Prep football previews: Oct. 5
Yuma Catholic at Antelope
Kickoff: 7 p.m. today
Records: Shamrocks 5-1; Rams 1-4
Last week: Yuma Catholic beat Eloy-Santa Cruz 49-8; Antelope lost to River Valley 65-7
Players to watch: Shamrocks receiver Donovan Rooks valued quality over quantity last week against Santa Cruz. The sophomore only had three catches, but they were for 92 yards and three touchdowns. Rooks has been a valuable deep threat for sophomore quarterback Jagan Cleary. ... Running back Fred Pearson leads the Antelope offense.
Yuma Catholic coach Rhett Stallworth's comments: “We just want to be crisp and come out and play sound football.”
Antelope coach Dan Gardner's comments: Gardner could not be reached by the Yuma Sun.
The lowdown: For the first time since taking over at Yuma Catholic, Stallworth won't be coaching against former Antelope coach John Blabe. After surviving a difficult early schedule, the Shamrocks face a one-win team for the second straight week. ... The Shamrocks have been dealing with a few injuries, including senior lineman Glen Justice, who will sit out for the second straight week. ... Coming into the game, Yuma Catholic is No. 5 in the Arizona Interscholastic Association Division V Power Points. ... Last season, the Shamrocks beat the Rams 49-7 at Yuma Catholic.
San Luis at Cibola
Kickoff: 7 p.m. today
Records: Sidewinders 0-6; Raiders 3-3
Last week: San Luis lost to Calipatria 47-0; Cibola lost to Corona del Sol 47-7
Players to watch: After he battled an injury for most of the season, San Luis coach Mark Shields expects big things from quarterback (and all-around athlete) Jorge Sanchez... Cibola back Jordan Mitchell was held to less than 100 yards for the second time this season last week — both games were losses for the Raiders. He still has 825 yards and 10 touchdowns.
San Luis coach Mark Shields' comments: “I'm starting to wonder if we're worrying too much about (the Sidewinders' 42-game losing streak) and not about having fun. These kids love to play.”
Cibola coach Lucky Arvizo's comments: “One of the things we've been working on and stressing on is execution. We didn't do a very good job last Friday. We were missing some assignments.”
The lowdown: The loss last week gave the Raiders' playoff chances a serious hit, as they fell to 23rd in power points. Next week, they host No. 15 Tucson-Sunnyside. ... Lucky Arvizo Jr. has completed 55 percent of his passes this year for 730 yards, seven touchdowns and four interceptions. ... Kicker Edgar Gastelum has 18 kickoffs for the Raiders this year, 16 for touchbacks. He's kicked two field goals, both in a loss two weeks ago at Brawley. ... The back-to-back losses were the first time Cibola lost consecutive games since Nov. 6 and 13, 2009, when it lost the regular season finale to Gila Ridge, then its playoff opener to Centennial 48-14. ... The Sidewinders have lost 42 straight games.
Gila Ridge at Yuma High
Kickoff: 7 p.m. today
Records: Hawks 4-2; Criminals 2-4
Last week: Gila Ridge beat El Centro-Central 20-17; Yuma High beat El Centro-Southwest 15-14
Players to watch: After missing a week due to injury, Scotty Nickerson threw for 92 yards on 6 of 13 passing for the Hawks against the Spartans. ... Arturo Vargas ran for 157 yards and the winning touchdown in the Criminals' win last week.
Gila Ridge coach Jay Denton's comments: “We have to play good, solid, consistent football. Last week we put together some good things but made a few mistakes. With Yuma, they play hard and play aggressive. The second time around is always tougher, they say.”
Yuma High coach Tom Fox's comments: “We have to play a lot better. We made a lot of silly mistakes (in the first meeting between the two schools). If we play our best game, I think we have a chance to be competitive.
The lowdown: Running back Adam Williams hasn't played since Sept. 21 for the Hawks. Denton said he wasn't sure if the junior back would return. Even without him, the Hawks are getting it done in the run game with a variety of players — six players have rushed for at least 100 yards, led by Kainoa Renaud's 215 and five touchdowns. ... The win last week over the Eagles was the Criminals' first win against a team other than Kofa or San Luis since Oct. 9, 2009, when the Criminals beat the Hawks 61-21. ... Gila Ridge won the first meeting between the schools this season 41-6 on Aug. 31.
Lake Havasu at Kofa
Kickoff: 7 p.m. today
Records: Knights 2-4; Kings 1-5
Last week: Lake Havasu lost to Youngker 43-21; Kofa lost to Blythe-Palo Verde Valley 13-12
Players to watch: Dylan Morgan has powered the Knights offense this year, rushing for 480 yards and seven touchdowns. ... Senior Haden Beaty had a big game on the ground for Kofa in the loss to Palo Verde, netting 131 yards and a touchdown.
Kofa coach Kevin Moore's comments: “We essentially played a great game last Friday. If we match the effort defensively we should be right there again this week.
The lowdown: The loss to the Yellowjackets was a heartbreaker for the Kings — who missed two extra-points in the one-point loss. The Kings turned the ball over five times in the game as well. ... After coming out with their usual run-pass balance, the Kings all but abandoned the pass in the second half. Moore said he expects the team to go back to a more balanced attack tonight. The Knights have made the playoffs the last two years but are in jeopardy of missing out for the first time since they went 4-7 in 2009. They lost their last four games that season — including to Kofa, Cibola and Gila Ridge. That 20-14 win on Oct. 16, 2009, in Yuma was the last time the Kings beat the Knights. The following week, Kofa beat Gila Ridge, its last win against anyone other than San Luis.
Harvest Prep at Mayer-Orme
Kickoff: 7 p.m. today
Records: Eagles 4-1; Warriors 1-3
Last week: Harvest Prep beat Southgate 6-0 on forfeit; Orme beat Mission Heights Prep 32-8
Players to watch: Based on game film, Harvest Prep coach Nathen Baker said Orme has a pair of strong, bruising running backs ... Senior defensive lineman Isaias Lucero had eight tackles and caused trouble in the backfield in the Eagles' last game — a 46-20 loss to Madison Prep.
Harvest Prep coach Nathen Baker's comments: “It felt like we had a bye week. But I'm not complaining, because it gave us another week to prepare for Orme.”
The lowdown: With four teams making the playoffs to the CAA 2A standings, Harvest Prep is currently in third place while Orme is in sixth. Even though the Warriors are 1-3, they only lost 24-20 to Madison Prep, which beat Harvest Prep 46-20 two weeks ago.
