Centennial earns 4th straight semifinal bid with blowout

In their final home game of the 2007 season the Centennial Coyotes made big play after big play Friday night in advancing to the program’s fourth consecutive state semifinal.

The first half highlight reel displayed the Coyotes quick stike ability as their seniors led the way with an oslaught that include:

-51 and 54 yard runs from senior quarterback Scott Burgett

-34 and 48 yard touchdown runs by senior running back Jeff Hughes

-a 22-yard interception return for a score by senior defensive back Jarrell Barbour

Amazingly none of the above plays counted as all five were called back on penalties.

“I thought our team was very focused in spite of the penalties,” Centennial coach Dick Taylor said. “It would have been very easy to come unraveled and lose our concentration, but the players kept fighting.”

In a game where the officials were a bigger obstacle than the No. 8 Desert Ridge Jaguars (7-5) the top seed rolled to a 51-8 victory setting up a Nov. 30 semifinal matchup against No. 5 Sunnyside in what will be a rematch of last year’s championship game. That game will be played at a neutral, yet to be determined, site.

In getting to the semis a business-like Centennial offense kept plugging away hoping at some point the officials would approve of their touchdowns as they still took a 31-0 lead to the halftime locker room.

Despite having already beaten Desert Ridge earlier in the year, by a count of 34-0, Centennial came out strong in the game’s first 24 minutes.

While he saw 82 yards and two touchdowns taken off his stat line due to holding penalties Hughes still finished the night with 90 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries in the first half.

“We were a little frustrated with some of the calls, but we toned it down a little and did what we had to do,” Hughes said. “We prepare week by week, team by team, and try to be ready for whatever teams throw at us.”

On this night throw would be the operative word.

Desert Ridge quarterback Josh Cain entered the game having averaged more than 300 yards passing per game by completing 66 percent of his passes for 28 touchdowns. Friday he and his teammates would get virtually nothing accomplished against a Centennial defense that kept a shutout intact until the 3:02 mark of the fourth quarter, long after the starters had left the game.

“You don’t see teams pass as much as they do,” said senior defensive back Zach Hawley of Cain’s 28-of-61 performance. “We knew they liked to go deep so we tried to take that away from them.”

That they would do. Along with the interception return for a touchdown that Barbour had called back he did get one that counted, joining senior Kirk Kreipel and junior John Hughes with interceptions.

Hughes, a junior, had his interception at the midway point of the third quarter and Centennial leading 30-0. Following a questionable, at best, pass interference call on the Coyotes Desert Ridge had the ball in the redzone with a first down on the Coyotes 15.

Instead of getting on the scoreboard though Hughes stepped in front of a Cain effort and went 90 yards down the north sideline to make the score 37-0.

“We practiced real hard to prepare for this offense and it paid off,” Hughes said. “The defense is always trying to get shutouts and I think that’s why we don’t let down even when we go up by a lot. As soon as I caught the ball I was thinking I could score. It was a big play.”

While the defense narrowly missed out on a school record-setting seventh shutout on the season the offense was also effective.

Jeff Hughes would break open the scoring just five minutes into the game carrying the ball all four times on a drive that went 57 yards. He capped things with an 8-yard touchdown run.

Burgett would make sure the Jaguars defense had more to worry about than Hughes as he would go up top to Barbour for a 34-yard touchdown later in the quarter to make the score 13-0.

The Coyotes star quarterback, who didn’t throw a pass in the second half, finished the night 7-of-11 for 91 yards a touchdown pass and a touchdown rushing, closing the first half with a 5-yard scramble to the south pylon as time expired leaving little doubt about the game’s outcome.

Hawley said his team isn’t willing to take anything to chance.

“We view every team as a potential threat,” he said.

And in explaining the efficient, quick strike nature of his team, which has made a habit of putting teams away early, the senior had an easy explanation.

“I’ve never been around a group that was as self-motivated as these guys,” he said.

Fellow senior Jordan Rooks, a linebacker, agreed.

“We know it is win or go home and these seniors definitely don’t want to leave with anything less than another championship,” he said.