Chandler tackled two opponents this week: Midweek hype and Perry on Friday.

In a rematch of the 2017 6A State Championship, Wolves coach Shaun Aguano knew his team would have to block out distractions to be successful.

“I just thought that I needed to make sure that they are focused the whole week and doing the little things right especially with all of the hype around everything,” Aguano said. “I guess kids get off on different tangents sometimes and I just think we tried to handle the details this week and it paid off.”

Aguano’s players responded to his call with a 45-24 victory.

The Wolves (5-1) quickly set the tone at the point of attack offensively. The offensive line had its way with the front seven of the Pumas easily opening up lanes for senior running back Decarlos Brooks. It also gave senior quarterback Jacob Conover time to find his receivers downfield.

“I wanted to see if we could dominate up front,” Aguano said. “I thought if we were going to take control of this game, we needed to dominate the fronts so that was our main emphasis and I thought that we did a great job in holding Perry at bay and then going over the top with our receivers.”

Conover knows where it begins.

"It all starts with the guys up front. They did a tremendous job and they do it day in and day out in practice and they show it on the field. Once we establish our base up front, it opens up Pandora’s box and we can do whatever we want.”

Brooks and junior wideout Gunner Maldanado both finished with over 150 yards from scrimmage.

Maldanado, Chandler’s leading receiver, got started early with a diving grab to set up the Wolves in the red zone on the second drive of the game.

“I knew I could get on top of the corner, so even if I knew it wasn’t my route we could convert it,” Maldanado said. “Jake is an all-star, he puts it on the money so it pretty much comes easy.”

The star wideout hasn’t always had this connection with his quarterback. He  opened the season on defense and has had to adjust to play on the opposite side of the ball.

“This game was definitely one of the first games that I didn’t have to think twice about the calls or anything and Jake and I have been clicking ever since I switched.”

The Wolves also dominated defensively for a majority of the game, keeping a Perry offense that averages over 50 points to just seven in the first half and surrendering a majority of the rest while up three or more touchdowns late in the game.

Senior linebacker Javan Ah Quin is a leader of the Wolves defense and practiced what Aguano had preached going into the game.

“We had to stay focused, make sure we didn’t mess up on our assignments or let our emotions get the best of us,” Ah Quin said. “We just had to go out there, play hard-nosed football and get it done.” 

Maldanado and the Wolves hope Friday’s win provides momentum as they push towards the playoffs.

“It was fun, they have a really good atmosphere and everything. It was definitely a statement game, one that we needed to win but now it’s over and we need to move on to the next one.”