Season recap: O'Connor
Eagles overcome rough start to win three straight including rivalry game
WEEKLY BLOG: 1/25/12
Sometimes it's not about the wins and losses, but the growth a team makes along the journey. This is especially true when it's facing adversity.
Sandra Day O'Connor moved up with the new realignment into the state's highest classification - Division I. The Eagles had a landmark season in 2010 going 11-1 and advancing to the Class 5A-II quarterfinals. Having to replace several starters from that senior-laden team proved to be a challenge along with a more daunting schedule.
Of the first five teams SDOHS faced, all five finished with winning records.
The Eagles fell to Pinnacle (9-3), 40-21 in the opening week on the road before losing another one to North Canyon (6-5), 29-7, the following week at home.
Pinnacle was the No. 6 seed in the Division I playoffs, while North Canyon drew the No. 14 seed.
Later in September, O'Connor dropped back-to-back games to Brophy and Boulder Creek and to make matters worse, the team was blanked in each one as the offense had difficulty moving the ball. A five-turnover night against BCHS dropped the Eagles to 0-5.
But, the Eagles didn't give up and fought on to salvage what they could out of the season. Positive results soon followed.
A trip to Prescott got the monkey off their back. The Eagles were greeted with threatening weather as thunder and lightning surrounded the area, but the stadium stayed dry and the defense came ready to play as the first quarter was a scoreless affair.
The Eagles got on the board in the second quarter on a long run by senior running back Zenas Morton. The game remained 7-0 until early in the fourth quarter when Prescott crossed the goal line. A bad snap on the extra point was the difference as O'Connor had its first win of the season, 7-6.
The following week, SDOHS took advantage of five Bradshaw Mountain turnovers in a 55-16 blasting of the Bears. Morton and Zach Rizzo each rushed for three touchdowns in the victory.
Coming off back-to-back wins, the Eagles traveled to Glendale to meet its Deer Valley district rival Mountain Ridge. Trailing 24-10 early in the fourth quarter, Rizzo and Morton each ran for scores with a three-and-out defensive stop in between to knot it up.
The Mountain Lions took the advantage once again with just under three minutes left to go ahead 31-24. Eagle quarterback Brendon Erickson completed passes on the pivotal drive to Austin Cotrell, Wes Meridith, and Jared Barinque. Rizzo charged into the end zone with just 30 seconds remaining and the extra-point kick sent it to overtime tied at 31.
MRHS scored a field goal on its possession and O'Connor knew what it needed on its turn. Two runs by Morton were the difference as the Eagles came away with a hard-fought 37-34 win, its third consecutive over the Mountain Lions.
The momentum didn't carry over into the Eagles' final two games and the team finished 3-7. Despite having its two-year playoff run come to an end, several players had highlight moments.
Erickson threw a touchdown pass in each game he played in (7 starts). Against Mountain Ridge, he had a season-best 251 yards.
Morton scored all six of his touchdowns in the Eagles' three-game win streak breaking the 100-yard mark in each one.
Meridith had a big night against his former school (Mountain Ridge) with seven catches for 104 yards.
Rizzo played on both sides of the ball and led the team in tackles with 124 (including 20 against Prescott). He also forced four fumbles.
Defensive back Ryan Elliot picked off a team-high three passes.
The scary news for the future of O'Connor is all five of the above players are seniors and won't be around to help the Eagles this August. All told, only 30 points (five touchdowns) were scored by underclassmen in the '11 season. But, those returners had a taste of victory with a strong three-game stretch and will know what it takes to regain that feeling.
SDOHS is working at getting stronger this winter as the January calendar has called for weight training four days a week. The sacrifices in the offseason could determine how well the Eagles do in 2012 facing the same schedule that includes Pinnacle, Brophy, and Centennial.
PHOTO CAPTION: The scoreboard in the north end zone at Sandra Day O'Connor in northwest Phoenix shows a good night for the hometown Eagles. The stadium is dedicated to its founding principal, the late Jack Dillard. His biggest challenge was to make all students successful. SDOHS will open the 2012 season on home turf against Pinnacle this August.
A great fundraising idea for your booster club:
Yes, that's right. My friend Mike over at Liberty Mutual will donate 10 bucks to your organization if you have him give you an insurance quote. Shoot him an e-mail at Mike.Denney@libertymutual.com and he'll give you some rates. Are you paying too much now?
