forfeit with Democracy Prep earlier in the season put them at the No. 3 seed.
Virgin Valley defeated SLAM Academy 26-16 on Oct. 10. Running back Drew Dixon is fifth in the state with 1,216 rushing yards.
Potential first-round upset: Mater East over Pahrump Valley
Mater East (4-6) might have the best quarterback in 3A. Daylin James is third in the state with 2,001 passing yards in eight games. It’s always tough to travel to Pahrump, but James can help give his team a chance to pull off the road upset.
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
