With the 2016-17 school year approaching, Prep2Prep takes a look at some of the teams to watch for in each coverage area. This feature focuses on the teams in the state of Arizona. All records listed are from the 2015 season.
What changes also remains the same. The AIA shifted teams around, reformatted divisions and regions, and balanced the football landscape around enrollment and regional affiliation more so than competitive balance. The result is that the massive 6A division will include three regions where at least three teams could win nine games or more and a bevy of other contenders elsewhere. The 5A division has two defending champions, 4A has a powerhouse in Saguaro, but 3A looks wide open.
Still, the scene includes the usual contenders. The Premier Region will likely produce five playoff teams. The defending Division I champions, Centennial, are now realigned in what would amount to a division lower (5A). The team arguably most loaded with talent, Saguaro, plays two out-of-state opponents that could nullify their shot at a perfect season. And that is merely the brim of the litany of teams/things to be on the lookout for in the coming season.
Here are the top 10 teams to watch in the state (not necessarily the best 10, but two hands full that will prove to be interesting if nothing else):
Chandler
N’Keal Harry and Chase Lucas are gone, so is quarterback Mason Moran. But despite losing more than 40 seniors, the Wolves, who went 11-2 and advanced to the Division I state semifinals, return plenty of talent. Offensively, 1,000-yard rusher T.J. Green and 2015 receptions leader Kolby Taylor should keep them balanced. It remains to be seen how ready incoming junior Billy Bulger will be. He attempted just 16 passes in three appearances last season, but the 6-foot-4, 190-pound Bulger has the makeup of a more than capable replacement for Moran.
The Wolves will play in the 6A Premier Region in 2016, which will include the same five participants as last season’s section in Division I: Basha, Brophy Prep, Chandler, Hamilton and Perry.
Desert Edge
Boasting a 2015 state championship and arguably the best dual-threat quarterback in the state, Desert Edge will be among the most exciting teams in Arizona. But a lot of that is muted by the arrival of Centennial in the newly formatted 5A Division. However, the 2015 Division I state champions have a lot of question marks (see No. 1 on the list) and the Scorpions are coming off a season in which they started 1-2 and finished with 11 consecutive victories, including a 29-27 triumph over top-seeded Paradise Valley. Back for Rich Wellbrock and Desert Edge is all-world quarterback Tehran Thomas, who scored 28 touchdowns on the ground and threw for another 17 to just four interceptions last season. The incoming senior sets everything up with his feet, but has been working all summer to improve his footwork as a passer. But Thomas is not the only option on the ground. The Scorpions also have junior Rocky Perez (1,040 yards) and Roshaun Johnson (688 yards), meaning between Thomas, Perez and Johnson they are returning more than 3,500 yards on the ground.
Desert Edge shifts from Division III to 5A and will play in the Desert West Region along with Lake Havasu, Verrado, Deer Valley, Barry Goldwater and Agua Fria. Verrado, Goldwater and Agua Fria will make the jump with Desert Edge, while Lake Havasu is moving from Division IV and Deer Valley from Division II.
Sunrise Mountain
Fifty points was essentially the barometer for the Mustangs in 2015. They topped the half-century mark in each of their first 11 games before losing to Verrado, 41-21, in the second round of the Division IV playoffs. Entering the new season, Sunrise Mountain could very well be one of the top-scoring teams in the state again. Senior quarterback Chase Cord is back, coming off a 3,000-yard campaign.
The seemingly endlessly shifting divisions likely will not impact the Mustangs’ performance because they are playing at what amounts to the same division as a year ago. They will be aligned with Cactus, Greenway, Metro Tech, Moon Valley and Peoria in the West Valley Region of 4A.
Skyline
The move to 6A for Skyline could prove challenging. They have long thrived in Division II and are coming off an undefeated regular season that resulted in a No. 1 power ranking spot entering the playoffs. Their run ended with a semifinal loss to Marcos de Niza. Quarterback T.J. Duarte, a 6-foot-1 senior, will help make the transition to 6A easier. He is an accurate passer who can make plays with his feet (four games of 60-plus yards rushing). Kaleb Hardin is back and will be the primary running back a year removed from sharing carries with Amarii Keyes. Linebacker Jacob Scott, who had 109 tackles in 2015, returns for a defense that helped carry the Coyotes to a perfect regular season.
Skyline will take part in 6A’s East Valley Region and are expected to compete for the title along with Mesa Mountain View, Dobson, Mesa, Westwood, and Red Mountain.
