Eric Sorenson
Players, coaches, parents, media and fans of this great sport here in Arizona wear it like a badge of honor.
The “it” I’m referring to is the steady rise we’ve seen in high school football talent, and subsequent recruiting, specifically here in the Valley.
Hundreds of college coaches, from all levels, flocked to Phoenix and the surrounding areas this month, jumping from one spring showcase to another to get an up close, in-person, look at our next wave of college-bound athletes.
No one can deny the in-roads which have been made, positioning ourselves as one of the top high school football states in the country over the past decade.
The question “Zone Read” is posing this week is, can Arizona take that next leap into the elite heavyweight class with California, Texas, Florida, Georgia, and others?
If so, how?
If not, why not?
We reached out to a few current, and former, in-state coaches, to get their thoughts on just how high State 48 can climb.
Salaries & Staffs
Few coaches can bring the full-circle high school and college perspective to this conversation quite like Donnie Yantis.
The 54-year-old was the head coach at Glendale High and his alma mater, Paradise Valley, before taking the same job at Arizona Christian University. Following his time at his next stop, Arizona State, as tight ends coach, Yantis moved to take over Colorado’s top prep program, Valor Christian, before moving to Dallas-Fort Worth where he now leads Prestonwood Christian Academy in Plano, Texas.
The first road block for Arizona, simply put, it’s really all about the money.
“The top states pay their staffs well,” Yantis explained. “Texas, Georgia, Ohio, Oklahoma all pay their coaches well. In the UIL [University Interscholastic League] here in Texas, every coach on staff must be a certified teacher and are all at the school full-time to coach.
“The number of coaches I have full-time here in Texas is so much greater than I had in Colorado and Arizona. The key is that’s the norm for schools in those states.”
Yantis has a full-time coaching staff of 10 at Prestonwood, compared to his max of seven in Arizona, and just three in Colorado.
He also believes in Arizona, the sheer numbers simply don’t add up.
“Being able to recruit much of the west coast including Arizona, Texas, California, Colorado, Washington, Nevada, I was able to see the student-athletes in many of those states,” Yantis said. “I just think Arizona doesn’t have the numbers that many of the top states have.
“California, Texas, and Washington have significantly more numbers than Arizona.”
Also, everything really is bigger in Texas.
“Coaching in Texas and recruiting in Texas, the numbers are astronomical here with talent and the number of schools,” he noted.
Let the Pads Pop
The whispers seem to get a little louder every year.
Is it time to allow pads in spring ball?
Shadow Ridge head coach Mike Zdebski has been a consistent proponent and believes if done correctly, and most importantly, safely, it would greatly benefit our national recruiting platform and footprint.
“To take the next step, we have to have padded spring practices like Texas, Georgia, Alabama, and Florida,” the 2-time Michigan high school state championship coach explained. “College coaches do not have to project what a player will do in live situations.”
Strapping on the pads in the off-season would offer benefits, like opportunities to reinforce, and/or teach, proper tackling and blocking techniques, which Zdebski feels helps both coaches and players.
“Padded spring practices offer several advantages, primarily focusing on player development and coaching effectiveness” he continued. “They provide a structured period for players to build strength and conditioning, practice game-specific skills, and learn new schemes, all while reducing the risk of injury.”
The Gap is Closing
Rick Garretson has seen it first-hand.
The former Chandler High head coach led the Wolves to Open Division Championships in 2019 and 2020, and was also on staffs that won state titles in 2014, 2016, 2017, and 2018.
Before his time with the Wolves, he served as the offensive coordinator at one of the west coast’s most dominant programs, Servite High School in Anaheim, California, for 16 seasons.
“Arizona high school football has positioned itself as a college football destination state due to the success of players in both college and the NFL,” said Garretson, who retired last November. “While California has a much larger population base and the Trinity League [the best high school football league in America the last four years], Arizona is a recruiting machine based on the quality of coaches, facilities, competition, and year-round training connected to the desert climate.”
He also noted the success of schools like Chandler, Saguaro, Hamilton, Centennial, Basha, Tucson Salpointe and others against national competition has helped raise Arizona’s status as one of America’s best.
Garretson believes it’s more about the quality and less about the quantity when comparing us to far more heavily high school football populated states like California, Texas, and Florida.
“Arizona can get to the top five or six [states] as long as it’s based on production at the collegiate level and not based on state population numbers,” he explained. “Larger states have an advantage with that thought process. I’ll take the skill set and football knowledge of Arizona kids over states like Ohio, Michigan, Alabama, and Oklahoma.
“It’s a production-based industry.”
Lack of Resources
Dana Zupke has seen everything over the past 22 seasons as Pinnacle High in north Phoenix.
He’s coached several high-level college players, including a handful of elite quarterbacks (Brian Lewerke, Spencer Rattler, JD Johnson, Devon Dampier, and most recently, Wyatt Horton), witnessed the Valley’s population swell, and hosted nearly every big-time college coach along the way.
While Arizona’s high school football growth is undeniable, he believes too many factors limit our ability to reach the “next level” of recruiting, starting by doubling down on Yantis’ biggest point.
“Arizona, as a whole, simply doesn’t invest in high school football like [the top states],” Zupke noted. “If you look at coaches’ pay, lack of padded spring practice, and just an overall lack of financial support, there’s just not the emphasis that other states have. Certain districts do as well as some private/charter schools, but most do not.
“California public schools are similar, but the private school leagues have multiple destination schools that are national powerhouses.”
Zupke also believes Arizona’s geographic location, and lack of in-state college football opportunities, stunts the growth.
“If you look at [the top recruiting states], they have many more opportunities in-state [to play in college], as well as a lot of regional opportunities.”
