A blog By Richard Smith West Valley Preps A coach won his 300th game. Another suspended seven of his players for a crucial region opener. A player can see the finish line on his treatment for bone cancer. Another player will miss his homecoming game because of an unsportsmanlike conduct flag thrown for excessive celebration — on what looked like a high step to avoid a defender as much, if not more, than a celebration. All of this happened in the span of a week. And all of this took place at one of the main four high schools in the city of Peoria.It’s been that kind of year. With the exception of a few constants, the only constant has been rapid change. Let’s look at those four schools and some other nearby local programs as the regular season already passes the halfway mark.

RUNNING THE GAMUT

Sunrise Mountain coach Steve Decker was the one suspending seven players, five of them starters, for the Sept. 28 game at Ironwood. These were one-game suspensions for an undisclosed violation of team rules. The Mustangs closed ranks and dominated the Eagles 50-24. Given the team's season thus far, almost any result seemed possible. The Sunrise Mountain season started with an incorrect weed killer killing most of the grass on their home field, and things have only gotten stranger for Sunrise Mountain since. Following an opening rout of Central, the Mustangs battled two of the top 15 teams in the state — Williams Field and Liberty — to the final minute before losing. An epic offensive fest against Gilbert (a 74-57 Mustangs win) probably caused more questions than it answered about the mostly redone defense. The unit answered the bell the following week against a Verrado team in freefall, picking up for a suddenly popgun offense in a 20-19 win. After the suspensions, it appeared the program had cleared its major hurdles. Now back-to-back contests with Sunnyslope and Apollo, will chart the course of Sunrise Mountain’s season. Nothing would surprise me. Well, okay, a victory Oct. 26 at Centennial would. Centennial coach Richard Taylor recently won his 300th game as head coach. In this photo, Taylor celebrates the Coyotes' 2017 5A state title win Dec. 2, 2017 at Arizona Stadium in Tucson. [Jacob Stanek/West Valley Preps][/caption]

PREDICTABLE EXCELLENCE

The Coyotes remain an island of calm dominance during the stormy season. Coach Richard Taylor needs five wins to reach 300 in his four-decade career? Ok, Centennial will win its first five games. Bishop Gorman matches your athleticism and stifles the offense? A workmanlike defense steps up and dominates the Gaels. New 5A teams Casteel and Millennium want to take their shots? Well, they can score but they’ll never threaten the Coyotes. I’m not sure this is the best Centennial team I’ve seen. But other than the 2009 Coyotes, it is hard to think of a Taylor-made team with a higher margin for error. Neighboring Higley and Williams Field loom as top contenders. Centennial, however, appears to be in a classic situation for dominant athletes. Their standard of excellence is their toughest opponent. Calling it boring is a bit if a stretch, But the Coyotes, in seeking their fourth title in five years, are as consistent as daybreak.

A SECOND PEORIA POWER?

While not there yet — and the temporary end of that series depriving us of another Centennial-Liberty showdown — the Lions can see the door to the club of Arizona’s elite teams. The 6-0 Lions debuted at No. 2 in the AIA rankings Sept. 25. They romped at Mountain Ridge Sept. 28, and are the lone unbeaten team left in 6A - who had that in the pool? Two massive Desert Valley Region showdowns, at Pinnacle Oct. 12 and at Chaparral Oct. 26 should determine if Liberty is already a 6A contender. Few would dispute Mark Smith’s team is in the mix with the big boys, more so than was predicted before the season. All that said, senior Zach Hunzinger is the heartbeat of this squad, even from the sidelines or hospital. Watching one of their leaders diagnosed with bone cancer and battling his way through it galvanized the Lions. While I can’t prove a link between Hunzinger’s perseverance and strength in the face of adversity and the team’s record in one score games. But I’ll guess it helped Liberty’s resolve in victories against Brophy (7-0), Sunrise Mountain (49-43) and Desert Ridge (21-14). All these wins were decided in the final minute. That will serve Smith’s team well because staying near the top of the ladder in the big boy division will take several more close victories. Cactus junior tailback Nicc Quinones sprints past Tucson Salpointe senior defensive back Alex Withers for a touchdown in the second quarter of the Sept. 14 game at Cactus High School in Glendale. [Courtesy Ed Russell Photography/For West Valley Preps][/caption]

