2014-15-aia-football-sollenberger-azpreps-report-highres

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By Don Ketchum, <strong>aia</strong>365.comNo. 1 SHOW LOW. Coach Randy Ricedorffprobably doesn’t have any superstarsamong his group, but the players work extremelywell together as the Cougars have inthe seven years under his watch. Ricedorffis quick to give credit to his assistants – “Wehave a great staff committed to play for achampionship.’’ As always, the true measuringstick will be games against rival LakesideBlue Ridge and Snowflake.Division IV Preseason RankingsNo. 2 LAKESIDE BLUE RIDGE. Give JakeBelshe credit. He isn’t afraid to follow in thefootsteps of an Arizona coaching legend –Paul Moro. Belshe also can draw on theknowledge of his former high schoolcoaches – Tim Slade (Round Valley) andMike Morgan (St. Johns), as well as his collegecoach at UTEP, Mike Price. The Yellowjackets alwaysseem to find a way to win.The Yellowjackets of Blue Ridge captured the 2013 AIA Division IV trophy,thanks to a hard-fought 17-7 win over River Valley (photo by DuaneMatsen/maxpreps.com).trick for Early will be to get a consistent effort on a weeklybasis.No. 3 CHANDLER SETON CATHOLIC. It wouldn’t be asurprise to see coach Rex Bowser’s Sentinels in the titlegame – after all, they defeated Blue Ridge for the crown in2012. Bowser likes his receivers, running backs and secondary,but he needs to develop a quarterback and a lineto block for him.No. 4 SNOWFLAKE. Could this be the year that the Lobosupstage Show Low and Blue Ridge? Veteran coach RonTenney just might have the people to do it. This should beone of the most unified groups that Tenney has had, andthey are tough in the trenches. The team needs a reliablequarterback and a few sure-handed passing targets.No. 5 RIVER VALLEY. Coach Terry Staggs stepped downin May to be closer to family out of state after leading theteam to the title game. Mark Ruckle and Paul Duchaineauwill share the coaching duties, and the cupboard shouldnot be bare, with the return of many of the players whohelped put the team on the map.No. 6 GOODYEAR ESTRELLA FOOTHILLS. CoachLamar Early appears to have good size up front and one ofthe state’s top young running backs in Joe Logan, whoemerged as a major force in 2013 as a sophomore. TheNo. 7 COOLIDGE. The Bears have 27 players who wereunderclassmen last season from a team that finished 10-2,so that should be a good starting point for coach CayleFerguson. Coolidge was the No. 5 seed in the state tournament.No. 8 WINSLOW. The Bulldogs don’t always have a lot ofsize, but few teams can match them for toughness. Theyfinished a respectable 8-4 last season under coach B.J.Little and have a core of 17 players returning, many ofwhom will be sophomores. Winslow was the No. 7 seedlast season.No. 9 SAHUARITA. Eight offensive starters and six defensivestarters are back for coach David Rodriguez. TheMustangs likely will have to go through Safford in order toset themselves up for a playoff run. The chances of makingthat happen will get better if they can discover somedepth up front.No. 10 FOUNTAIN HILLS. Coach Jim Fairfield has put in alot of hard work in his 22 years leading the program, andperhaps this will be the year when his athletes can raisetheir play to another level. Putting together a consistentdefense will be one of the keys for Fairfield and his staff.page 34