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GRIDIRON ARIZONA POWER POINTS - 2011
(NOTE: These are not the official AIA ones)
| School | Record | Win Pts | Total Pts | AIA Games | Power Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Hamilton | 10-0 | 500 | 463.9 | 10 | 46.3930 |
| 2. | Brophy | 10-0 | 500 | 453.2 | 10 | 45.3248 |
| 3. | Desert Vista | 9-1 | 445 | 413.3 | 10 | 41.3300 |
| 4. | Desert Ridge | 8-2 | 400 | 403.2 | 10 | 40.3177 |
| 5. | Red Mountain | 8-2 | 400 | 389.0 | 10 | 38.9012 |
| 6. | Pinnacle | 8-2 | 400 | 387.8 | 10 | 38.7767 |
| 7. | Basha | 7-3 | 350 | 384.4 | 10 | 38.4431 |
| 8. | Westview | 8-2 | 400 | 380.6 | 10 | 38.0606 |
| 9. | Chandler | 7-3 | 350 | 373.5 | 10 | 37.3536 |
| 10. | Tucson | 7-3 | 350 | 370.0 | 10 | 36.9985 |
| 11. | Cibola | 8-2 | 400 | 364.2 | 10 | 36.4247 |
| 12. | Sunnyside | 7-3 | 350 | 360.5 | 10 | 36.0540 |
| 13. | Boulder Creek | 6-4 | 300 | 355.3 | 10 | 35.5272 |
| 14. | North Canyon | 6-4 | 300 | 351.8 | 10 | 35.1783 |
| 15. | Mountain Pointe | 6-4 | 300 | 350.0 | 10 | 35.0018 |
| 16. | Valley Vista | 7-3 | 345 | 337.9 | 10 | 33.7946 |
| Corona del Sol | 5-5 | 250 | 334.8 | 10 | 33.4845 | |
| St. Mary's | 5-5 | 250 | 326.0 | 10 | 32.6027 | |
| Gilbert | 5-5 | 250 | 325.7 | 10 | 32.5713 | |
| Mesquite | 3-7 | 150 | 311.4 | 10 | 31.1408 | |
| Alhambra | 6-4 | 295 | 305.2 | 10 | 30.5152 | |
| Desert Mountain | 4-6 | 200 | 296.7 | 10 | 29.6725 | |
| Tolleson | 5-5 | 250 | 292.9 | 10 | 29.2946 | |
| Mountain Ridge | 3-7 | 150 | 292.7 | 10 | 29.2653 | |
| Highland | 4-6 | 200 | 292.6 | 10 | 29.2617 | |
| O'Connor | 3-7 | 150 | 291.1 | 10 | 29.1130 | |
| Mesa Mountain View | 4-6 | 200 | 285.4 | 10 | 28.5440 | |
| Dobson | 3-7 | 150 | 267.6 | 10 | 26.7633 | |
| Mesa | 3-7 | 150 | 264.8 | 10 | 26.4842 | |
| Yuma | 3-7 | 150 | 263.4 | 10 | 26.3389 | |
| North | 4-6 | 200 | 263.4 | 10 | 26.3387 | |
| Buena | 3-7 | 150 | 256.5 | 10 | 25.6465 | |
| Central | 3-7 | 150 | 247.1 | 10 | 24.7076 | |
| Kofa | 2-8 | 100 | 244.1 | 10 | 24.4124 | |
| Carl Hayden | 3-7 | 150 | 238.9 | 10 | 23.8912 | |
| Skyline | 3-7 | 150 | 237.5 | 10 | 23.7473 | |
| Maryvale | 1-10 | 50 | 250.5 | 11 | 22.7772 | |
| Westwood | 1-9 | 50 | 224.9 | 10 | 22.4897 | |
| San Luis | 0-10 | 0 | 187.0 | 10 | 18.6955 | |
| Trevor Browne | 0-10 | 0 | 166.1 | 10 | 16.6082 | |
The AIA includes opponent's opponent's victory points in the power point calculations. The Gridiron Arizona mathematical model has made slight modifications to the formula. The official AIA power points determine the 16 teams that qualify for postseason play. This chart should prove to be very close to that of the AIA version. How close? Last season, my margin of error was 0.02 and all 16 of the Gridiron Arizona Power Point numbers matched the official AIA ones.
AIA FINAL RANKINGS:
1. Hamilton
2. Brophy
3. Desert Vista
4. Desert Ridge
5. Red Mountain
6. Pinnacle
7. Basha
8. Westview
9. Chandler
10. Tucson
11. Cibola
12. Sunnyside
13. Boulder Creek
14. North Canyon
15. Mountain Pointe
16. Valley Vista
Closest battle was for #5 where Red Mountain passed Pinnacle by 0.13 with the Pioneers' loss to Brophy. My margin of error was 0.02, so all 16 of the Gridiron Arizona Power Point numbers matched the official AIA ones!
