Wildcats put demons to rest

Nick Christensen

Sunday, Dec. 4, 2005 | 9:08 a.m.

RENO The Las Vegas Wildcats came into Mackay Stadium on a chilly Northern Nevada morning faced with a scene that haunted them in 2003 -- a scene that could have washed away tears and put to bed nightmares.

Instead of being intimidated, they showed poise.

Even when streams of fans started filling the stadium after a week-long media blitz in favor of local favorite Hug High, the Wildcats didn't back down.

On the sidelines, they didn't show the cockiness of a team that hadn't lost since August.

But they didn't show any signs of urgency, or of a team on the brink of becoming Nevada's version of the Buffalo Bills -- always close, but never quite there.

This was, after all, the Wildcats' third consecutive state championship appearance.

Urgency is for between the lines. And the urgency quickly became dominance in the Wildcats' 23-0 victory that resulted in the school's 15th state title but only its second since 1959. The other came in 2001, in overtime against McQueen in Mackay Stadium. But 2001 was ages ago, a generation as high schools go, and all the memories of this cold place were of 2003.

That was the year the spotlight shone brightly on the Wildcats. Undefeated heading into the championship game, Las Vegas had lost quarterback Chris Gifford and running back Eric Jordan to injuries.

But those became meaningless in a brutally tragic Sunrise Region championship game.

Wildcats safety Edward Gomez died after making a hard hit while breaking up a pass in the fourth quarter.

Fueled by emotion, the Wildcats rolled over Palo Verde in the state semifinal, then faced Reno High in the state championship in Mackay Stadium.

Then-sophomore Jeremy Craddock threw an interception in the fourth quarter that Reno turned around for a touchdown en route to a 26-23 win.

On Saturday, the tragedy of 2003 still weighed heavily on the Wildcats' minds. With Hug sticking around through the first half and trailing Las Vegas just 7-0, Wildcats coach Chris Faircloth reminded his team of the events of 2003.

"We talked about Ed Gomez at halftime. "We said we need to finish this one for him because we didn't finish the last one for him," Faircloth said.

"Our kids responded real well in the second half and came and got after it."

Winning Saturday's game on the same Mackay Stadium field wasn't really a choice for the Wildcats. It was the only remedy for last year's disappointment and the heartbreak of 2003.

Craddock's role Saturday was almost as important as it was in 2003. He had three tackles, and two of his four punts landed inside the 3-yard line.

Hug's average starting position was its own 18. Las Vegas' average starting position was Hug's 40.

"It erases all the bad memories and puts good memories in the bad memories' spot," said Craddock, now a defensive back and punter.

"It was very important to win this one and this was my last chance. So I had to get it done."

One point for the Las Vegas veterans -- Craddock, Xavaier Cleveland, Jamal Lomax, Evan Walton, Josh Win.eld and Chris Basch was to share the importance of not waiting untill next year with the underclassmen.

It's a mistake those seniors knew all too well.

"We know how it feels to go to two state championships and lose them," running back Jamal Lomax saod. "It's our senior year and we had to go out with a bang."

Junior quarterback O'Ryan Bradley, who passed for just 21 yards but showed great on-field leadership, said he was just following the example of those seniors.

"They just kept telling us about how we lost last year and year before that," Bradley said.

"They told us to follow them. They got us here and we got it done."

It was the urgency that Cleveland felt.

"It's like we say on our shirts," he said. "It's unfinished business."

By totally shutting down the Hawks on Saturday, the business is finally settled.

And all those memories, both bad and sad, can finally be laid to rest.