GAINS THROUGH LOSSES

The Cameron Torres story has taken a life of its own, as his ejection for a high step into the end zone that looked like a football move and at worst was a comparatively mild taunt was reported on by Yahoo Sports. Rather than admit an error in judgment, the AIA — which oversees all referees — has decided to back the ref who erred and its flawed letter-of-the-law interpretation of its policy on ejections. Torres missed his homecoming game against Poston Butte. And most of us who were not there missed the rest of that weird night at Desert Edge and what it signified about this group of Panthers. When Torres was tossed, Peoria led 15-0 halfway through the second quarter. That is despite injuries that left leading rushers Juwaun Price and Malachi Potee — and their 1,050 yards through four games — inactive. Since then I’ve seen what the Panthers can do at full strength with their new pistol flexbone formation and it’s quite lethal. A run-heavy offense that retains some spread principles and gives Price, Potee, Torres, junior Jovon Scott and freshman Cameron Mack the ability to be on the field at the same time will present problems for all of 4A. Peoria’s performance at Desert Edge, which looked like a win until the Scorpions’ Hail Mary 27-22 victory, impressed me more than the Panthers’ first four wins. I get the same vibe from a recent Cactus loss. The Cobras 41-15 loss to Salpointe Catholic looks far worse on paper than it was in reality. Cactus’ offense revolves around its triplets, quarterback Conner Cordts, tailback Anthony Flores and receiver Zaach Cullop. Cordts was out and Flores was injured and did not play against Salpointe. That left Cullop to run and pass as well as catch, while backup quarterback Garrett Monroe played his best. Yet this limited Cobra team trailed the Lancers 21-15 at halftime before simply wearing out. At full strength, assuming Cordts, who just returned against Deer Valley, is healthy and Kellis transfer Plas Johnson fits in the scheme, Cactus is a threat to the big two 4A teams - Saguaro and Salpointe. And the Cobras and Panthers, assuming both teams are healthy on Oct. 26, could write one of the most interesting chapters of their storied rivalry. Shadow Ridge junior quarterback Kaiden Lansford prepares to throw downfield while Willow Canyon senior defensive end Brody Tardy closes in on the rush Sept. 7 at Willow Canyon High School in Surprise. [Courtesy Zachery Fountain/Dysart Unified School District][/caption]

NOT YET

I was all ready to include Valley Vista in with Cactus and Peoria. Then, after a valiant effort Sept. 21 against Pinnacle, the Monsoon fell apart in the fourth quarter and lost to Avondale La Joya. The Monsoon were a decided underdog against Pinnacle — generally considered the second-best team in 6A behind Chandler. Yet the upstarts from Surprise led the Pioneers and all-world quarterback Spencer Rattler 19-14 at the half. Pinnacle restored order and won 41-25. As odd as it sounds, that halftime lead put Valley Vista more in the 6A spotlight than any of its wins in the past five years. And it could be just the start of something big for this program. The Monsoon have a senior-heavy defense but juniors and sophomores are stepping up with increased frequency. Will this be the group that allows Valley Vista to hang with some of the best 6A teams for the first time? It will be a fun two years finding out. As for this year, though, the Monsoon are in the improved but not ready for prime time category alongside fellow Surprise schools Shadow Ridge and Willow Canyon as well as - probably - Ironwood. Willow Canyon has an outside shot at a Desert West region title but getting to, or just above .500 is a more reasonable goal. The two teams - both 4-2 - that have a reasonable shot of breaking through and making the playoffs are Ironwood and Shadow Ridge. The Stallions can afford one more loss, maybe. Friday's home game against Westview will be the biggest test - and the biggest test of this theory. The finale against Copper Canyon should be a routine win. Everything else in the Southwest Region is up for grabs, and the two games in between - La Joya and Valley Vista - are must win for the Stallions. Given the Stallions soft landing of a schedule in 6A, the best plan would be to win out. Ironwood is licking its wounds after Sunrise Mountain zipped past the now-full-strength Eagles at Homecoming. It was an emotional night, and anyone on the home sideline could hear how hard the blowout was to swallow. The good news? If Ironwood's talent can get on the same page, the Eagles can become a legit 5A playoff team. It will have to happen quickly however. Games at Apollo this Friday and against Sunnyslope will decide Ironwood's fate. If Devante Wimbish and Elijah Sanders can mesh with new quarterback Will Haskell  and receiver Sebastian Fiery, the offense will be lethal. Stone Aguirre has a more speed around him on defense. Centennial is a near lock for No. 1. Sunrise Mountain will make the playoffs barring an unexpected collapse. And the third place team in the Northwest Region will be right on the bubble as Apollo, Ironwood and Sunnyslope slug it out.