Friday Night Notebook: Things are getting real

Jordan Spurgeon

1 month ago

Things are getting real as the weather cools off and high school football heats up.

6A’s last unbeaten team

Raise your hand if you said before the season that Red Mountain would be the last unbeaten team in 6A.

No one’s hands are raised.

Following a 16-14 win over ALA Queen Creek, that is the case.

Big win for @RedMtnFootball vs ALA QC. Gallegos w the game winner with 15 sec left. pic.twitter.com/XYsZULzxyr

— Red Mtn Athletics (@RMAthletics) October 19, 2024

Kyle Enders has built this team’s foundation on defense for years. The play makers all over the field are fun to watch. Players like linebacker Jameson Wade have been starting for three plus seasons now. The swagger this team plays with is just DIFFERENT.

Watching the game and hearing Jody Jackson on the call is also fun to watch.

Red Mountain will be in the Open Division as a top 3 seed. Don’t count them out against anybody, including Liberty and Basha who many say are the two best teams in Arizona.

Huskies looking like best in 5A?

I feel like Horizon high school isn’t talked about enough, but all the Huskies do is win.

A 21-10 victory over Desert Mountain puts the Huskies at 6-1 on the season. The lone loss was a shootout with Pinnacle.

Tyson Ditmore has done a great job at putting the his players in positions to succeed. Next week they host Higley, who isn’t as invincible as we all once thought. The Knights beat Notre Dame Prep 34-0 tonight, so any chinks in the armor may have been buffed out. That may be the best game of the week with a lot on the line next Friday night…

If Marana goes unbeaten, they will likely end up in the Open Division. So 5A is wide open and Horizon should be the favorites to win it all.

No. 1 @MaranaFB remains undefeated at 8-0 after 29-7 victory at Cienega 🔥@Sports360AZ #AZHSFB pic.twitter.com/UNpqLENzWb

— Eliav Gabay (@eliavgabay) October 19, 2024

Is Centennial out of the playoffs?

This is not a question any of us thought would be asked at this point, but after a 31-21 loss to Queen Creek, Richard Taylor’s team is 2-5.

Queen Creek 2️⃣4️⃣
Centennial 7️⃣
6:27 3Q

Queen Creek Touchdown!!!#Clemson QB commit Tait Reynolds finds #UCLA TE commit Dylan Simms for the 28 yard score!! pic.twitter.com/DfoYvbd0zh

— Just Chilly (@JUSTCHILLY) October 19, 2024

Now all five losses are quality losses to top teams in the state. And because at least six teams in 6A will play in the Open playoffs, a three or four win season may be enough.

Chaparral, Pinnacle, and Liberty are the Coyotes remaining foes.

The lesson we’re seeing play out is: the grass isn’t always greener. Transfers coming in mass can lead to all sorts of issues, even with elite coaching.