COVID, comebacks, craziness
Just to make it to midseason in a high school football season marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, Arizona gets an A. Now, can the state get to the finals? It's been COVID crazy through four weeks with 25 schools (and likely counting) having to shut it down two weeks at a time. Numbers are going up and teams are going down.
The goal is to get to Dec. 12, the date of the state championships.
So far, so good for most of Arizona. There has been a lot to break down in the season's first half, and not just about which schools got dinged by COVID.
Let's look:
Best team
Chandler is on another planet from everybody else. The Wolves look like a team that could make a run at the No. 1 ranking in the nation by the time it's over. They're as good as advertised: bulldozing teams on their way to a 4-0 record with so many athletes that can hurt teams in so many ways. From the accurate passing of quarterback Mikey Keene, from another dynamic duo run game featuring Eli Sanders and Nicolas Nesbitt, from a physical, relentless defense, led by ends Brandon Buckner and Zion Magalei, they're on a mission to complete a second straight unbeaten season. Keene's razor-sharp awareness has led to 17-0 record with him as the Wolves' starting quarterback. And he doesn't have to play full games. Chandler has scored 44, 55, 64 and 63 points in the season's first half.
Best comeback team
Queen Creek Casteel (3-1) pulled off two second-half rallies to beat Anthem Boulder Creek and Gilbert Higley by one point each. It got down 28-7 in the third quarter against Williams Field, before nearly pulling off another miracle comeback, falling short 31-28, last week. It was Casteel's first loss. Senior quarterback Dane Christiansen might be the state's most underrated player. He has completed 70% of his passes, throwing for 1,137 yards and 10 touchdowns with two interceptions on 134 attempts.
Biggest surprise
Tempe Corona del Sol is 4-0, a year after starting last season 1-4 and finishing 4-7. This is quietly confident team, led by quarterback Quade Swearingen, running back Anyale Velazquez and tight end Jake Schmitt. The Aztecs quickly made a statement with a 28-0 win over
Phoenix Desert Vista. But for the Aztecs to continue to make a statement that they're ready to make a serious run, they'll have to deliver on Friday against a Mountain Pointe team that now has five key transfers, including sophomore running back Robert Moore III, playing for the first time.
Best offensive player
So many talented athletes from which to choose, but maybe nobody has had the kind of overall impact for one team than Anthem Boulder Creek senior running back Jacob Cisneros. He has 1,294 all-purpose yards and 13 TDs to lead the Jaguars to a 3-1 start. He has 608 rushing yards, 295 receiving yards. He is coming
off his best game yet, rushing for 250 yards to go with 113 receiving yards and four TDs in a 35-21 win over Glendale Mountain Ridge.
Best defensive player
Queen Creek senior linebacker Trey Reynolds, in four games, has shown why Utah can't wait to get him to Salt Lake City. He's been crushing it with incredible speed and power, averaging 15.5 tackles a game. He has 62 tackles, 26 solo.
Best special teams player
Is there a more electrifying punt returner than Chandler Hamilton sophomore Cole Martin? He showed what a threat he is to score every time he touches the ball with two first-half punt returns that set up10 points in the Huskies' 13-7 win over Scottsdale Saguaro in a nationally televised game on ESPN2. But that is his side job. He is considered one of the best shut-down cornerbacks in the nation in the 2023 class.
Best coaching job
Jose Lucero left a Goodyear Desert Edge team that could be the best in that school's rich football history and took over his alma mater's program that struggled to stay relevant since the great Pat Farrell coaching era ended. Phoenix St. Mary's appears to be back, or at least in the first half of the season, the Knights have taken tremendous steps with a 3-1 record under Lucero. This is a team that didn't even have its own practice facility to start the season, because Phoenix parks were closed from the pandemic and they couldn't walk across the street from campus for practice. They also have had to find other schools to rent a field for home games. But the Knight have never taken the easy route to success, and, in the end, will use this to build character.