Raul Soto-Romero of Jet Sports Network talked with Jet Sports Training owner Bobby Rodriguez and me about this week’s matchups in the Southern Arizona high school football season in our weekly video podcast show.
VIDEO PODCAST
Interviews with Sahuarita coach Jake Allen and Palo Verde coach Jamal Chatman included.
AUDIO PODCAST
TACKLE WEEK TEN SCHEDULE
Games at 7 p.m. unless noted
THURSDAY’S FINAL SCORES
NON-REGION
2A: NR St. John Paul II 58, No. 50 Santa Rita 7
The Eagles end their season 0-10 and on a 24-game losing streak dating to 2021. The school record for a losing streak was 26 games from 2016 to 2019.
3A EAST
No. 4 Thatcher 40, No. 16 Sabino 0
Thatcher, on a six-game winning streak, has the automatic bid to the 3A state tournament by earning the 3A East title. Sabino (3-6) is on the fence to make the postseason. Playing Thatcher should boost the Sabercats’ power points, which is vital to their playoff hopes. Sabino, on a four-game losing streak, hosts Safford next week in its final regular season game.
FRIDAY
NON-REGION
5A: No. 6 Marana (7-1) at No. 16 Mountain View (5-3)
Mountain View holds a 14-5 lead in the Battle for the Boot series but Marana has won three of the last four meetings with Phillip Steward as head coach. Two of the best sophomore running backs in the state will share the field — Marana’s Jeffrey Smith III and Mountain View’s Drake Davis. The last time the schools played in the Battle for the Boot at Mountain View in 2023, the Mountain Lions pulled off a 42-35 upset. Marana regained the Boot last year with a 46-13 triumph at home.
6A SOUTHERN
No. 21 Mesa Westwood (3-4, 0-2) at No. 11 (Open Division) Salpointe (4-3, 0-2)
The Lancers have experienced tough consecutive region losses against Mesa and Chandler Basha, but they can right the ship and start thinking positively about the postseason with a win over Westwood at home.
5A SONORAN
No. 40 Ironwood Ridge (1-7, 1-3) at No. 22 Tucson (4-4, 3-2)
Playing at No. 6 Marana last week boosted the Badgers’ rating and power points as they went from No. 25 to No. 22. But playing a struggling Ironwood Ridge team could adversely affect their rating. A victory ahead of playing at No. 12 Scottsdale Cactus Shadows next week will help Tucson a great deal to make the top 24 that advance to the postseason.
No. 34 Vista Grande (3-5, 1-3) at No. 31 Casa Grande (3-5, 1-3)
The Casa Grande schools will meet as regional opponents for the first time after Vista Grande was elevated to 5A during the realignment in the spring. It is also the first meeting of the schools since the COVID-19-affected season of 2020. Vista Grande’s last win in the series was in the 2015 season opener.
No. 35 Canyon del Oro (3-5, 1-3) at No. 14 Buena (5-3, 3-1)
Buena’s last four regular-season games are against teams with losing records — Vista Grande, Casa Grande, CDO and Ironwood Ridge — but the Colts’ previous four games were against heavyweights ALA-Gilbert North, Tucson, Marana and Mesa Mountain View.
5A SOUTHERN
No. 2 Desert View (8-0, 4-0) at No. 19 Cienega (5-3, 3-1)
The Jaguars, off to a school-record start, will play at a Cienega team that has won five of its last six games, including its last three. Cienega lost against No. 1 Goodyear Desert Edge 25-0 at home on Sept. 5 and will now play the No. 2 team at home. Desert View can clinch its first region title since 1987 with a victory.
Desert View (8-0 overall, 4-0 5A Southern) can clinch its first region title since 1987 with a win tomorrow night at Cienega (5-3, 3-1). The Jaguars have already made history with their best start in program history. Desert View won its only region title (AAA South-II) in 1987,… pic.twitter.com/z3TDGZYz1H
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) October 24, 2025
No. 23 Sunnyside (4-4, 1-3) at No. 21 Flowing Wells (6-2, 2-2)
This is, for all intents and purposes, a playoff game. A victory will help that team stay among the top 24 qualifying spots for the state playoffs.
No. 18 Maricopa (5-3, 2-2) at No. 41 Nogales (2-6, 0-5)
Maricopa is going after its fourth straight win after head coach Tevin Rutherford stepped down (but is still at the school in and administrator’s role).