| School | Record | Win Pts | Total Pts | AIA Games | Power Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Chaparral | 10-1 | 510 | 460.4 | 10 | 46.0395 |
| 2. | Cienega | 10-0 | 510 | 444.6 | 10 | 44.4550 |
| 3. | Salpointe | 9-1 | 455 | 442.5 | 10 | 44.2530 |
| 4. | Deer Valley | 9-1 | 455 | 433.4 | 10 | 43.3400 |
| 5. | Centennial | 9-1 | 455 | 430.2 | 10 | 43.0185 |
| 6. | Ironwood Ridge | 8-2 | 405 | 413.5 | 10 | 41.3460 |
| 7. | Marcos de Niza | 8-2 | 405 | 406.1 | 10 | 40.6055 |
| 8. | Perry | 8-2 | 405 | 398.8 | 10 | 39.8752 |
| 9. | Lake Havasu | 9-1 | 470 | 395.0 | 10 | 39.4968 |
| 10. | Canyon del Oro | 7-3 | 355 | 386.8 | 10 | 38.6835 |
| 11. | Apollo | 8-2 | 400 | 385.1 | 10 | 38.5090 |
| 12. | Willow Canyon | 7-3 | 355 | 377.6 | 10 | 37.7565 |
| 13. | Ironwood | 7-3 | 360 | 371.4 | 10 | 37.1438 |
| 14. | Notre Dame | 6-4 | 305 | 358.1 | 10 | 35.8145 |
| 15. | Sahuaro | 7-3 | 360 | 357.5 | 10 | 35.7485 |
| 16. | Gila Ridge | 7-3 | 380 | 356.3 | 10 | 35.6322 |
| Catalina Foothills | 5-5 | 250 | 355.2 | 10 | 35.5155 | |
| Millennium | 6-4 | 305 | 349.2 | 10 | 34.9215 | |
| Flowing Wells | 6-4 | 300 | 341.8 | 10 | 34.1750 | |
| Cesar Chavez | 7-3 | 350 | 339.9 | 10 | 33.9895 | |
| Fairfax | 7-3 | 360 | 337.9 | 10 | 33.7887 | |
| Horizon | 5-5 | 250 | 328.2 | 10 | 32.8150 | |
| Bradshaw Mountain | 6-4 | 290 | 315.2 | 10 | 31.5185 | |
| Camelback | 5-5 | 260 | 305.7 | 10 | 30.5683 | |
| Marana Mountain View | 4-6 | 200 | 304.3 | 10 | 30.4335 | |
| Kellis | 4-6 | 205 | 300.2 | 10 | 30.0172 | |
| Rincon | 4-6 | 200 | 284.3 | 10 | 28.4330 | |
| Shadow Mountain | 4-6 | 200 | 280.0 | 10 | 28.0040 | |
| Pueblo | 3-7 | 150 | 278.7 | 10 | 27.8690 | |
| McClintock | 3-7 | 150 | 278.5 | 10 | 27.8515 | |
| Prescott | 4-6 | 200 | 274.4 | 10 | 27.4435 | |
| Cactus Shadows | 3-7 | 150 | 271.7 | 10 | 27.1720 | |
| Santa Rita | 3-6 | 155 | 240.6 | 9 | 26.7378 | |
| Sunnyslope | 3-7 | 150 | 265.0 | 10 | 26.5020 | |
| Goldwater | 2-8 | 100 | 235.0 | 10 | 23.4985 | |
| Independence | 1-9 | 50 | 225.3 | 10 | 22.5330 | |
| Cholla | 1-9 | 50 | 220.1 | 10 | 22.0145 | |
| Marana | 0-10 | 0 | 210.9 | 10 | 21.0930 | |
| Kingman | 1-9 | 50 | 209.2 | 10 | 20.9215 | |
| La Joya | 0-10 | 0 | 200.8 | 10 | 20.0757 | |
| Desert View | 0-10 | 0 | 197.2 | 10 | 19.7165 | |
| South Mountain | 0-10 | 0 | 191.6 | 10 | 19.1595 | |
The AIA includes opponent's opponent's victory points in the power point calculations. The Gridiron Arizona mathematical model has made slight modifications to the formula. The official AIA power points determine the 16 teams that qualify for postseason play. This chart should prove to be very close to that of the AIA version. How close? Last season, my margin of error was 0.02 and once again, all 16 of the Gridiron Arizona Power Point numbers matched the official AIA ones.
AIA FINAL RANKINGS:
1. Chaparral
2. Cienega
3. Salpointe
4. Deer Valley
5. Centennial
6. Ironwood Ridge
7. Marcos de Niza
8. Perry
9. Lake Havasu
10. Canyon del Oro
11. Apollo
12. Willow Canyon
13. Ironwood
14. Notre Dame
15. Sahuaro
16. Gila Ridge
Closest battle was for #14 where Notre Dame got by Sahuaro by 0.07 with their win at Horizon. My margin of error was 0.02, so once again all 16 of the Gridiron Arizona Power Point numbers matched the official AIA ones! As an added bonus, my brackets were up at 11:35 pm (30+ minutes before the television show unveiled the brackets).
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