Bear Down Wildcats

It's been an interesting few weeks for Arizona high school football.

In September, the AIA's Sports Medicine Advisory Committee (doctors), announced a guideline of 75 cases per 100,000 to play high school football. Many schools moved forward with that, beginning practices and so forth. Then a couple of weeks ago, Theresa Cullen (hired as Pima County's health director on June 1) announced that her chosen metric was only 10 per 100,000 and the sky was suddenly falling. I won't get into anybody's rationale, but there was also misinformation put out by somebody that very few districts in Maricopa County would be playing, when virtually all of them will be. After a meeting with Cullen on Friday, multiple Tucson districts decided to go forward anyway, with detailed protocols in place. The story that came out in the Star was nothing more than a simple statement from TUSD Superintendent Gabriel Trujillo that TUSD will be playing football, with various protocols. What it didn't say is that if he hadn't done that (and I don't think he wanted to), TUSD would have been virtually the only large district in Arizona (and Tucson) to not play.

But, regardless of the circumstances, the outcome is that there WILL be high school football in Tucson this fall.

Or not... :-\

Yep... All TUSD athletics and performing arts are done for the year.

Salpointe is pressing on and will be the lone Tucson representative in the state playoffs. So far all the teams in Phoenix and elsewhere are still playing. The word is that this was apparently based on a verbal assertion from Theresa Cullen (IIRC, an OB/GYN hired June 1) that Covid was spread during athletic competions. It would be interesting to analyze any data she had to support that, but this has been a back door operation, and I won't hold my breath for any FOIA requests. In any event, most of Tucson high school football is essentially forced to forfeit the rest of the season. I'll find myself in the unusual position of rooting for Salpointe for once in the playoffs.

I correct myself. Dr. Cullen is basically a GP, with an apparent emphasis on ear, nose, and throat treatment. But not an epidemiologist.

No idea why you're so desperate for pointless sporting events to continue right now.

As is the case every year, these games mean everything to the players and coaches on the 49 teams participating. With the exception of 1A, All games that follow are on Friday, November 27. NOTE: “@”does not indicate geographic location of game, just who is the home team, per higher seeding.

Open Division
8 Desert Edge @ 1 Chandler
5 Liberty @ 4 Centennial
7 Corona del Sol @ 2 Hamilton
5 SALPOINTE CATHOLIC (First round bye: Plays CDS/Hamilton winner.)

6A Division
8 Shadow Ridge @ 1 Boulder Creek
5 Casteel @ 4 Highland
6 Basha @ 3 Sandra Day OConnor
7 Chaparral 2 Queen Creek

5A Division
8 Verrado @ 1 Sunrise Mountain
5 Campo Verde 4 Cactus Shadows
6 Ironwood @ 3 Desert Mountain
7 Notre Dame Prep @ 2 Sunnyslope

4A Division
8 Peoria @ 1 Casa Grande
5 Coconino @ 4 Cactus
6 Northwest Christian @ 3 Mesquite
7 St Mary’s @ 2 American Leadership

3A Division
8 Thatcher @ 1 Yuma Catholic
5 Wickenburg @ 4 PUSCH RIDGE CHRISTIAN
6 Round Valley @ 3 American Leadership (Gilbert)
7 Phoenix Christian @ 2 Snowflake

2A Division
8 Morenci @ 1 Benson
5 Parker 4 Arizona Lutheran
6 Scottsdale Prep 3 Santa Cruz Valley
7 St. John’s @ 2 Scottsdale Christian

(1A Playoff games began November 13. State championship will be November 28 at Coronado HS.)

1A Division
5 Williams @ 2 Mogollon

My high school played two games.

Salpointe gets a bye in the Open Division and advances to the final four there, but I was remiss in not mentioning Pusch Ridge Christian earlier in the 3A Division. Good luck to the Lions.

Two teams from Pima County advance to play next week...

Open Division
8 Desert Edge 0 @ 1 Chandler 52
5 Liberty 25 @ 4 Centennial 24
7 Corona del Sol 0 @ 2 Hamilton 50
5 SALPOINTE CATHOLIC (First round forfeit: Plays Hamilton.)