Basha
The Bears were 4-7 and were eliminated from the postseason by eventual champion Centennial in the first round of the playoffs, but 2016 could be quite a rebound. Ryan Kelley is in his final year, and is already locked in at Arizona State. Terrell Brown, who had 82 catches and 16 touchdowns, is back. The defense returns three of its top six tacklers from 2015, including linebacker Devan Scanlon, and while they certainly will not be amongst the state leaders in fewest points allowed, the defense will be good enough to keep pace with Kelley, Brown and Co. on the other side of the ball.
Basha will compete for the Premier Region of 6A with defending section champion Chandler as well as Hamilton.
Hamilton
A perennial contender, the Huskies’ season will likely come down to which of their inexperienced quarterbacks take the reins. Senior Austin Bell and junior Tyler Shough have neither seen much after backing up Travis Lockhart in 2015. They will also be charged with replacing their leading rusher and receiver as well as competing in the aforementioned Premier Region, which will likely live up to its name. Still, the Huskies seem to always wind up near the 10-win mark, including going 10-2 in 2015, winning a section crown, and losing to Centennial in round two of the playoffs.
The Huskies finished second in their section last season and it returns intact with Basha, Brophy Prep, Chandler, Hamilton and Perry playing in the newly named Premier Region.
Mountain Pointe
In 2015, the Pride finished ranked fourth in the state and within the nation’s top 100 teams, according to MaxPreps. Norris Vaughan’s squad went 12-1 and lost to Centennial, 31-21, in the state semifinals. Dual threat quarterback Jack Smith is gone as is leading rusher Mac Blount. With new pieces around him on offense, receiver Jack Brooks may be asked to do a lot. Defensively, though Mountain Pointe’s Isaac Pola-mao and junior Shomari Hayes could help make up for any rough patches from the offense.
The Pride will play in the 6A Central Region, which underwent significant changes. The AIA shifted Corona del Sol and Gilbert in and removed Red Mountain and Mountain View (both of whom remain in 6A but will compete in the East Valley Region). From a competition standpoint, the Central Region figures to be one of 6A’s most challenging groupings.
Desert Ridge
Mesa’s Desert Ridge went 11-3 in 2015 and spent most of the year ranked among the top five teams in the state. Their season was punctuated with a 24-21 semifinal victory over Chandler after the Wolves racked up 60 points in a regular season blowout of the Jaguars. A week later, they lost to Centennial in the title game, but there is no question their run through the playoffs made a lasting mark. In 2016, they will be one of another large contingent of teams with a returner at quarterback. C.J. Fowler comes back along with Jathan Tenorio, their leading rusher, and superstar receiver Jalen Harris. Additionally, their top two tacklers and top two in interceptions return to a defense that allowed two touchdowns or fewer six times after the regular-season debacle against Chandler.
The Jaguars are in 6A’s Central Division along with Mountain Pointe, mentioned above.
Saguaro
If the most talented team won the state title every year, Saguaro should be penciled in as the winner already. They arguably are the best team in the state regardless of affiliation or division and are seeking their ninth title in 11 years. They play Gardena Serra High (California) and Valor Christian (Colorado) early in the schedule, which could result in at least one loss, but will likely run the table in Arizona and emerge, once again, as the top team entering the postseason. As of now they have dual-threat quarterback Max Massingale, a 2,000-yard rusher (Stone Matthews), a tight end, in Jared Poplawski, headed to Arizona State, a massive offensive line, a middle linebacker (Carson Nugent) with 109 tackles a year ago, stud pass-rusher Brandon Boyce, and star safety Kaelib Jarrell.
The Sabercats will play in the 4A Division’s Skyline Region, meaning after winning the Division II title in 2015 and scoring no fewer than 37 points in each of their four postseason games, they actually were dropped down to what would have amounted to Division III a year ago. Of course, Marcos de Niza with new head coach Paul Moro could sneak into the picture and face Saguaro again in the title game.
Centennial
They are the defending Division I champions. They are now playing in the 5A Division. Centennial enters the season with a combination of the most pressure and perhaps the easiest path to a second title. Something will have to give. Having to replace key starters along the offensive line, at quarterback, and in the backfield, will be fascinating. There will be a chance to ease into that due to the divisional change, but that doesn’t mean the pieces will fall into place, especially right away. While there are plenty of teams, including Saguaro, that could be better overall, Centennial will still contend. How they do it, will make their season worth following from start to finish.
Centennial will move from Division I to 5A’s West Valley Region. The new region will also include Liberty, Northwest Christian, Peoria, Raymond S. Kellis, and Sunrise Mountain.
