Any doubts that existed on the Eagles of American Leadership Academy, Gilbert North being a legitimate contender for the 5A Conference title were erased on Friday night.
ALA-Gilbert North (4-0 #4 in 5A) took down most people’s preseason favorite, Desert Edge (3-1, #2 in 5A), 33-30, in Goodyear in a battle of top-four teams in the conference. It was a back-and-forth contest that featured six lead changes. The win will almost surely put a target on the Eagles for future opponents, and also put them on list of teams that have a chance to bring home a gold ball in December.
The eventual game-winning touchdown was scored by ALA-Gilbert North receiver Cam Shepard on a five-yard pass from Ben Livingston with six minutes left to play. It was the end of a long 80-yard drive that lasted more than six minutes and was aided by some untimely Scorpion penalties.
Desert Edge had a chance to retake the lead on its ensuing possession. The Scorpions moved the ball 43 yards from its own 23-yard line, but were stopped on downs following a pass play on fourth-and-three from the ALAGN 34-yard line. The Eagles were then able to drain the remaining 3:25 on the clock by gaining a couple first downs and burning the home team’s timeouts to spoil Homecoming at Desert Edge.
“Our coordinators are great coaches,” ALA-Gilbert North Head Coach Ty Detmer said. “We felt like we had a good plan for what we were going to see. Our offensive line just kind of handled the line of scrimmage and we were able to pound it.”
5 players that stood out
ALA-Gilbert North QB Ben Livingston
The 6-1, 195-pound signal caller is in his second season as the Eagles’ starter and finished the game on a roll with nine straight completions. On the night, Livingston was 22-of-27 for 218 yards and three touchdowns. Those TDs went to three different receivers. He kept the chains constantly moving (22 first downs). While many of the passes were shorter ones, Livingston came through when the team needed him. Trailing 16-10 midway through the second quarter, he faced a third-and-23 and not only converted it, but found Isaac Massey for a 35-yard touchdown to give the Eagles a halftime lead. Livingston sports a 4.30 GPA and is committed to Brown University of the Ivy League.
ALA-Gilbert North RB/S Weston Powell
The senior is not only a two-way player, but also punts and returns kickoffs. Powell scored two touchdowns – one receiving and one rushing – to give him a total of 10 for the season. In the first quarter, he caught a short pass near the sideline and turned it on for a 16-yard score for the first points of the game. Later, he ripped off a 32-yard run, which set up a nine-yard touchdown run (also from Powell). He was featured in both the run game (11 carries, 75 yards) and in the pass game (six catches, 75 yards). Powell did hobble off the field midway through the fourth quarter, but being the Ironman he is, he was not only back in the game, but picking up a first down to secure the victory.
ALA-Gilbert North WR/S Isaac Massey
Another two-way player! The senior (pictured at the top of the article) had a pair of interceptions and a touchdown reception. When asked which one of those he preferred, it was the picks because they stop the opponents’ drive and momentum. Massey was the favorite target of Livingston and had 10 catches for 102 yards. He has Division I offers from five schools (Eastern Washington, Nevada, Oregon State, Portland State, and Tarleton State). Games like this certainly show why he has that college attention. Massey was the co-region Player of the Year for the 5A San Tan Region in 2025 and looked like the best player on the field in this one.
Desert Edge QB Blake Roskopf
The senior quarterback for the Scorpions suffered a bit of bad luck with a couple dropped passes. However, he was able to get the new Air Raid offense going with a pair of deep strikes. One was delivered to Hajj Brown for 80 yards and another to Zerek Sidney for 50. Roskopf (6-5, 235) and Sidney are both Washington commits. The emphasis was on the pass for DEHS as they called 25 pass plays compared to just 10 runs (one of which was a QB sack). His two touchdown tosses give him 14 for the season and 70 for his career as a three-year starter for Desert Edge.