Football Division IV PreviewBy Don Ketchum, <strong>aia</strong>365.comSECTION IMonument Valley: Coach Bryan Begay has built a goodprogram on the Navajo reservation in northeast Arizona,but he needs more consistency over the course of the entireseason. The Mustangs lost two key players – QBRedmond Delmar to graduation and leading tackler/MLBTrevon Holiday as a transfer to Monument Valley, Utah.The Mustangs will be young and need to develop their offense.Begay’s top players are QB Joshua Young, RBJerron Bitloy, WR Xavier Hunt, DT-OG Arick Young (threeyearstarter) and NT Rivers Jones.Page: Coach Jeff Wheatley’s Sand Devils have a good nucleusof 25 returning lettermen. They run the ball well, butcould use some balance. Expected to play key roles areRB Jason Moore, RB Michael Yates Bauer, QB AndrewRunyan and LB Kordell Chewing.SECTION IIPalo Verde: The Titans have had a long, strong traditionbut have fallen on hard times of late due in large part todwindling numbers. New coach Laurence Ruhf is ready toturn things around. “We have a great core group of kids,’’he said. “We are fast but inexperienced. If we find depth,we could be an easy pick for the playoffs.’’ The top playersare OL/LB Anthony Baker, RB/DT Tyre Tamplin, RB/DBBradley Rudder, RB/DB Tommy Grijalva and OL/DEAnthony Cummings.Rio Rico: New coach David Rastovski takes over a youngteam (14 returning lettermen). The team’s top player is QBSean Fanning.Safford: The Bulldogs always seem to have a competitiveprogram and this fall should be no different – if they candevelop a defense after losing eight starters. CoachMichael Alba lists his top players as QB Taylor Shurtz,WR/DB/KR David Borquez, LB Weston Wiltbank, OLJawon Mathis and RB Robert Lopez.Sahuarita: David Rodriguez has posted a 24-9 record inthree seasons as coach of the Mustangs, and he can buildon that this season with another strong team. In 6-foot-5,340-pound Eugene Santa Cruz, the Mustangs have one ofthe best two-way linemen in Division IV.Santa Rita: First-year coach Cody House has seenenough of his players already that he can say, “We haveall the intangibles to be competitive in our conference (section).’’Look for these players to make an impact: RB/LBMatt McAdams, OL/DL/TE Joseph Uselton, QB PeytonKendrick and WR/DB Mikey Patrick.page 35Walden Grove: The team had no seniors in 2013, but figuresto be older and wiser under third-year coach ChrisSargent. The top players (positions not listed by coach)are Izzy Calvillo, Kris Moody and Calvin Brown.SECTION IIIEstrella Foothills: Coach Lamar Early is optimistic abouthis team’s chances and says he has a cohesive group.The Wolves’ top players are junior RB Joe Logan, RB/DBBrandon Leon, QB/DB Jared Fleming, OL/DL Tyler Adams,WR/LB Mark Garcia, WR/DB Marcus Young, WR/DB KylanKnox, WR/DB Ryan Parrish and OL/DL Kevin Williams.Glendale: Second-year coach Brian Bowman lists speedand athleticism as his team’s strong points, and depth as apotential stumbling block. The Cardinals’ top players areWR/OLB Luis Mejia, WR Byron Bolden and DB SelemaniBaurani.Parker: Coach Jeston Lotts and his Broncs might be thesurprise team of the section and could challenge RiverValley and Estrella Foothills for supremacy. Lotts’ leadingplayers are WB/LB Spencer Moore, WB/LB C.J. Markel,
Page 5: By Jose Garcia, aia365.comFollowing
Page 8: Chandler’s Turn at D-I Title May
Page 11 and 12: Football Division I PreviewBy Les W
Page 13 and 14: need to have more success in sectio
Page 15 and 16: Pinnacle’s Brian Lewerke should b
Page 18 and 19: Salpointe Aims at D-II Repeat With
Page 20 and 21: By Les Willsey, aia365.comFootball
Page 23 and 24: yards and 12 TDs last year and led
Page 25 and 26: ated mostly out of the wing-T last
Page 27 and 28: Football Division II PreviewParadis
Page 29 and 30: Saguaro Looking for Another Title i
Page 31 and 32: Football Division III PreviewBy Don
Page 33 and 34: Football Division III Previewplayer
Page 35: Show Low No. 1 Pick in D-IVShow Low
Page 39 and 40: Football Division IV PreviewGlobe:
Page 41 and 42: By Jose Garcia, aia365.comNo. 1 Yum
Page 43 and 44: Football Division V Preview(From L
Page 45 and 46: Football Division V Previewtook a b
Page 47 and 48: By Jose Garcia, aia365.comNo. 1 Bag
Page 49 and 50: Football Division VI PreviewBagdad:
Page 51 and 52: 2013 Div. II State Championship Bra
Page 53 and 54: 2013 Div. IV State Championship Bra
Page 55: 2013 Div. VI State Championship Bra

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