D-I football: Centennial powers past Desert Ridge

November 27, 2015 by Les Willsey, AZPreps365


No. 6 Centennial met the challenge of going from Division II champ to D-I kingpin in the simplest of ways on Friday afternoon.

With running backs Quentin Gomez and John Rincon grinding out yardage behind their massive offensive line  that served to dull No. 4 Desert Ridge's bid for a state title in a dominating 28-6 victory at University of Phoenix Stadium.

Centennial (12-2) made it back-to-back titles and secured the school's fifth football title since it opened in 1990 -- all under coach Richard Taylor. Desert Ridge (11-3) finished as D-I runner-up for the second time in the last six years,. The Jaguars matched Centennial pretty much in time of possession the first half nearly splitting time of possession, but the Coyotes found the end zone three times and Desert Ridge managed only a field goal. Desert Ridge was limited to a pair of field goals by Antonio Decozio.

 The game was billed as black-and-blue battle in the trenches and fans got exactly that. Centennial just happened to be better at it. Centennial didn't score in the third period, but had the ball 10 minutes to 2 for Desert Ridge. By the final period, it didn't matter anymore.

"There's not a team in the state that could beat that team right now," Desert Ridge coach Jeremy Hathcock said. "Their line, I'm not sure I've seen a better one. If you can't get the ball back, you can't play."

Centennial rushed for 289 yards on 50 rushes with Gomez and Rincon doing the bulk of the grudge work behind the line of Jeff Durfee, Steven Bailey, Tanner Hawthorne, Andrew Ruelas and Jonathan Contreras. Gomez carried 28 times for 122 yards and two touchdowns -- both on short runs in the first half. Rincon added 69 yards on 12 attempts and found the end zone with 1:26 to play on a 31-yard run.

Gomez looked a little worn, but said he was ready for some more carries if need be.

"A little tired, but it's a great tired," Gomez said. "Our line does all the hard work. I just follow them."

Centennial took the lead by scoring on its first possession after stopping Desert Ridge on its opening drive. A short punt set Centennial up at the Desert Ridge 49. As scripted, however, Centennial's biggest play on the drive was a 35-yard pass from quarterback Isaac Steele to the team's top receiver Connor Sovacki. Four plays later Gomez's first TD from 4 yards out made it 7-0 with 8:45 to go in the quarter.

"No matter what, we were going to throw one up on the first play," Steele said. "That was the plan."

From then on it was a pass every now and then or to move the chains when it was third and long, which was rare. Steele passed 10 times and completed seven for 71 yards. He contributed key plays on each of the three first-half TD drives -- the connection with Sovacki on the first, a 13-yard scramble for a first down to keep the second drive going and a 13-yard pass completion and nifty 22-yard scoring run with 2:11 left in the half to make it  21-3. Centennia out-rushed Desert Ridge 147-53 in the first half and overall held a 200-98 yardage edge.

Two plays that hurt Desert Ridge took place in the second quarter. On Centennial's second TD march, the Jaguars intercepted Steele in the end zone. There were offsetting penalties on the play and the down was played over . Gomez second TD was the result on the next play.

Then after Desert Ridge appeared to force a punt with a little more than three minutes left in the half, Centennial instead of punting snapped the ball to the upback -- linebacker Bozton Sanders -- who bolted 38 yards for a first down. That drive finished with Steele's longest run of the game for a score.

Centennial entered postseason with a loss to Liberty in its regular-season finale. Taylor noted that as a turning point.

"Losses can do one of two things," Taylor said. "They can tear you down or be a learning process. We started listening better and practiced harder after that."

Desert Ridge managed just 70 yards rushing on 23 attempts through three quarters and got no help from the passing game until the final four minutes. The Jaguars ran hurry-up and accumulated most of its 105 yards through the air in the final period on their final possession. The game's lone turnover -- a Centennial interception -- with 2:16 to play capped the Coyotes' triumphant night. Desert Ridge quarterback CJ Fowler was 11-of-26 for 148 yards. Top receiver Jalen Harris didn't catch a pass until the final drive and finished with three grabs for 38 yards.