6A Division
8 Shadow Ridge 22 @ 1 Boulder Creek 38
5 Casteel 20 @ 4 Highland 30
6 Basha 21 @ 3 Sandra Day OConnor 27
7 Chaparral 26 2 Queen Creek 8

5A Division
8 Verrado 14 @ 1 Sunrise Mountain 35
5 Campo Verde 38 4 Cactus Shadows 14
6 Ironwood 35 @ 3 Desert Mountain 30
7 Notre Dame Prep 42 @ 2 Sunnyslope 7

4A Division
8 Peoria 30 @ 1 Casa Grande 47
5 Coconino 7 @ 4 Cactus 41
6 Northwest Christian 10 @ 3 Mesquite 27
7 St Mary’s 14 @ 2 American Leadership 40

3A Division
8 Thatcher 20 @ 1 Yuma Catholic 43
5 Wickenburg 6 @ 4 PUSCH RIDGE CHRISTIAN 35
6 Round Valley 15 @ 3 American Leadership (Gilbert) 38
7 Phoenix Christian 21 @ 2 Snowflake 38

2A Division
8 Morenci @ 1 Benson (Benson advances on forfeit)
5 Parker 30 4 Arizona Lutheran 32
6 Scottsdale Prep 6 3 Santa Cruz Valley 55
7 St. John’s 22 @ 2 Scottsdale Christian 21

(1A Playoff games began November 13. State championship will be November 28 at Coronado HS.)

1A Division
5 Williams @ 2 Mogollon

1A Divison Final:
5 Williams 30 @ 2 Mogollon 38

Open Division
5 Liberty @ 1 Chandler
5 SALPOINTE CATHOLIC @ 2 Hamilton

6A Division
4 Highland @ 1 Boulder Creek
7 Chaparral @ 3 Sandra Day OConnor

5A Division
5 Campo Verde @ 1 Sunrise Mountain
7 Notre Dame Prep @ 6 Ironwood

4A Division
4 Cactus @ 1 Casa Grande
3 Mesquite @ 2 American Leadership

3A Division
4 PUSCH RIDGE CHRISTIAN @ 1 Yuma Catholic
3 American Leadership (Gilbert) @ 2 Snowflake

2A Division
4 Arizona Lutheran @ 1 Benson
7 St. John’s @ 3 Santa Cruz Valley

So the two Tucson schools bow out in the semi-finals, and with the exception of 1A 8-man ball, which crowned its champ, we're on to the finals for all other divisions. There is one remaining Southern Arizona team, as the Benson Bobcats have made it to the finals in 2A.

Open Division
Chandler 35 Liberty 34
Hamilton 58 Salpointe Catholic 14

6A Division
Highland 35 Boulder Creek 28
Chaparral 31 Sandra Day OConnor 14

5A Division
Sunrise Mountain 28 Campo Verde 3
Ironwood 41 Notre Dame Prep 22

4A Division
Cactus 35 Casa Grande 13
Mesquite 19 American Leadership 16

3A Division
Snowflake 28 American Leadership Academy – Gilbert 27
Yuma Catholic 36 Pusch Ridge Christian 20

2A Division
Santa Cruz Valley 27 St. John’s 20
Benson 34 Arizona Lutheran 27

1A Division
Mogollon 38 Williams 30 (Congrats to the 8-man football state champs!)

Final Round:

Open Division
Chandler vs Hamilton

6A Division
Highland vs Chaparral

5A Division
Sunrise Mountain vs Ironwood

4A Division
Cactus vs Mesquite

3A Division
Snowflake vs Yuma Catholic

2A Division
Santa Cruz Valley vs Benson

So, 12 teams play on. In retrospect, CDO, Amphi, and Walden Grove might have snagged something like the 5,6, & 7 seeds in 4A and any of them might have made a run at the title, with no overwhelming favorite in that division. Meanwhile, in 5A, Cienega might have at least gotten the 8 seed, and you never know.

TheCatInTheHat wrote: ↑Sun Dec 06, 2020 1:04 pm So, 12 teams play on. In retrospect, CDO, Amphi, and Walden Grove might have snagged something like the 5,6, & 7 seeds in 4A and any of them might have made a run at the title, with no overwhelming favorite in that division. Meanwhile, in 5A, Cienega might have at least gotten the 8 seed, and you never know.

With the exception of Salpointe, these days Tucson teams usually get rolled by Phoenix teams. Ironwood would kill Cienega.

