5 high school games to watch this week

Nevada Day means football on Thursday this week. Here’s a look at some of the week’s most interesting games.

Arbor View (8-0, 3-0 Northwest) at Centennial (8-0, 3-0) — It’s not too often that a team makes it to the final game of the regular season with an undefeated record, and two undefeated teams is especially rare. This is the third time in the last five years that the Aggies have made it to the final regular-season game undefeated, so this isn’t an unfamiliar position. Arbor View has won six of the last seven meetings with the Bulldogs, with the only outlier coming in the 2012 playoffs when Centennial ended the Aggies’ season with a 14-9 win.

Liberty (6-2, 2-1 Northeast) at Las Vegas (5-3, 3-0) — The Wildcats haven’t won a league championship since 2010, so a win over the four-time defending Sunrise Region champs would be especially sweet. Las Vegas struggled out of the gate with a 2-3 record, but the Wildcats seem to have found their footing since making freshman Elijah Hicks (752 yards, 10 TDs) their primary ballcarrier. Liberty hasn’t been consistent on offense this season, but the Patriots have been stout on defense, allowing an average of 11.9 points.

Bishop Gorman (9-0, 3-0 Southwest) at Palo Verde (6-2, 3-0) — Some consider this a rivalry, but this is the first time the team’s have met in a league game, with the majority of their previous games coming in the playoffs. Palo Verde was the last Nevada team to beat Gorman, but that was in 2008 and the Gaels have won 61 straight against in-state foes since then.

Foothill (4-4, 2-1 Southeast) at Green Valley (7-1, 3-0) — The Gators have won six straight since a loss to Palo Verde in Week 2, and could wrap up a league title with a win. A Foothill win could put the league’s top playoff seed in the hands of tiebreakers. The Falcons can earn the top seed with a win and a Basic win over Coronado. Coronado gets the top seed with a win and a Foothill win by 10 or more points. If there is a three-way tie and Green Valley loses by nine points or fewer, the Gators would get the top seed.

Chaparral (5-4) at Sierra Vista (6-3) — This appears to be the most interesting Division I-A playoff game of the night. The Cowboys haven’t made the playoffs since 2007, so just getting this far is a big deal for the Cowboys, who had a four-game win streak snapped last week against undefeated Moapa Valley. Sierra Vista hasn’t been to the postseason since 2008, and has had somewhat of a roller-coaster season in its first year at the I-A level. The Mountain Lions went 2-2 over the final four weeks of the regular season including a 39-27 loss to Pahrump Valley last week.

Go to nevadapreps.com for a full schedule and complete scoreboard.