High School Football

Photo: Canyon Springs running back Donnel Pumphrey is lif

Canyon Springs players find shelter from life's troubles in the shadow of a goal post: Friday, December 14, 2012; high school football: Over the course of a season, football players experience joy and defeat together, on and off the field, while learning life's lessons; By J. Patrick Coolican; Their school, Canyon Springs High School on Alexander Road in North Las Vegas, near a pig farm whose stench lingers over the campus at times, is one of the poorest in the valley. More than 75 percent of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

Gorman's Justin Sweet commits to Colorado State

Gorman's Justin Sweet commits to Colorado State: Wednesday, December 12, 2012; high school recruiting: The 5-foot-10 defensive back was a three-year starter at Bishop Gorman, picked the Rams over UNLV and others; By Ray Brewer; One of the best defenders on the state’s unquestioned top high school football team made his college decision Wednesday.

Photo: Faith Lutheran senior wide receiver Anthony Pryate

For Faith Lutheran's Pryatel-Farmer and others, Saturday's Senior Bowl a chance to shine for recruiters: Wednesday, December 12, 2012; high school football:; By Ray Brewer; Despite leading all of Southern Nevada in receptions this past high school football season, Faith Lutheran High senior wide receiver Anthony Pryatel-Farmer has been lightly recruited by college coaches. Organizers of the Elite High School Senior Bowl hope that changes after Saturday’s second installment of their game at 1 p.m. at Ed Fountain Park. Pryatel-Farmer, who finished the season with 70 receptions for 1,071 yards and 10 touchdowns, will have one last chance to catch the eye of recruiters during the event, which is expected to be scouted by roughly 15 non Division-I colleges.

Photo: Devonte Boyd of Basic catches a pass during the He

UNLV football lands top recruit in Basic wide receiver Devonte Boyd: Thursday, December 6, 2012; prep recruiting: The 6-foot-2, 180-pound senior had more than 2,500 career receiving yards; By Ray Brewer; UNLV quarterback Nick Sherry will have another weapon in the passing game starting next fall. Devonte Boyd, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound wide receiver from Basic High in Henderson, verbally committed to the Rebels Thursday.

Photo: Del Sol High football coach Preston Goroff shares

Del Sol's Goroff leaving coaching post: Thursday, December 6, 2012; high school football:; By Ray Brewer; One of the area’s most accomplished high school football coaches is leaving his post. Preston Goroff, who coached Del Sol to the 2009 state championship game, stepped down as the Dragons’ coach last week to pursue a job in administration. Goroff was the only coach in Del Sol’s 10-year history, leading them to four straight appearances in the Sunrise Regional title game from 2006-09.

Photo: The Bishop Gorman Gaels football team poses for ph

Gorman's dynasty, which now includes four straight titles, far from finished: Saturday, December 1, 2012; high school football: Gorman's underclassmen have a hand in five TDs in helping Gaels beat Liberty 63-10 for state title, set table for future championship runs; By Ray Brewer; This wasn’t the first time Bishop Gorman High quarterback Anu Solomon completed a long touchdown pass in a big game. Seconds before halftime Saturday in the Division-I high school football state championship game against Liberty at Sam Boyd Stadium, Solomon connected on a short pass to tight end Alize Jones. Jones did the rest in outracing the Liberty defense for a 78-yard touchdown and 18-point Gorman lead at the break. The completion gave Solomon more than 10,000 passing yards for his four-year career. He would finish with 199 yards and four touchdowns, leading Gorman to its fourth straight state championship ...

State championship live blog: Gorman wins fourth straight title

State championship live blog: Gorman wins fourth straight title: Saturday, December 1, 2012; high school football: Liberty no match as Gorman rolls to 63-10 victory; By Case Keefer; Sam Boyd Stadium has transformed into a party site for those in orange, gray and blue. The Bishop Gorman players, coaches and fans are celebrating a fourth consecutive Nevada state championship.

Photo: The Bishop Gorman footabll team takes to the field

Bishop Gorman's football dynasty by the numbers: Friday, November 30, 2012; high school football: The Gaels, which play Liberty in the state finals Saturday, have won the past three championship games by an average of 41 points; By Ray Brewer; When looking at the following figures, it’s tough to find a flaw in the Bishop Gorman High football team’s dynasty. The Gaels at 12:15 p.m. Saturday will take on Liberty in the state championship game at Sam Boyd Stadium, looking to become the first Nevada team since Reno in the 1950s to win four straight titles. Here’s a look at the dominance:

Photo: Liberty players sing their fight song after defeat

This game against Bishop Gorman will be under different circumstances for Liberty: Friday, November 30, 2012; high school football: The state championship game is a rematch of the first home game in Liberty history — a 70-0 loss to Gorman in 2003; By Ray Brewer; This game was over before it started. That was the theme on several Friday nights for the Liberty High football program in the school’s initial seasons, struggling because housing developments near the Henderson school were still being constructed and enrollment numbers were too low to be field competitive athletic teams. One game stands out for Patriots’ coach Rich Muraco: In the first home game in school history, they were defeated by Bishop Gorman, 70-0.

