Roads were flooded, fields were sopping wet. But at the end of the day, football was played in most parts of Arizona.
It’s hard to fathom that we’re already at the midway point of the regular season for big schools. Small schools reached that point last week.
Now it’s crunch time. The new playoff format allows for more teams to get a shot at postseason play. That means winning as many games as possible down the stretch is vital for some of those with tough schedules or who just flat out struggled in the first half of the season.
Some teams prevailed in Week 5. Others dug themselves into a deeper hole.
Here’s a look at some of the top headlines from Week 5 of the Arizona high school football season.
Turn back the clocks to 1984 in Tolleson
Take note 76ers fans, this is what truly happens when you trust the process.
Rich Wellbrock has patiently built his Tolleson football program the last four-and-a-half seasons. He suffered through mass transfers, like any school in that part of the Valley with power houses around them. But one constant has stayed, Rico Blassingame.
The talented wideout has become the heart and soul of the Wolverine team. And finally it appears to be paying off.
For the first time since 1984, Tolleson is 5-0 to start the season. Sure, that simply won’t be good enough for Wellbrock or his team. They want a sniff of the postseason. But it’s a great accomplishment nonetheless.
Scoreless in San Tan Valley
Combs is on another level this season. The Coyotes offense is averaging over 43 points per game this season, with the outlier being a 2-0 win over Paradise Honors last week.
But an even more impressive stat is the average number of points the Combs defense is giving up per game. Zero.
Through five games no team has scored a point on the Coyotes. They’re quickly moving up the ranks in the Arizona Varsity Statewide Media Poll, and they’ll continue to do so with more impressive blowout wins.
Gila Ridge hitting stride at right time
Don’t look now, the Gila Ridge Hawks are 4-1 with wins over Northwest Christian and no St. Mary’s after the Hawks came up to the Valley and knocked off the previously undefeated Knights.
Now entering region play, Gila Ridge looks like the easy favorite. The Hawks are four wins away from matching 2019 as the best regular season in program history.
The big 3 continue to pour it on
Broken record, right? We’ll keep this one short.
Basha, Liberty and Hamilton continue to separate themselves in the 6A Conference. The Bears knocked off Queen Creek 35-13 in Week 5, while Liberty handed Pinnacle its first loss in a 39-8 bludgeoning.
And speaking of hard blows to the head, Hamilton continues to 50-piece teams left and right. The latest victims were the Centennial Coyotes, who couldn’t keep up with the Huskies high-powered offense in a 50-10 loss. That’s now five games Hamilton has scored 50 or more points.
Circle your calendars, folks. Oct. 24 Hamilton faces Basha.
A breath of fresh air for the Hawks
While not an end all be all win by any means, the Highland Hawks can finally let out a sigh of relief as they picked up their first win of the season over Saguaro, 28-21.
The Hawks have had a tough schedule in the opening half of the season, but finally got it done against a Sabercat team that is showing improvement every week.
The Hawks scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to knock off Saguaro. Now they set their sights on the back-half of the season that includes a much-needed bye week. Highland hasn’t had a losing season since 2011, when yours truly was a senior on the team.
Other notables
- Salpointe Catholic picks up big win in Queen Creek; ALA QC falls to 0-5 for first time ever
- Mountain View dominates Higley as the Knights now fall to 2-2
- The duo of Keshawn Barkus and Elliot Reed combined for 420 rushing yards and five touchdowns in Westwood’s win over Desert Vista
- Thatcher knocks off Pusch Ridge to create chaos in the 3A media poll
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