Wranglers host Florence Friday in opener

Senior wide receiver Jordan Pollei (5) leaps through a Coolidge defender while attempting to haul in a pass Friday night in the Wranglers’ scrimmage against Coolidge.

Although Wickenburg High School’s football team will be an overwhelming favorite to win its season-opener at home against Florence Friday night (Aug. 29), the Wranglers will concentrate on the effectiveness of its new offense.

After losing four all-stars -- lineman Mike Miller, center Miguel Bernal, fullback Kellen Henderson and three-year starting quarterback Drew Vaughan - to graduation, Coach Norris Vaughan has shifted to an option offense that features a variety of talented returnees.

That new offense struggled somewhat against an always-quick Coolidge squad last Friday night in a pre-season scrimmage, but Vaughan wasn’t overly concerned.

“I’m not disappointed,” the fourth-year Wrangler coach noted, “especially against them (the Bears). They ran a different offense than we expected, and it confused our defense.”

Coolidge (No. 2) and Wickenburg (No. 4) are considered two of the top four teams in a pre-season poll for the statewide 3A conference. Coolidge is the defending South Region champion and state finalist last year, while Wickenburg is last year’s West Region champion and a state playoff quarterfinalist in 2007.

Each team scored one touchdown early in the scrimmage and then experimented with their offenses and defenses the rest

of the night. Coolidge’s second-string offense managed to score a second touchdown against the Wranglers’ back-up defense late in the game, but Vaughan didn’t consider that in the assessment of his team’s performance.

Early injuries Friday night to starting running back Sheldon Murphy and fullback Colton Hayes limited the number of options available to the new multiple-threat offense against Coolidge. That left converted tight end Dallas Mills at quarterback and running backs Enrique Bernal, Chance Thompson and Manuel Harmon to test the new offense.

The status of injured Murphy and Hayes as well as two-time all-state guard Blake Crissman, linebacker Jace Blackwell and fullback-linebacker Kody Harris was unknown early this week for this Friday night’s game.

Even a crippled offense, though, shouldn’t have much difficulty against a Florence squad that lost most of its key players from its 3-7 season last year. And the Wrangler defense, which Vaughan believes might be the best in his four years in Wickenburg, should be able to keep Friday night’s visitors out of the end zone.

Thompson was the standout in the scrimmage, powering through the Coolidge defense as a fullback in the offense and snuffing several Coolidge plays from his linebacker spot on defense.

The Wranglers also hope to extend their home winning streak to 21 games against the visiting Gophers Friday night. That streak has been spread over four seasons. In other words, no Vaughan-coached Wrangler team has lost a game at home.

Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.

(See player photos, coaching staff profiles, schedules and other information about the team in the official Wrangler Fall Sports Program inserted in today’s newspaper).

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