Canyon del Oro’s Vijay King catches a pass while warming up for a November 2021 game against Sahuaro. Fast-forward to 2023, and King's two catches for 103 yards (and 23 yards rushing) helped the Dorados get to a 2-0 start this season via a 42-7 win over Prescott Valley Bradshaw Mountain last week.Β 

 Rebecca Sasnett, Arizona Daily Star 2021

Team of the week

Canyon del Oro went up to Prescott Valley Bradshaw Mountain and crushed what is likely the best team in the North, 42-7.

CDO senior Kayden Luke ran for 153 yards on 15 carries, scoring twice. CDO senior receiver/running back Vijay King caught two passes for 103 yards and rushed twice for 23 yards.

On defense, the Dorados had eight sacks.

Dezmen Roebuck

BM is so highly regarded that all four arizonavarsity.com writers had the Bears in their top six in 4A despite the loss. In its first game of the season, Bradshaw Mountain beat Snowflake 24-14. Snowflake knocked CDO out the state tournament last year, 16-13 in overtime in the semifinals.

Recruiting trail

Marana heads north to face Gilbert Higley (2-0) on Friday. The Knights boast a pair of three-star defensive back recruits in safety Donovan Aidoo and corner back Nijrell Eason II. Aidoo is undecided, and Eason is committed to UNLV. Marana junior receiver Dezmen Roebuck is a three-star recruit and visited UA for the NAU game.

Stat book

Samario Garcia

Salpointe Catholic senior running back Jaxson Banhie ran for 168 yards and three touchdowns on nine carries in the Lancers’ 52-21 win at Mission Hills (Calif.) Bishop Alemany. His 18.7 yards per carry were reminiscent of another Salpointe No. 5, Atlanta Falcon Bijan Robinson.

Cienega quarterback Evan Weber went 12 for 18 for 193 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions in the Bobcats’ 30-17 win over Phoenix Paradise Valley. Weber also punted three times for an average of 47.3 yards, including a 59-yarder.

Sunnyside senior running back Samario Garcia ran for 113 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries in the Blue Devils’ 28-10 win at Flowing Wells. Sunnyside junior running back Jordan Barron rushed for 100 yards on 19 carries.

Quotable

“I’m just blessed that my kids came to play,” Cholla head coach Virgil Henderson told AllSportsTucson.com. “I was worried because it was a long two-hours-and-45-minute bus ride, and when you make that long trip, how is your team going to come off the bus? How is your team going to perform?”

Virgil Henderson

The Chargers beat Phoenix Maryvale 21-8 to start the season 2-0 for the third time in 21 years. Cholla faces rival Pueblo (1-1) on Friday at home.

Going social

β€œThe 5A Southern Region went a perfect 6-0 last night. Victories by Buena, Casa Grande, Cienega, Desert View, Marana, and Sunnyside.”

β€” @GridironArizona posted on X/Twitter. Conversely, the 5A Sonoran Region (featuring the likes of Tucson High, Ironwood Ridge, Nogales, Flowing Wells and Mountain View) went 1-5.

Next level

Sabino alum William Urbina started as a true freshman at center for Western New Mexico on Saturday. His protection and work with WNMU quarterback Devin Larsen helped Larsen earn Lone Star Conference Player of the Week honors after he passed for 396 yards and six scores in the Mustangs’ win 42-28 win over Sul Ross State.



Games of the week

Sabino (3-0) at Mica Mountain (2-0)

Location: 10800 E. Valencia Road

Mica Mountain cruised by Gilbert Mesquite 34-12 to set up an undefeated East Side matchup. Javier Morales of AllSportsTucson.com noted the Thunderbolts’ sideline chatter after the Arizona Republic picked Mesquite to win that game. Meanwhile, Sabino is outscoring foes 127-54 so far this season. Mica Mountain assistant principal Jay Campos worked at Sabino for 19 years, serving as head football coach for 14.

Desert View (2-0) at Canyon del Oro (2-0)

Location: 25 W. Calle Concordia

Desert View looks to avenge last season’s 38-7 loss at CDO and bolster its playoff rΓ©sumΓ© after going 6-3 in 2022 but missing the postseason. The Jaguars opened the season with a pair of wins against Phoenix-area schools β€” 26-25 over Surprise Willow Canyon and 25-7 over Phoenix North. The Dorados of CDO beat last year’s 3A champion, Mesa Eastmark, 21-14 in their opener.



Inside the video vault

Check out these highlights from last week’s all-Southern Arizona matchup that saw Buena come from behind to defeat Ironwood Ridge on the road, 35-20.(tncms-asset)1e9efc35-b26b-5242-ac98-60263e853003[3](/tncms-asset)(tncms-asset)7bae0476-ae87-5d45-b4b6-d1b16d550956[4](/tncms-asset)(tncms-asset)7a89b0bf-3d26-5b4b-aeb6-be2ee2b341ab[5](/tncms-asset)(tncms-asset)f9758b0c-9d78-5b71-90bc-b1b63f1eed73[6](/tncms-asset)(tncms-asset)4df12c51-2246-53ff-aed6-65b63284b218[7](/tncms-asset)(tncms-asset)b54c4d95-5042-506d-91d9-26216177f3f7[8](/tncms-asset)

It looked like Ironwood Ridge would take the lead, but Buena forced a fumble at the goal line in a big momentum shift during the Colts eventual 35-20 win over the Nighthawks Sept. 1, 2023. Video by James Kelley/Special to the Arizona Daily Star

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