Gorman has bigger plans

Adam Candee

Friday, Oct. 29, 2004 | 10:26 a.m.

Bishop Gorman coach David White does not want the Gaels' third Southwest Division title in three years to turn out like the first two did.

That is, with a first-round playoff loss and an offseason of wondering what might have been.

Gorman wasted no time Thursday night in wrapping up the division crown, scoring 14 points in the first six minutes of the game to deflate Sierra Vista. The Gaels cruised from there, winning 27-14 at Valley High School and setting up a Sunset Region quarterfinal contest next weekend against Cimarron-Memorial.

Two years ago, the Spartans routed the Gaels in the first round, 50-6. Last season, Gorman fell to Cheyenne, 32-27, in the game that ended with the infamous on-field brawl between the teams.

But this time, second-year coach White said he has a different feeling about this group of players.

"Our guys, we just arrived," White said. "We're not going to settle. We're going to go out and get past the first round."

It's been a strange season for the Gaels (7-2), who sat on the sidelines early in the year serving a suspension as a result of the Cheyenne fight. That forced them to miss a game against Las Vegas, which likely would have provided a stiff test for a Gaels group that has not faced a lot of tough opposition in rolling to the Southwest title.

White understands that his team may not be getting much attention because of the schedule. That's just fine with him.

"In some aspects, we're excited that we are under the radar," White said.

There was nothing subtle about how Gorman took apart the Lions, who could have won the division with a win by seven or more points. Instead, Sierra Vista (7-3) falls to the third seed and takes to the road to face Northwest runner-up Cheyenne.

The Gaels took the opening kickoff and marched 74 yards on seven plays to claim the early lead. Quarterback Dylan Berrera fired a 17-yard touchdown pass to Jacob Zanoni on play action that left Zanoni wide open at the goal line.

Three plays later, Sierra Vista gave back the ball when quarterback Jake Whittaker coughed it up after a scramble and linebacker Ryan Reynolds recovered at the Lions' 27-yard line. The fumble was one of three Sierra Vista turnovers -- all of which took place at their own 33 or deeper in their own ground and within the first three plays of a drive.

Running back DeMarco Murray punched it in from 9 yards out to extend the Gaels' lead to 14-0, and Sierra Vista never really challenged after that. The fast start thrilled White, who wanted the Gaels to quell any thoughts of a game for the upstart Lions.

"That's the biggest thing we wanted to do," White said.

Murray carried 21 times for 156 yards and a score for Gorman. Quarterback C.J. Sedoris, who played the majority of the game, struggled with 3-of-19 passing, but did complete a 7-yard scoring pass to Reynolds in the second quarter to put away the Lions.

Sierra Vista trailed 24-0 before getting on the board on a blocked punt in the third quarter. Skyler Hibbard blocked the kick deep in Gaels' territory and Ron Boone scooped it up and ran five yards for a touchdown.

Sierra Vista running back Steven Hill rushed for 38 yards on 21 carries, never breaking a big one against the Gorman defense. The Gaels allowed Sierra Vista just one first down in the first 30 minutes of the game.

The Lions played a large portion of the game without injured leading rusher and team leader Jeff Long.

Gorman now gets the chance to prove its mettle against a Cimarron team that underachieved a bit in the tough Northwest Division, but is a quality opponent nonetheless.

"We want to see where we're at," White said. "We want to play the best teams."