Wranglers (10-0) host Ganado Friday

By Kevin Cloe, Publisher

Wrangler defensive end Dallas Mills (5) pulls the South Ridge quarterback’s jersey over his head to bring him down - with the help of Dustin Denmark - for a 12-yard loss in the Wranglers’ 65-0 victory Friday night.

For a couple of days last week, it looked like Wickenburg High School’s football team was going to face an old nemesis in the first round of the state playoffs.

The undefeated Wranglers (10-0), ranked No. 2 in Arizona’s 3A Division after winning their second consecutive West Region title, could have possibly faced former West Region foe Fountain Hills this Friday night (Nov. 2) to start the 16-team post-season showdown.

“They aren’t really a No. 15 (seeded) team,” noted Wrangler Coach Norris Vaughan Friday night (Oct. 26) after his squad thumped visiting South Ridge, 65-0, in the regular season finale. “They (Fountain Hills) had some players hurt early in the season and they lost some games then, but they are much better now. This isn’t supposed to happen under this system (Arizona Interscholastic Association Power Points).”

Fountain Hills is the only team to defeat Wickenburg in the regular season during the past three years … but as it turned out, the Falcons dropped from No. 15 to No. 16 in the playoff seedings when Ganado upset Holbrook Friday night to claim a share of second place in the North Region standings. Ganado’s No. 15 ranking in Power Points was better than the North’s previous third-place team Tuba City’s No. 20 and Fountain Hill’s No. 16.

So now Ganado, which had been fourth in the North standings and didn’t appear to qualify for the state playoffs before upending Holbrook, is in the No. 15 playoff slot and earned the right to face the No. 2 Wranglers at 7 p.m. this Friday night on Wickenburg’s Ralph Moran Field. Fountain Hills, meanwhile, moved from the frying pan to the fire - now facing No. 1-ranked and unbeaten Blue Ridge in the first round.

Ganado is more like a No. 15-seeded team. The Hornets finished the regular season with a 5-5 record and a 4-2 mark in the weak North Region. During the season, they dropped a 42-6 non-region decision to River Valley, a team the Wranglers shut out 27-0 during its Homecoming downpour.

Ganado’s defense appears particularly vulnerable against the run - giving up 425 yards rushing to River Valley’s tandem of Brandon Langston (295) and Josh Honaker (135) - and allowing opponents an average 28 points per game this season.

So Wickenburg’s Ferocious Foursome of Kellen Henderson (85 yards per game), Sheldon Murphy (68), Enrique Bernal (58) and Chance Thompson (47) that averages 300 yards per outing should have a field day against the Hornets.

But the Wranglers also will mix in a little passing, with senior quarterback Drew Vaughan averaging 9 completions in 15 attempts and 141 yards per game. Vaughan, the Wranglers’ third-year starting quarterback, was the 3A West’s leading passer this season … and his fifth-place standing in the state’s 3A rankings is misleading; his three interceptions in the Wranglers’ run-first/pass-second offensive strategy is the third fewest in the entire state (5A through 1A) for quarterbacks with 149 or more pass attempts. So his accuracy and leadership weigh

more heavily in the team’s success than his statistics.

Vaughan’s favorite target is senior Paul Wells, who was the West Region’s top receiver this season and the 3A Division’s No. 2 pass-catcher with an average of four catches for 79 yards per game.

Then there’s Wickenburg’s massive offensive line consisting of center Miguel Bernal, guards Mike Miller and Alex Napoles and tackles Blake Crissman (2006 all-stater) and Benito Molina. Tight ends Dallas Mills and Aaron Marsh also play key roles in blocking schemes and an occasional pass play.

The most consistent part of Wickenburg’s success this season has been its defense - led by linebackers Henderson (10 tackles per game), Dustin Denmark (12), Thompson (7) and Jace Blackwell; defensive ends Mills (seven sacks and averaging six tackles) and Marsh (seven and two); linemen Cory Carr (averaging six tackles), Miller, Crissman and Matt Deacon; and defensive backs Wells, Murphy and Jordan Pollei - who have a combined total of five interceptions this season.

If the Wranglers win (as expected) Friday night, their quarterfinal opponent will be either Round Valley from the rugged East Region or fellow West competitor Chino Valley.

Wickenburg’s finale in the 2007 regular season was somewhat anti-climactic.

Even though it was no contest, Coach Vaughan believes his Wranglers’ 65-0 victory against visiting South Ridge Friday was better than keeping the date open before the start of the state playoffs.

“When you don’t play a game for a week, practices that week usually aren’t very good,” he explained. “We had a good week of practice.”

And his undefeated Wranglers demonstrated Friday night that they are ready for the playoffs. They led 41-0 after one quarter -- scoring four touchdowns halfway through that period -- and 62-0 at halftime.

The young Mavericks from the new charter school competing in football for the first time as an independent were scheduled by Vaughan to fill in a bye (open date) in his team’s West Region schedule. South Ridge, 0-7 for the season and losing by an average score of 55-7 with only 16 players on the team, had not yet faced a team of Wickenburg’s calibre.

So not only did Coach Vaughan enjoy a good week of practice, he also gave many of his second- and third-string players some game time. The usual Wrangler starters were pulled with two minutes to play in the first half and throughout the second half.

Vaughan completed all eight of his pass attempts for 126 yards and four touchdowns while nine different ball carriers accumulated 265 yards on the ground.

South Ridge.....0.....0.....0.....0 -- 0

Wickenburg...41....21.....3.....0 -- 65

W -- Mills 9 pass from Vaughan (Sievert kick) 10:16

W -- Thompson 5 run (Sievert kick) 8:43

W -- Pollei 28 pass interception (Kick wide) 8:32

W -- Murphy 9 pass from Vaughan (Sievert kick) 5:54

W -- Wells 30 pass from Vaughan (Sievert kick) 2:47

W -- Murphy 46 run (Sievert kick) 0:35

W -- Mills 11 pass from Vaughan (Kick wide) 8:58

W -- Thompson 2 run (Mills run) 7:08

W -- Moore 26 pass from Hughes (Hayes kick) 1:46

W -- Hayes 20 FG 6:13

Wickenburg Statistics:

Rushing - Murphy 3-71, Harmon 3-51, Harris 4-34, Henderson 2-31, Macias 4-25, Rosas 4-22, Prigge 2-16, Vaughan 1-8, Thompson 2-7.

Passing - Vaughan 8-8-0-126, Hughes 2-4-0-33.

Receiving - Wells 3-78, Moore 2-33, Mills 2-20, Prigge 1-10, Murphy 1-9, Henderson 1-9.

Category Wick SR

Offensive Plays 39 49

Rushing (No.-Yards) 25-265 31-52

Passing Yards 159 53

Passes (Comp-Att-Int) 10-12-0 4-9-2

Total Yards 424 105

First Downs 18 6

Turnovers (Fumb-Int) 1 (1-0) 4 (2-2)

Penalties (No.-Yards) 5-35 0-0

Posessions (Score-Punts) 12 (9-1) 13 (0-8)

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