Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Preps: Northwest Division

Centennial BULLDOGS

COACH: Joel Bertsch (3rd year)

RETURNING STARTERS (O/D): 3/4

KEY PLAYERS: Brady Valles (Sr., OL); Jaren Walker (Jr., RB); Travis Meltzer (Sr., TE).

X FACTOR: Jared Noa (Sr., QB). Noa was the backup to Aaron Prado last season, but did see a fair amount of playing time.

"He learned from the guy ahead of him," Bertsch said. "He's a real smart kid, he makes good decisions, he's got a strong arm, he's a great leader and a real good field guy. The guys believe in him."

OUTLOOK: Everything old is new again at Centennial, where the numbers are sparse but not as bad as last season. More than thin, the Bulldogs are young, with many starting juniors.

Size is an advantage for the Bulldogs after a strong summer in the weight room. Jimmy Minnello (240 pounds), Gerald Crisp (275 pounds) and Rob Strehlow (280 pounds) anchor the trenches.

"We're big up front," Bertsch said. "We're physical."

The disadvantages for Centennial are obvious, though -- inexperience, lack of depth and playing in the very tough division.

Cheyenne DESERT SHIELD

COACH: Charles Anthony (2nd year)

RETURNING STARTERS (O/D): 3/1

KEY PLAYERS: D.J. Campbell (Jr., DB); Sebastian Buckley (Sr., C); Jessie Aquino (Sr., LB).

X FACTOR: Quinton Carter (Sr., QB). UNLV freshman Torrie Coleman got all the attention last season, but Carter was the silent partner in a strong offense that lost two games -- both to eventual champion Palo Verde, and both in the closing minutes.

"He doesn't get rattled," Anthony said. "He doesn't shy away from contact."

OUTLOOK: It seems like every time Cheyenne loses a star player, another rises up and carries the Desert Shield a little further.

When David Peeples graduated after leading Cheyenne to the 2003 Sunset semifinals, Torrie Coleman stepped up and carried the Shield to the Sunset championship. So while there are always questions about how much talent Cheyenne will return, don't expect the Desert Shield to be anything less than competitive.

An upset against Shadow Ridge or Palo Verde, or both, would put Cheyenne in the catbird's seat heading into November. It's a reasonable expectation, given recent history.

Cimarron-Memorial SPARTANS

COACH: Ron Smeltzer (3rd year)

RETURNING STARTERS (O/D): 5/5

KEY PLAYERS: As'Ryen Brown (Sr., WR); Davion Mauldin (Sr., WR); Neil Spencer (Jr., OL/DL).

X FACTOR: Eric Brinkley (Jr., RB). Brinkley transferred from Michigan before last year, and was brought up from junior varsity toward the end of the season.

"He's a tough, hard-nosed kid out of Michigan; he's going to play fullback, running back and inside linebacker," Smeltzer said. "As an inside linebacker, he hits somebody and you see a head go back."

OUTLOOK: Numbers are a problem this year at Cimarron, which has enjoyed a run of strong years going back to the team's back-to-back state championships in the late 1990s.

"We're plugging away," Smeltzer said. "We're going to end up playing some young guys. We'll probably have a couple sophomores in the starting rotation. We're still battling back a bit."

The margin between Cimarron and the other Northwest powerhouses is a little wider this year. But with Mojave and Centennial not catching up, the Spartans should be safely in the playoffs.

Mojave RATTLERS

COACH: Tyrone Armstrong (3rd year)

RETURNING STARTERS (O/D): 6/4

KEY PLAYERS: Robert Bolden Jr. (Sr., HB); Bennie Morris (Jr., HB); Matt Taylor Jr., FS.)

X FACTOR: Dewayne Walker (Sr., LB). Walker broke into the Rattlers' varsity last season, but did a lot to improve himself in the offseason.

"This year, we have a guy in Dewayne that has become a little more physical," Armstrong said. "He's a kid with a lot of speed and that's important. He's been working really hard at it."

OUTLOOK: The Rattlers have had limited success on the field in Armstrong's tenure. But more important, their academic mentoring program continues to bring kids in before practice for a study hall. Mojave understands the emphasis of "student" in "student-athlete."

As for what happens Friday nights, the Rattlers will be young. D.J. Tilche and Rayshaun Greer have both moved on, and Mojave has only five seniors, some juniors and a lot of sophomores.

"They know the expectations are pretty high and they're doing their best to rise to the occasion," Armstrong said.

The younger kids also have an attitude.

"We've got some kids that have a little bit of a swagger and a lot of confidence in themselves," Armstrong said. "I like that."

Palo Verde PANTHERS

COACH: Darwin Rost (10th year)

RETURNING STARTERS (O/D): 6/6

KEY PLAYERS: Anthony White (Sr., TE); Drew McDaniel (Sr., RB); Mike Smith (Sr., TE).

X FACTOR: Danny Liles (Jr., QB). Anchoring Palo Verde's double-wing offense for the past three seasons has been Jarrell Harrison, who took the Panthers to the state title last year. Liles, who guided Palo Verde's junior varsity team to two 9-0 seasons, now assumes the spotlight.

"It's going to be hard to replace Jarrell, but he does some things that Jarrell didn't do," Rost said.

OUTLOOK: Palo Verde won't repeat last year's feat of a 15-0 season. Beyond that, all bets are off.

The double-wing offense that confounded opponents all year long will stay, but the pieces that make it up have largely changed, with the emergence of Danny Liles replacing Jarrell Harrison and Drew McDaniel stepping in for Marc Evans.

But the pieces that are stepping in have experience, and a lot of it.

"Our seniors haven't lost since their freshman year," Rost said.

Other key returners include tight ends Anthony White and Mike Smith and all-state tackle Kyle Harpin. Palo Verde also got two transfers -- running back Matt Edwards from Cheyenne and fullback/linebacker T.J. Chapel, a key component at Sierra Vista last year.

Palo Verde has established a program on par with what McQueen and Las Vegas have done, and have enough returning talent to be a force this year. If the new pieces can make the double-wing machine work, Palo Verde will be a serious contender come November.

Arbor View AGGIES

Class 4-A INDEPENDENT....FIRST-YEAR SCHOOL

COACH: Russ Malloy (1st year)

Six things to know about Arbor View:

Shadow Ridge MUSTANGS

COACH: J.D. Johnson (3rd year)

RETURNING STARTERS (O/D): 5/4

KEY PLAYERS: Troy Cummings (Sr., WR); Eric Jordan (Sr., RB); Alex Toney (Sr., S).

X FACTOR: Passing. To keep the Mustangs offense a multipronged attack, Shadow Ridge will have to find a consistent passer from the two quarterbacks still competing to start.

-- Nick Christensen

archive