Rishi Oza is a student journalist at Arizona State University assigned to cover high school sports. 

SCOTTSDALE— Chaparral High School has won its games this season on the back of an explosive offense. The Firebirds average nearly 36 points per game and have a three-headed monster on offense that features the number four-ranked quarterback in the state. In Friday night's 6A semifinal matchup versus Williams Field High School, the story was no different. Chaparral defeated the Blackhawks, 35-28, in a thriller that sent the Firebirds to the 6A state championship to play the Highland Hawks. 

Even though the offense was great overall for both teams, the first half was sloppy overall by both. There were four combined turnovers. Williams Field consistently sent snaps over quarterback CJ Tiller’s head, while Chaparral's highly rated quarterback, Brayten Silbor, threw three interceptions.

The two schools went into halftime all even after a ridiculous play by Tiller. After rolling to his right and being chased by Chaparral defensive end Anthony Lucas, Tiller threw a prayer to the back of the endzone while falling down. His prayer was answered as Lasjawn Hunter leaped over two Chaparral defenders to come down with the ball and tie the game with just :52 left in the first half. 

Neither offense played well in the first half, both teams having good drives that stalled just beyond midfield. “We just made so many mistakes in the first half that were just killing us,” Chaparral head coach Brent Barnes said. “Just giving the ball away, guys not running the right route… you can’t do those things against a really good team in the semi-finals.” 

While the defenses stood out in the first half, the offenses came to life in the second. The Blackhawks opened up the third quarter with a five-minute drive that ended in another Hail Mary-type situation. Tiller rolled out to his right once again but this time threw across his body to the back left corner of the endzone. Kyler Kasper, who had a few crazy catches in this game, caught the ball for the score and gave Williams Field the lead. But every time the Blackhawks scored the Firebirds had an answer. “We started off really slow,” said Chaparral wideout Grady Hickey. “We just stuck to our game plan and just executed.” 

The Chaparral offensive line looks at film after scoring a touchdown in the fourth quarter. (Rishi Oza/AZPreps365)

Williams Field led 21-14 entering the fourth quarter. But on the first play of the quarter, Chaparral's Lukas Garvey caught a 48-yard touchdown to tie the game. Once again, however, the Blackhawks were able to answer and take the lead, 28-21, on a five-yard touchdown run by Joshua Dye.

Things were looking bleak for Chaparral. They could not get a stop on defense, and their offense had to respond with the drive of their lives. This was the turning point in the game. Silbor connected with Gavin Higley on a 30-yard completion to get the Firebirds to midfield, then they ran the same play to the other side for another 30-yard gain, also to Higley. With 7:16 left in the game, Jamarei Ashby-phan scored on a three-yard run to tie the game at 28. 

Chaparral desperately needed a stop from its defense. And a stop they got. The Firebirds forced a three-and-out to get the ball back to their suddenly white-hot offense. “We’re trying to go back-to-back with this,” said 6'5", 275-pound defensive end Lucas, the number one recruit in the state of Arizona. “We’re not going to back down without a fight, so we had to keep our heads in there.”

The Chaparral offense got past midfield and started pounding the run. Both Ashby-phan and Hickey had big plays on the ground, culminating with the latter's two-yard touchdown with 1:01 remaining to give the Firebirds their first lead since the second quarter. Once again Chaparral would have to rely on its defense for a stop. 

Williams Fieldd advanced to the Chaparral 45-yard line thanks to two big catches by Dye. With just :34 left, Tiller floated a pass over the middle of the field into the waiting arms of defensive back Luke Franze for the game-sealing interception. “Luke Franze does that a lot,” said Hickey. “Makes big plays when it counts.” 

The Firebirds will try to repeat as 6A State Championship next Friday, a rematch of last season’s championship game against the Highland Hawks. When asked about how it feels to have their last game be a state championship, both Hickey and Lucas answered with the same sentiment: They wouldn’t have it any other way.