Bishop Gorman eyes long-awaited prize

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Though they’ve spent less than four full years in high school, Beau Orth and Bishop Gorman’s other 22 senior football players feel as if they’ve been waiting a lifetime for a shot at a state title.

Maybe that’s because the Gorman community has been waiting since before those seniors were born.

The Gaels (13-0) get a shot at their first state football championship since 1983 when they take on McQueen (13-1) in the Class 4A title game at noon today at Sam Boyd Stadium.

“We always thought we could get to this point,” said Orth, a starter at fullback and strong safety. “We’re finally here, but it’s not over.”

This year’s seniors have seen the program produce more All-Americans than championships.

Ryan Reynolds, DeMarco Murray and Po’u Palelei gave the Gaels a representative in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl three years in a row, but the team had a total of three playoff wins in that span, losing in the Sunset Region semifinals all three seasons.

“We’ve always had the talent,” senior quarterback Dylan Barrera said. “We’ve always been the team on paper where we can be the No. 1 team. This year, we just worked hard every play, every down and every practice. It’s amazing.

“I’ve been waiting four years to get in this position, and I’m just happy I’m a part of this team.”

While the Gorman faithful have been waiting nearly 25 years for another shot at a state title, McQueen’s state championship drought hasn’t been as long.

But for a program such as McQueen, it has been excruciating, nonetheless. The Lancers last played for a title in 2002, beating Desert Pines 38-7 at Sam Boyd Stadium.

When it takes the field today, McQueen will be playing in its fifth state title game in the last 10 years. The school has won five state championships, all since 1990.

“The No. 1 thing we talk about at McQueen High School is ‘Lancer Pride’ and our great tradition of winning,” McQueen coach Ken Dalton said. “These kids understand when they’re freshmen in high school that our goals are to be league, region and state champs, and that’s it. Period.”

McQueen certainly has the edge when it comes to history, but Orth and Co. know that none of the current Lancers was in high school the last time the school made it to the title game.

“The way a lot of us are looking at it is that McQueen, as a school, has had a lot of success, and their coaching staff has definitely been at this level many times,” Orth said. “But their players are just like us. We’re going in brand new to the state championship.”

Playing at Sam Boyd may give the Gaels an edge. The stadium has been a sort of home away from home for Gorman, which has played as many games there this season as on its new campus.

“It’s just comfortable to play on a field that we already have two wins on,” defensive end Alex Turner said.

The Gaels usually have drawn large crowds when playing their homecoming games at Sam Boyd. That makes Orth excited about the prospect of playing in front of a pro-Gorman crowd.

“Homecoming games here are ridiculous,” Orth said. “We fill the stands over at Sam Boyd. So I can only imagine with the whole city coming out to watch, and hopefully we get support. It’s going to be a big crowd, and I’m really looking forward to it.”

And unlike McQueen, which hit the road at 7 a.m. Friday for a 450-mile bus ride and spent the night at a hotel, the Gaels went through their normal routine and went home at the end of the day.

“It’s really nice to know that we can sleep in our own beds on Friday night and get up and play the game of our lives on Saturday morning,” Orth said.

But Dalton doesn’t think the trip or the hotel rooms will change the outcome.

“It’s not going to affect us one bit,” Dalton said. “This is a business trip for us, and our goals are set. We’ve taken a couple trips this year in anticipation of being in this game, and we’ll be fine.”

Contact Prep Sports Editor Damon Seiters at dseiters@reviewjournal.com or (702) 380-4587.