4A KINO
No. 33 Catalina Foothills (3-5, 1-2) at No. 11 Mica Mountain (6-2, 3-0)
Mica Mountain is on a four-game winning streak heading into its last home game of the regular season. The Thunderbolts’ two losses against ALA-West Foothills and Sunnyside were on the road by a touchdown or less, combined total of only 11 points.
No. 3 Sahuaro (6-2, 2-1) at No. 55 Amphitheater (2-6, 0-3)
The Cougars, who have won five of their last six games, will try to keep their region title hopes alive with a win at Amphi. Sahuaro has to avoid looking ahead to its huge home game with Mica Mountain next week to end the regular season.
No. 14 Walden Grove (5-3, 2-1) at No. 28 Douglas (4-3, 1-2)
Walden Grove will attempt to win its fourth straight game on the road, while the Bulldogs need a win to avoid a losing season for the third straight season.
4A GILA
No. 31 Sahuarita (4-4, 3-0) at No. 29 Pueblo (5-3, 3-0)
With the possibility of a playoff spot remote for both teams, a region title will be the next best thing and this game will decide it. Jake Allen returns to Pueblo for the first time in his second year at Sahuarita after his four-year stint with the Warriors from 2020 to 2023. He went 12-18 with Pueblo coming out of the COVID-19-affected season of 2020. Sly Lewis, a Pueblo alum who replaced Allen, has the Warriors on a five-game winning streak after the program lost 10 straight games between last year and the beginning of this season.
Empire (2-6, 2-1) at Rincon/University (2-5, 0-3)
Empire can clinch a winning season in region play with a victory.
Rio Rico (1-7, 0-3) at Cholla (3-5, 1-2)
Cholla has the opportunity to finish at .500 in Roland Youngling’s first season as a head coach. The last full season in which the Chargers did not suffer a losing season was in 2015, when they were 6-4 under Virgil Henderson.
3A EAST
No. 14 Florence (4-4, 2-2) at No. 23 Safford (2-6, 1-3)
Florence needs a win to keep its postseason hopes alive.
No. 28 San Tan Foothills (0-8, 0-4) at No. 19 Coolidge (4-4, 1-3)
Playing low-rated San Tan Foothills will not help Coolidge’s power points and hopes for a playoff berth but hosting Thatcher next week in the regular-season finale will.
BYE: Pusch Ridge (8-1)
2A SOUTH CROSSOVER GAMES
Championship: No. 5 Willcox (8-1) at No. 12 Tanque Verde (7-2)
The winner of this game gets the automatic bid to the 2A state playoffs. Willcox leads the series 10-1, including wins the last four years after it resumed being region foes with the Hawks.
Third place: No. 16 Benson (5-4) at No. 29 Palo Verde (6-3)
The biggest game at Palo Verde by far since the Titans played in the state semifinals in 2009, the last time they played in the postseason and earned a winning record. Jamal Chatman’s team has made history clinching a winning record despite the school not fielding a varsity team because of a lack of participation in 2021.
Fifth place: No. 17 Santa Cruz Valley (4-5) at No. 34 Bisbee (3-6)
Bisbee is in the spoiler role although Santa Cruz Valley’s rating might be high enough to qualify for the 24-team state playoff field, win or lose in this game.
Seventh place: No. 39 Desert Christian (3-5) at No. 45 Tombstone (1-7)
Desert Christian has the opportunity to win four games in its second year of existence, first at the 2A level after playing in 1A last year. That’s no small feat.
1A STATE PLAYOFFS
No. 11 San Manuel (4-5) at No. 6 Williams (5-4)
The programs meet for the first time after San Manuel makes the almost five-hour bus ride to northern Arizona.
No. 10 Valley Union (6-2) at No. 7 Ray (6-3)
The former 1A South foes (Ray moved to the 1A East this season) meet after playing each other earlier this season at Ray. The Blue Devils lost that game 36-34 in a thriller. Valley Union rushed for 385 yards and passed for 26 in that game while Ray passed for 325 yards and gained only 25 yards on the ground.
BYE: No. 3 St. David (7-2)/Hosts San Manuel-Williams winner in quarterfinals Oct. 31
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator in 2016 and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.
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