Friday night rewind: Results mixed against out-of-state foes
Bishop Gorman and Liberty are well known for their non-league schedules full of out-of-state opponents. But they’re far from the only teams in the valley that look beyond the Nevada state line for quality competition.
That showed once again Friday, when many of the valley’s teams from Class 5A all the way down to 1A met out-of-state foes.
The results were a mixed bag, ranging from Gorman’s 42-7 rout of Corner Canyon (Utah) to Foothill taking it on the chin in Ohio, losing 42-10 to Austintown-Fitch.
But no matter how the games turned out, teams hope the stiff competition will help them later in the season.
Canyon Springs jumped out to an 18-0 lead on Arcadia (California) but was forced to make a goal-line stand to hold on. The Pioneers got it done to secure an 18-14 win, which could prove to be a tremendous growing moment for a young team.
“In the division we’re in, we’re going to be playing tough opponents week in and week out,” Canyon Springs coach Quincy Burts said. “So when you get a chance to play a team from California, which is a higher-level football state, it helps you prepare.”
Burts said Canyon Springs learned the importance of sticking together Friday night. He hopes they’ll continue to do so next week against a tough in-state opponent in Desert Pines before facing another California team in Clayton Valley Charter the week after.
Desert Pines was one of the few valley teams that went on the road to face an out-of-state foe in the opening week, and it lost 21-14 to Orem (Utah).
Desert Pines coach Tico Rodriguez said he likes facing Orem because it has a big offensive line that reminds him of the one from Liberty, which the Jaguars will face in the final week of the regular season.
Foothill also went on the road, and coach Vernon Brown said everything but the game went perfectly. The Falcons watched a Pittsburgh Steelers practice Thursday and went to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, on Saturday.
Brown said sharing those memories and bonding time as a team can only be a positive.
Arbor View and Snow Canyon (Utah) looked like they might never score, as the game was 0-0 well into the fourth quarter. Finally, however, Juice Washington popped a long run and then plowed in for a short touchdown to lift the Aggies to a 7-0 victory.
While the Arbor View offense clearly showed it needs some work, its defense proved its worthiness by shutting down a team that had scored 48 points and had 468 yards of total offense the week before.
Defending Class 3A state champion Moapa Valley, like Canyon Springs, jumped to a 20-0 lead over Hurricane (Utah) before letting it slip away. Moapa Valley got a fourth-quarter interception return for a touchdown that proved to be the difference in a 26-22 victory.
Early start gets mixed reviews
After an incident at Desert Oasis last season, the Clark County School District decided to move all games played at its schools an hour earlier to 6 p.m. and has kept it that way this year.
Basic went to Desert Oasis and took a 14-0 win, but coach Jeff Cahill wasn’t pleased with the early start and attributed it and the added hour of playing in daylight to players cramping up.
Burts said cramps weren’t an issue in Canyon Springs’ win, but it showed the players the importance of taking care of their bodies. In practices and scrimmages, Burts said, there’s usually a quick whistle.
But he didn’t link the issues in his game to the early start, since it would have been hot regardless of the kickoff time.
First look ahead
Yes, there is more than one game next week, although Bishop Gorman hosting Mater Dei (California) will garner the headlines locally and potentially nationwide. Arbor View will stay home and face the rugged running attack from last year’s 4A state runner-up Shadow Ridge, while Liberty goes on the road to meet Pine View (Utah).
Contact Jason Orts at jorts@reviewjournal.com. Follow @SportsWithOrts on Twitter.