One of the most-anticipated games of the coming high school football season will be the way-too-early Aug. 18 opener pitting rising power Marana, 9-3 a year ago, against 9-3 Ironwood Ridge.
Expect every seat to be full at the Marana Tigers football facility.
The Nighthawks, led by 6-5, 260-pound college prospect Brayden Smith, who last week was invited to the made-for-TV Blue-Grey game in Tampa, Florida, on Jan. 6, will engage Andy Litten’s team. Marana is led by junior QB Trenton Bourguet and junior receiver Tariq Jordan, who are among the state’s best at what they do.
Part 1A of the Aug. 18 opening of the high school football season will be a rematch of the 2016 state championship game between Jeff Scurran‘s Catalina Foothills club and the seven-time state champion Scottsdale Saguaro powerhouse, 53-3 the last four seasons.
Scurran agreed to open the season a week early against the state’s most traditional power when he could’ve played a lower division puffball.
“We’ll learn right away what we have and what we don’t have,” said Scurran.
Gulp. Ready or not.