Photo: Bishop Gorman High football coach Tony Sanchez and

A state championship win Saturday would put Bishop Gorman in exclusive company: Thursday, November 29, 2012; high school football: Three-time defending state champions Gaels looking to become first team since 1950s to win four straight titles; By Ray Brewer; The Bishop Gorman High football team could re-write the record books Saturday in the state championship game. The Gaels can become the first Nevada school since the 1950s to win four straight large-school titles Saturday when they take on Liberty in the championship game at 12:15 p.m. at Sam Boyd Stadium.

Photo: The Cimarron-Memorial girls flag football teams ch

New sport allows girls to thrive on gridiron, try hand at something different: Wednesday, November 28, 2012; high school sports: Flag football makes its debut as a district sport to give girls another winter option; By Ray Brewer; When a player from the Cimarron-Memorial High School football team jumped offsides Monday during the first half of a game against visiting Arbor View, the referee reached for his flag but decided not to throw it for the obvious penalty. It was the first week of games, and for most of the players, it was their first time playing the sport — a fact referees considered with their restrained penalty calling.

Photo: Liberty High's Kai Nacua celebrates with teammates

Liberty makes quick work of Coronado for Sunrise title, has confidence it can compete next week against Gorman: Saturday, November 24, 2012; high school football: Blowout victory against Coronado gives Liberty its first appearance in the state title game, where they'll face three-time defending state champion Gorman; By Ray Brewer; Kai Nacua could have easily been rattled. The Liberty High quarterback fumbled on the first play of Saturday’s Sunrise Regional championship game against visiting Coronado, committing a turnover that was scooped up by a Coronado defender and returned for a 13-yard touchdown. Just eight seconds into the game and the two-time defending region champion Patriots trailed by a touchdown. But, with Nacua guiding the offense, the deficit lasted just a few minutes. Nacua backed up claims that he’s one of the state’s best players, accounting for seven touchdowns and single-handedly taking the game over in a 59-20 Liberty win.

Photo: Bishop Gorman wide receiver Ryan Smith gets away f

Gorman weathers valiant effort from Reed, advances to face Liberty in state title game: Saturday, November 24, 2012; high school football:; By Ray Brewer; Bishop Gorman High quarterback Anu Solomon and wide receiver Ryan Smith produced a similar result in this spot before. The seniors hooked up for a 73-yard scoring strike with 58 seconds remaining in the first half Saturday against host Reed High of Northern Nevada in the state semifinals to break a 14-all tie and give the Gaels the lead for good. Gorman never trailed after that long touchdown, and while Reed put up a strong fight, the Gaels were victorious 49-24 in advancing to the state championship game for the fifth time in six years.

State or bust: Liberty hopes the third time is a charm in state semifinals: Thursday, November 22, 2012; high school football: Liberty has lost the past two years in the state semifinals, will face rival Coronado at 1 p.m. Saturday with a berth in title game at stake; By Ray Brewer; When Rich Muraco took over as the Liberty High football coach in 2009, the Patriots had never made the playoffs and had won just 14 games in the school’s previous six years of existence. Some four years later, they will play for their third straight Sunrise Regional championship at 1 p.m. Saturday against visiting Coronado. The goal was simple during Muraco’s first season: Make the playoffs.

Photo: Moapa defenders Landon Willard, left, and Andrew B

Wasted opportunities early haunt Moapa Valley in state championship loss: Saturday, November 17, 2012; high school football: Truckee High of California-Northern Nevada border beats Overton school for fourth straight season in title game; By Ray Brewer; The Moapa Valley High football team appeared to be executing its game plan to near perfection on its first possession Saturday in the Division-IA state title game against three-time defending champion Truckee. Moapa Valley received the ball first and ran nearly 10 minutes off the clock with a 17-play drive. But despite bringing the ball to inside the Truckee 5-yard line, the Pirates had to settle for a field goal and 3-0 lead. The rest of the game followed a similar script. Moapa Valley marched into scoring range several times, but couldn’t convert in producing a result that was all ...