Desert Edge WR Hajj Brown
The 5-11, 185-pound junior joined the Scorpions last year after transferring from Centennial (and having to sit five games). Getting to play from Game 1 this season, Brown has been ready and scored a touchdown in each game. In this one, he showed his speed after catching a long pass that turned into an 80-yard score. It resulted in his first 100-yard game of his career. Desert Edge is waiting for its transfer kicker to become eligible, so it went for two on all four of its touchdowns (converting three) and one of those was a successful reception by Brown. A track athlete, Brown ran an 11.23 in the 100 meters last year at the Black Hawk Classic in Gilbert. He holds a Division I offer from UTEP.
5 (non-scoring) plays that made a difference
- Is it possible to have a play that makes a difference 30 minutes before kickoff? Well, we had that. Desert Edge was assessed a taunting penalty (a sign of many flags to come for both sides) when ALA-Gilbert North took the field for warmups. Wisely, when the Eagles won the coin toss they opted for the ball instead of deferring. That forced Desert Edge to kick off from its own 25. Both teams went three-and-out on their opening possessions, but the field position advantage was still tilted towards the visitors. On its second drive, ALAGN only had to go 46 yards for the game’s first touchdown.
- Trailing 16-10 in the second quarter, ALA-Gilbert North was in danger of falling behind by two scores again. However, an interception by Isaac Massey gave the Eagles another short field (DEHS 32-yard line). ALAGN cashed that in for a touchdown – and a lead that held up to halftime.
- Trailing 26-22 late in the third quarter, Desert Edge was driving and reached the ALAGN 10-yard line. But an interception on a tipped pass once again landed in the arms of Massey to thwart the drive.
- Trailing 30-26 with just over seven minutes remaining, ALA-Gilbert North opted to go for it on fourth-and-three from the Scorpion 31-yard line. The pass was incomplete, but there were two flags. First a pass interference and then an unsportsmanlike penalty – both on Desert Edge. When the infractions were marked off (15 for PI and half the distance for the unsportsmanlike), the Eagles had it first and goal at the 8. On third down, they punched it in for the last score of the game.
- In the Scorpions’ final possession, they went from their own 23-yard line to the ALA-Gilbert North 34. With 3:25 to go, Desert Edge had to go on fourth-and-three from there. It was an incomplete pass and there were no penalty flags. Sophomore cornerback Juliyen Joe was there for the pass breakup (his fourth of the game) on the right sideline.
5 key stats
- Because it was able to move the chains (22-11 advantage in first downs), ALA-Gilbert North ran 61 plays from scrimmage compared to just 35 for Desert Edge.
- Desert Edge had only given up a total of seven points in its first three games. The Eagles were able to get four offensive touchdowns along with a field goal.
- Desert Edge averaged 7.1 yards per rushing attempt . . . But the Scorpions only attempted 10 running plays.
- ALA-Gilbert North averaged 5.2 yards per rushing attempt, and kept at it with 34 attempts, which worked itself out to 181 yards on the ground.
- The referees might be icing their arms on Saturday, because there was an astronomical amount of penalty flags thrown. 15 on ALAGN (for 174 yards) and 18 on DEHS (for 148 yards). That means we had 322 total yards walked off.
Video highlight
Special for the Arizona Republic, Anthony Perez was there to cover the game. Here’s the video from the Eagles’ final game-winning touchdown.
