Foothill RB Ford ‘doubtful’ for this week’s game

Spencer Patterson

Monday, Oct. 1, 2001 | 9:58 a.m.

Green Valley 28, Basic 20

Chaparral 21, Foothill 14

Desert Pines 36, Rancho 14

Las Vegas 34, Eldorado 7

Durango 14, Gorman 12

Clark 28, Bonanza 7

Centennial 63, Mojave 13

Cheyenne 26, Cimarron 21

Silverado 23, Valley 15

Palo Verde 23, Western 6

Virgin Valley 35, Coronado 13

Boulder City 42, Sierra Vista 0

Meadows 27, White Pine 6

Faith Lutheran 27, Tonopah 0

The seventh-ranked Foothill Falcons may have lost something far more important than a single football game.

Tailback John Ford, the area's leading rusher though the first four weeks, left his team's 21-14 home loss to Chaparral on Friday with 9:08 remaining in the fourth quarter after taking a hard hit by a helmet to the lower back.

According to Falcons coach Ray Fenton, Ford could miss this week's Southeast Division contest at Basic.

"He felt better after the game and Saturday, but today he was real stiff," Fenton said Sunday night. "If we're playing tonight or tomorrow, there's no way he could play. I'd say he's doubtful for Friday."

Ford, who rushed for 128 yards and two touchdowns before exiting the game, missed four of Littlerock (Calif.) High School's 10 games last season with an injury to the same area of his back, according to Fenton.

"It's the same area, but we're certainly hoping it's not the same extent," Fenton said. "They seem to think it's more of a muscle injury this time."

Fenton said Ford will likely see a sports physician this week. Should Ford be unable to play, senior B.J. Jarrett takes over as the team's starting I-back. Jarrett, the team's primary ball carrier in 1999, played in Washington last year before returning to Southern Nevada.

"With John out, we'd have to spread out the offense a little more, widen the playbook," Fenton said.

In five games, Ford has amassed 938 yards and 16 touchdowns on 132 carries.

Prior to Ford's injury, the Falcons were in control of their division opener, holding a 14-7 lead over the No. 9 Cowboys and possession of the football. But as soon as Ford went to the bench, the drive stalled and Chaparral scored the equalizer on its ensuing possession with 3:40 left in the game.

Then, after forcing Foothill to punt again, the Cowboys regained the ball with 49 seconds remaining and drove the length of the field for the winning score. Quarterback Justin Arnold keyed the drive with a 20-yard scramble and two passes to receiver Derek Niggemeier, the latter a 25-yard touchdown with nine seconds to play.

"We still have a lot of football to play, but it's nice to start off 1-0 in our league," Chaparral coach Ben Johnson said. "Hopefully, we'll keep it rolling."

Along with Chaparral, No. 3 Palo Verde and No. 5 Durango improved to 5-0 with wins Friday night. The Panthers posted a 23-6 nonleague victory over winless Western, while the Trailblazers held off Southwest Division rival Bishop Gorman 14-12.

No. 4 Las Vegas (4-1, 1-0 Northeast) won its fourth consecutive contest, opening league play with an easy 34-7 triumph over Eldorado. Southern Nevada's other ranked team, No. 6 Desert Pines (4-1, 1-0), bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 36-26 win over Rancho in both teams' Northeast Division opener.

Cimarron-Memorial, which lost just one regular season contest during the past two seasons, dropped to 1-4 in 2001 with a 26-21 loss to Southwest Division rival Cheyenne in the annual "Duel in the Desert." Desert Shields' quarterback Kevin Richardson threw for two touchdowns and rushed for the game-winning score with three minutes to play.

In other conference action, Centennial trounced Mojave 63-13, Green Valley got past Basic 28-20 and Clark handled Bonanza 28-7.

In small school competition, The Meadows (5-0, 1-0 2A Southern) extended its winning streak to 34 games with a 27-6 conference win over White Pine. The Mustangs are now two victories short of Nevada's all-time record, set by Wooster from 1985-87.

Faith Lutheran kept pace with The Meadows, improving to 5-0 with a 27-0 shutout of Tonopah.

Spencer Patterson

covers high school sports for the Las Vegas Sun. He can be reached at 259-4085 or at spencer@lasvegassun.com.