Palo Verde has sights squarely on a title

Nick Christensen

Friday, Nov. 19, 2004 | 9:49 a.m.

It was business as usual Thursday in Summerlin as the Palo Verde football team prepared for tonight's Sunset Region championship game against Cheyenne.

No special plans. No guarantees. Just more drills, more practice, and more focus as the holders of Southern Nevada's longest winning streak, currently at 11 games, look to extend it by one in their quest for the school's first state football title.

"We've never had to get our kids ready. They get themselves ready," Panthers coach Darwin Rost said. "This group has been a real focused group, they know it's one game at a time, and it's only the game in front of you right now. They've been there before -- they know what needs to be done."

And getting themselves ready started when last year's school year ended, senior running back Marc Evans said.

"I'd come up in the morning, work out for two hours, practice, do whatever you can on your own," he said. "It's my seniors year. I did pick it up a bit."

It's been a special year in general in Summerlin. The Panthers' double wing offense has allowed Palo Verde to average 43 points per game, and the defense has posted four shutouts.

In that regard, though, the last Cheyenne game was an anomaly. When the Desert Shields played at Palo to close at the regular season, Cheyenne had Palo Verde down 32-27 until late in the fourth quarter, when a tipped pass turned into a go-ahead touchdown, and a snap over Cheyenne quarterback Quinton Carter's head and through the end zone put the Panthers up 35-32.

The scare pointed out some flaws in Palo Verde's defense, but they are holes that have been addressed, said Sam King.

"We made some mistakes, but this week we focused on Panther football," King said. "When we buy into our system, we're on point, and we get things done."

Rost said he was surprised by some of the things Cheyenne did in that last game.

"At the time, they were more of a single-back set and they ran some veer and option. We knew they had the capabilities of doing it, but we didn't think they'd come out and have it as a base offense," he said. "We've got to stop the option with them with Carter. He does a lot of good things. He ad-libs a lot of things too."

On offense, Palo Verde is whole again after playing without Evans, who had a knee injury, since the first Cheyenne game. Jarrell Harrison has seen limited time recuperating from a bruised throwing shoulder, but will be back this week as well.

"We've had a couple weeks now where we've had to get them healed back up," Rost said.

Drew McDaniel has led the Panthers in the playoffs with 159 yards on 23 carries, and Anthony Smith, whose touchdown catch in the last Cheyenne game put the Panthers up for good, has 154 yards on 16 carries, with three touchdowns. King has contributed 120 yards on 17 carries.

Evans said that despite the tough competition in his last year of high school, he said the Panthers aren't feeling pressure any other team would be.

"I'm not sure if there's a sense of urgency. We want to go to the state championship, just like any other team does. We have to work hard to get there," he said. "It's good to come out and be playing. It's always good to be out with friends, playing the game you love."

McQueen has allowed just 65 points this year, including five shutouts and four more games allowing a touchdown or less. Reed put up a season-high 19 points on the Lancers in their Oct. 15 High Desert League game, but McQueen held on for a 33-19 win.

The Lancers have won all five of their state championships since 1990, the most recent in 2002 when they beat Desert Pines 38-7 at Sam Boyd Stadium.

Palo Verde Panthers

RECORD: 11-0, 5-0 Northwest.

POINTS FOR: 473 (43 ppg).

POINTS AGAINST: 111 (10.1 ppg)

HEAD COACH: Darwin Rost.

Playoff leaders

Passing: Jarrell Harrison (7-for-11, 114 yds)

Receiving: Mike Smith (2 receptions, 34 yards)

Rushing: Drew McDaniel (23 carries, 159 yards)

Rank reflects opponent's standing in state poll week of game. Record reflects team's final regular season record.

QF -- Region quarterfinal. SF -- Region semifinal.