High school football: Canyon del Oro 4A state championship to cap perfect 14-0 season

TEMPE — After the Canyon del Oro high school football team was eliminated in last year’s state semifinals, the Dorados added “GBP” stickers to their helmets.

GBP, as in “game-breaking plays.”

The second-seeded Dorados (14-0) made enough GBPs to win their fourth state championship, this time defeating No. 1 Yuma Catholic (13-1) 35-27 for Arizona’s Class 4A title Friday at ASU’s Mountain American Stadium. 

“It is amazing,” CDO senior free safety/receiver Chase Laux said. “This is something that has been our goal for three years and to actually see it come and happen is amazing.”

CDO led 35-14 in the fourth quarter, but Yuma Catholic rallied, with the Shamrocks having the chance to tie it up in the last minute.

But the Dorados’ defense held the Shamrocks out of the end zone deep in CDO territory on the final drive.

“That shows that we are a resilient team and our backs have been against the wall,” CDO head coach Dustin Peace said. “We know to win the big games we have to make the game-breaking plays. We made those (Friday) night — a little bit more than them — and that’s why we were able to be successful.”

Laux made a couple GBPs on offense, scoring on a 9-yard run on fourth down and scoring on an 80-yard run.

“It’s amazing,” said Laux, who had 92 yards on four carries. “I knew that I had to make some plays and we all had to make some plays like that in order to win game. So being able to be the one responsible for that, obviously because of my blockers and my other teammates, but it’s just awesome to know that I contributed to this team and this championship.”

CDO rushed for 371 yards, led by senior Kayden Luke, who had 217 yards and two touchdowns.

“This is great. This is great — this is the way we wanted to end the season and we did it,” Luke said.

Peace compared Luke to former Arizona Wildcat and NFL player Ka’Deem Carey, who led the Dorados to the 2009 state championship.

“I’m just glad everybody got to see Kayden Luke play (Friday) night. It’s special and he’s gonna leave a legacy,” Peace said. “Second most rushing yards ever in our program, he’s got a state championship just like the last running back we had going into the NFL. So proud that he was able to do that on the biggest stage (Friday) night.”

Less than a week after Sabino High School ended the Tucson area’s state championship drought, Canyon del Oro became the first big school to win a state championship since Salpointe Catholic did in 2013.

“It’s awesome. We’re tired of all these Phoenix teams always winning, so to get two Southern Arizona teams up here and win it, that’s really awesome It’s super big for Southern Arizona,” Laux said.

Luke said he was excited to represent the 520 area code in the Valley of the Sun.

“I think everybody looks down on Tucson as ‘oh you guys are just a bunch of little 520 boys, you guys can’t really do work,’ Luke said. “But what did we just do? We just proved you all wrong, every single one of you and I thank you for doing that. Thank you for doing that.”

Peace said he had been getting text messages, calls and social media interactions all week from those in the Southern Arizona football community.

“Last time I was here, Sun Devil Stadium didn’t work out so well, so we’re excited for Southern Arizona. That’s two state championships for our city,” Peace said.

“Without a doubt we’re proud to represent; this is a great moment for Tucson and Oro Valley and everybody.”

Peace improved to 2-1 in state championships games. CDO finished second to Scottsdale Saguaro in 2010. According to AllSportsTucson.com, Peace is the sixth Tucson area head coach to win multiple state titles; 2023 also marks just the third time ever, and first since 1976, where two Tucson-area teams won a state championship in the same season.

Back to homepage

Subscriber Login

Keep reading with a digital access subscription.

Subscribe now

“It’s about the kids and about our program I’m just blessed to be a part of this group,” Peace said. “They are 29 seniors that are special — you can see it on the field — and I’m lucky. I’m grateful, too, we all built this together.”

CDO’s seniors completed their final step: in 2021 they were 7-5 and made it to the state quarterfinals, in 2022 they went 10-3 and reached the state semifinals, falling 16-13 in overtime.

Many of the seniors have been playing together since they were with the Oro Valley Dolphins youth program.

“We were taking a step each year and taking those two steps this year to get to state and win it,” Laux said.

“It’s just awesome for our senior group, for all our coaching staff, a testament to our football program.”

Yuma Catholic quarterback Nash Ott was 21 for 40 for 295 yards, throwing a touchdown and an interception.

Daryl Coleman had nine catches for 105 yards and Sir Stokes 94 yards from four catches for the Shamrocks, who were also seeking their fourth state title.

Senior cornerback Izaiah Lucero led the way for CDO with eight tackles, followed by senior Grant Young with seven.

Young ended up having the game-winning score when he returned an interception 50 yards for a touchdown.

“We knew they did a lot of screens and we had put in a brand new technique this week called ‘drop’ where the ends drop out and they worked on that,” Peace said.

“So man, I think that worked. I’d love to see that on video, within the highlights for the rest of my life but that worked out real well for us.”

Extra points

Pusch Ridge Christian (at the Division IV level) was the last Tucson area team to win a state championship, in 2015, before Sabino won the 3A title last week. Canyon del Oro was a part of the two most recent seasons (1976 and 1977) where more than one Tucson-area team won a state football championship.

From 2016-21, local schools went 0-6 in state championship games, with Salpointe appearing three times and Catalina Foothills, Sabino and Pusch Ridge each finishing second once.

Canyon del Oro vs Yuma Catholic, 4A state championship (copy)

Canyon del Oro’s Sa’Kylee Woodard hoists teammate Chase Laux overhead celebrating Laux’s mazy run for pay dirt against Yuma Catholic.