.@alagn_football grabs the lead yet again! Livingston connects with Cam Shepard on a 9-yard pass on a drive that was kept alive after 2 costly penalties by DE. It’s now 33-30 ALA (6:03 left in regulation) @azc_preps pic.twitter.com/sBi4yeVbze
— Anthony P. (@The_Anthony_P) September 19, 2026
Eagles 33, Scorpions 30
ALAGN. . . . 7 10 9 7 – 33
DEHS. . . . . 16 0 14 0 – 30
First Quarter
ALAGN: Weston Powell 16 yard pass from Ben Livingston (Eli Ash kick), 5:34, 7-0
DE: Hajj Brown 80 yard pass from Blake Roskopf (Zerek Sidney pass from Roskopf), 2:20, 7-8
DE: Kye Wells 23 yard fumble return (Brown pass from Roskopf), 0:47, 7-16
Second Quarter
ALAGN: Ash 21 yard FG, 9:40, 10-16
ALAGN: Isaac Massey 35 yard pass from Livingston (Ash kick), 5:12, 17-16
Third Quarter
ALAGN: Safety. Punter kicked ball out of end zone, 10:19, 19-16
DE: Sidney 50 yard pass from Roskopf (pass failed), 7:52, 19-22
ALAGN: Powell 9 yard run (Ash kick), 2:47, 26-22
DE: Kayden Smith fumble recovery in end zone (Sidney pass from Roskopf), 0:29, 26-30
Fourth Quarter
ALAGN: Cam Shepard 5 yard pass from Livingston (Ash kick), 6:03, 33-30
Team Statistics
First Downs – ALAGN: 22, DE: 11. Rushes-Yards – ALAGN: 34-181, DE: 10-71. Comp-Att-Int – ALAGN: 22-27-0, DE: 14-25-2. Passing Yards – ALAGN: 218, DE: 211. Total Yards – ALAGN: 399, DE: 282. Fumbles Lost – ALAGN: 2, DE: 0. Penalties-Yards – ALAGN: 15-174, DE: 18-148.
Individual Leaders
Passing – ALAGN: Livingston 22-27-0, 218 yards, DE: Roskopf 14-25-2, 211 yards.
Rushing – ALAGN: Powell 11-75, Skinner 15-62, DE: Brandon 7-66.
Receiving – ALAGN: Massey 10-102, Powell 6-75, Shepard 4-39, DE: H. Brown 3-105, Sidney 3-53, J. Brown 4-40.
5 people I talked to after the game
ALA-Gilbert North WR/S Isaac Massey on how his team has been able to keep the momentum: “We keep humble. We always have that drive. We lost in the semis the last two years, so we’re trying to push through that wall. This was a big game for us to get past that wall. We’ve just got to keep working.”
Desert Edge Head Coach Henri MacArthur: “We didn’t play up to the standard on either side of the ball. No positive takeaways. We play to win every game. We didn’t do a good enough job in all three phases. They played great. They deserved to win.”
ALA-Gilbert North QB Ben Livingston on how the offense was able to make plays: “We’ve got the best coaching staff in the state. They put together a great game plan. I’m really proud of the team, our O-Line, and our receivers. Defense played amazing. I’m just really excited about this group of guys. I love them to death.”
ALA-Gilbert North CB Juliyen Joe on the pass breakup to stop Desert Edge on fourth down: “I saw him roll out and try to scramble. I saw (Zerek Sidney) go up. Eyes got big. Instincts kicked in. I put my hands up, PBU.”
ALA-Gilbert North Head Coach Ty Detmer on the play of Isaac Massey: “He’s dynamic. He’s a really smart football player. When he’s got the ball in his hands, anything can happen. He understands situational football. It’s good to have him in the back end there.”
Next week
Desert Edge (3-1) will be on the road next Friday in Ahwatukee against Mountain Pointe (1-3). The Pride got dominated by defending champion (and current #1 in 5A) Desert Mountain on Friday, losing 54-0. It’s a matchup that the Scorpions won, 35-0 last year. Desert Edge had won 13 consecutive regular season games before Friday. What happened the last time they lost (Game 10 of the 2024 regular season to Verrado)? MacArthur was able to get the team to regroup and they ran the table in the 5A playoffs to a title. Can this squad do the same? What this game showed was that DEHS can’t play sloppy and undisciplined and still win against elite competition. Aside from ALA-Gilbert North, Desert Mountain, Horizon, and Millennium can be considered to be in that same category. And Canyon View, Desert View, and Campo Verde are close.
ALA-Gilbert North (4-0) will travel to Mesa to face Dobson (3-1). The Mustangs have a winning record after topping Central, 41-22 on Friday. However, those three wins have come against schools that are a combined 2-10, so this will be a big step up in competition. Of course, the Eagles will have to guard against a letdown after an emotional win over a team that the humans that make rankings placed at the top of the 5A Conference. Last year, ALAGN defeated Dobson, 45-0, so the Eagles will be expected to keep the zero in the loss column. The last time ALA-Gilbert North started the season at 4-0 was back in 2021, when the Eagles competed in the 3A Conference.
