Nevada Preps: Top 5 football games for Week 4

Top 5 games

All games at 6 p.m., unless noted

Hamilton (Chandler, Arizona) at Bishop Gorman, 7 p.m.

How did Gorman lose this game last season? The Gaels allowed 18 points in the final 1:05, failing to recover two onside kicks in the 25-24 loss at Hamilton. It’s just as unbelievable now as it was then. Of course, the Gaels remember that game and should be locked in. Gorman (2-1) needs to play against Hamilton (1-0) like it did last week at St. Louis, where the Gaels blew out the Hawaii power 56-14.

Liberty at Atascocita (Humble, Texas), 5 p.m.

The Patriots (1-2) continue the out-of-state portion of their schedule and are trying to break through after losing by a point to a Utah team and by 28 to one from California. Liberty is still considered the state’s second-best team to Gorman, so losing is not something these players are used to. Maybe Liberty will get it done against Atascocita (1-1), but it won’t be easy. Atascocita gave Texas power Katy a competitive game last week before losing 35-28.

Sierra Vista at Silverado

Silverado (2-0) dominated Class 4A in winning the state championship last year, and the Skyhawks have picked up where they left off with back-to-back routs to open this season. They outscored Class 5A teams Centennial and Palo Verde by a combined 99-14. It’s a big ask for Sierra Vista to go to Silverado and win, though the Mountain Lions are 2-1 and coming off a 54-14 victory over Sunrise Mountain.

Foothill at Desert Pines

No defense is playing better than Desert Pines’ unit, which has posted consecutive shutouts and held both opponents to negative yardage, outscoring both by a total of 79-0. It’s an aggressive defense that’s not afraid to blitz on third-and-long rather than play it safe. Desert Pines (2-1) welcomes a Foothill team (1-2) that followed losses to two out-of-state teams with a 31-15 victory over Centennial.

Bakersfield (California) Christian at Faith Lutheran, 7 p.m.

The Crusaders are off to a 3-0 start, and their closest game was a 17-point victory over Legacy. Faith Lutheran won just twice last season, so former UNLV coach Mike Sanford has the program trending in the right direction. Liberty and Desert Pines remain the teams to watch in the Mountain League, but maybe the Crusaders will change the conversation. Bakersfield Christian is 1-2, and none of the games were close.

Contact reporter Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @markanderson65 on Twitter.