5 high school football games to watch this week
Here’s a look at some of Friday’s most interesting high school football games.
Canyon Springs (2-4, 0-1 Northeast) at Las Vegas (4-1, 0-0) — The Pioneers have finished either first or second in the Northeast League for six straight years, but will need to get hot down the stretch to keep the streak alive.
Canyon Springs has struggled offensively this season, scoring a total of 75 points, but coach Keith Jones hopes the return of a couple key players from injury will help.
Center Ernesto Trejo is back along with running back Diamante Burton. They should help running back Jerrod Blackwell (303 rushing yards), who has scored three of the teams 11 TDs.
The seventh-ranked Wildcats have won four straight and are coming off a bye week.
Las Vegas, led by its read-option attack, has been far better than Canyon Springs offensively. The Wildcats have scored 34 or more points in every game, including 92 in the last two contests.
Green Valley (2-4, 0-1 Southeast) at Coronado (2-3, 0-0) — This game features a pair of teams trying to prove they are better than their records show.
The Gators are a tough team to get a handle on. Green Valley’s four losses have come to opponents with a combined 20-4 record, so they haven’t loaded up on cupcakes. But the Gators need to move quickly to make a run in the league.
Coronado has shown flashes as well, but needs to put things together for four quarters. The Cougars outscored second-ranked Liberty 18-14 in the second half of their game on Sept. 25, but were essentially no shows against Las Vegas last time out, losing 43-0 to the Wildcats.
Desert Pines (5-2) at Rancho (2-5) — The third-ranked Jaguars haven’t lost on the field this season, but had to forfeit a pair of league games earlier this week for using an ineligible player.
The forfeits knocked the Jaguars to third place in the Division I-A Sunrise League, and probably are bad news for the Rams.
Expect Desert Pines to take out some frustration on Rancho, which has lost four straight (including one by forfeit) since a 2-1 start.
Stopping Isaiah Morris, who has averaged 12.1 yards per carry for the Jagaurs, may be too much to ask for the Rams.
Clark (4-3, 2-3 Sunset) at Mojave (4-3, 3-2) — This game could have real playoff implications in the Sunset League.
Clark is coming off consecutive victories after an 0-3 league start, and enters play a half game behind Spring Valley for the Sunset League’s fourth and final playoff spot.
Running back Milan Dixon (696 rushing yards, 4 TDs) has been Clark’s biggest weapon, but receiver Amir Boone (23 catches, 374 yards, 4 TDs) also has emerged as a threat.
Mojave has struggled offensively all season, and things have continued to get worse for the Rattlers, who lost leading rusher Elijah Smoot to a gruesome leg injury last week. Mojave, which has scored a total of 24 points in the last four games, already was without starting quarterback Lamaja Cunningham. Cunningham is out for the season with a collarbone injury.
Cimarron-Memorial (1-5, 0-1 Northwest) at Desert Oasis (5-2, 1-1) — The Diamondbacks have put together one of the area’s top records, and will look to continue their strong play in Brad Talich’s first season.
Desert Oasis hasn’t gone out and beaten the area’s best, but has consistently won the games they should. The Diamondbacks’ five wins have come against teams with a combined record of 6-28, but they haven’t tripped against a weaker opponent, and will try to continue that trend.
The area’s two leading rushers will battle it out in this game, with Desert Oasis’ Ty’shun McClinton (1,065 rushing yards, 14 TDs) going up against Cimarron’s Tyree Riley (1,062 rushing yards, 4 TDs).
Go to nevadapreps.com for a full schedule and complete scoreboard.
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