The difference isn't so much in the skill position players, but the line play. IMO that's why Chaparral (Neal, Ippolito, Brewer) beat Cienega in the 2011 Championship game. (My son played OL for Cienega - came up from JV and dressed for that game but didn't play, lucky for him LOL)

I think that's pretty much true in 5A and up, but I don't see anybody in 4A that's so dominant. Cactus has done well, but they were seeded #4. So, I think any of the trio of Tucson schools I mentioned might have acquitted themselves fairly well, possibly getting to the title game, and maybe even having a shot at it.

Almost forgot to do this, with the ASU game, the Sumlin firing, and all of the coaching search business.

Final Round:

Open Division
Chandler 23 Hamilton 21

6A Division
Chaparral 24 Highland 14

5A Division
Sunrise Mountain 42 Ironwood 20

4A Division
Mesquite 39 Cactus 38

3A Division
Snowflake 38 Yuma Catholic 14

2A Division
Santa Cruz Valley 42 Benson 7

Congrats to the champions of the various divisions!

When we lived in Chandler, Hamilton absolutely owned Chandler. That has completely flipped.

My alma matter are Champs!

Go Firebirds!

UAEebs86 wrote: ↑Tue Dec 15, 2020 10:47 am When we lived in Chandler, Hamilton absolutely owned Chandler. That has completely flipped.

When I lived in Tempe, the Mesa schools were just about unbeatable. And in Tucson, Vern Friedli at Amphi was kind of the king of the hill here. It's interesting how things shift over time. I'm happy for the kids who got to play for titles. And, other than the handful of Tucson schools we mentioned earlier, it looks like most of the serious contenders had the opportunity.

I realize things are slow for sports in Tucson this time of year. Congrats yet one more time to Salpointe, the Texas Longhorns, the Atlanta Falcons, and Bijan Robinson and family for being the 8th overall pick. By everything I've heard, he's a great player and a good guy; all fine. Nobody from an Arizona school, and only 2 from the Pac-12 in the first round of the NFL draft, so I guess that's the hook. But I can't remember the last time some local high-profile high school kid who went away to another big college for football (which is not particularly unusual) got this kind of attention after the fact. I doubt people who follow CDO, Sahuaro, Sabino, or whoever particularly follow the careers of former Salpointe players, so I don't think there's some overriding pride in Tucson high school football thing to be reported. And Salpointe's a bit of an outlier from the rest of the public high schools anyway. Whatever; I assume it's just a one-off idea. But otherwise, I'll look forward to Justin Spears' daily reports on Bijan's progress from Falcons training camp in Flowery Branch, Georgia.

Rodney Peete.

And his Dad went to U of A and the kid ended up at SC.

EastCoastCat wrote: ↑Tue May 02, 2023 11:53 am Rodney Peete.

And his Dad went to U of A and the kid ended up at SC.

I went to elementary school with Rodney & Skip. I was in 6th grade with Rodney in 2nd & Skip 5th grade and they were so obviously more talented than the rest of us. Rodney could hang with us 6th graders although he was a little shy so we had to encourage him a little.

EastCoastCat wrote: ↑Tue May 02, 2023 11:53 am Rodney Peete.

And his Dad went to U of A and the kid ended up at SC.

Rodney’s dad was a coach at the U. He went to KC Chiefs to coach, IIRC.

Rodney didn’t graduate from a Tucson school.

I was on chains for a game, and Bijan has more skills than anyone I’ve ever seen play RB in HS.

His patience and explosiveness were amazing.

When I was a kid back east we had a great RB, but he was the fastest HS kid in the state. He had state records in the 100, 200 and 100 high hurdles. He had a top speed nobody could touch.

Bijan was a more skilled RB in HS, hands down.

EastCoastCat wrote: ↑Tue May 02, 2023 11:53 am Rodney Peete.

And his Dad went to U of A and the kid ended up at SC.

Prior to that, IIRC, you'd hear about Fred Sims from Sunnyside who went to Oklahoma, but wasn't drafted, and somebody will no doubt pipe up about a Volpe or Bates or somebody. But it's still unusual and comes off a bit like Hansen's mentions of some swimmer or golfer that he happened to meet. It's a big deal for Bijan and fam, but debatable how newsworthy something like the number he'll wear for the Falcons really is in a community where he may possibly never again live.

Not really sure what you guys are taking about... Tucson kids that made it to the NFL?

Bill McKinley and Leonard Thompson from Pueblo were both drafted in the early 70s

Bill didn’t get much more than a cup of coffee, buf Leo had a fine 12 year career.

Salpointe kid that played college ball at UT