Sports360AZIt is important to understand that this week determines the final power points and seeding for the playoffs. I can’t emphasize how important if you aren’t seeded number one or two, how critical what seed you end up. Which bracket you fall into can determine your team’s chances of reaching the state championship game. If you aren’t a coach or athletic director, you may not realize how many times coaches calculate and recalculate what seed would be most advantageous to their team’s success. With that said, here are critical games that should be worthwhile to attend Friday night and who knows, maybe the temperature at kickoff will be under 90 degrees.
Division I
1. #13 Corona at #1 Hamilton
2. #14 Sunnyside vs #31 Buena
3. #15 North Canyon vs. #30 North
4. #16 Mesquite vs #5 (Div. II) Deer Valley
5. #17 Cibola vs #39 San Luis
Division II
1. #13 Gila Ridge at #8 Lake Havasu
2. #14 Chavez at #7 Marcos
3. #15 Flowing Wells at #11 (Div. I) Tucson
4. #16 Ironwood at #4 Centennial
5. #17 Perry at #29 McClintock
6. #18 Notre Dame at #20 Horizon
Division III
1. #14 Desert Edge at #40 Sierra Linda
2. #15 Poston Butte vs #34 Apache Junction
3. #16 Sahuarita at #37 Catalina
4. #17 Paradise Valley vs #9 (Div. IV) Fountain Hills
5. #18 Higley at #8 Arcadia
Now, one other game that a couple of you might want to go watch is Division III #2 Saguaro (8-1) at Division II #1 Chaparral (9-1), now this is a big game for every reason other than the seeding purposes. You might say, I don’t think John and Charlie will be in the same foursome playing golf next Sunday!
Sermonette 37 B: As another high school season winds down, come Saturday morning there will only be sixteen teams at each division still playing (there are approximately forty schools at each division level). So, if your only criteria for determining who has the best program in the state, is who wins the state championship, then there will only be five such programs (each of the five division champions).
I would like to argue that there are more components of what makes a quality program than just being a state champion. I have had the opportunity to play on a state championship team, be an assistant on a state championship team and be the head coach of a state championship team; I can assure you that there are many facets to what constitutes a quality program.
Character, overcoming obstacles, persistence, camaraderie, unselfishness, are just some of the qualities of a great program. There are more qualities of a good program, I don’t have the time or the space to go into them.
Now, there are teams who win state championships that are quality teams, it is possible to do both, and that is exciting. Just remember these are some of the components of what quality programs consist, winning is important but it isn’t the only trait of quality program.
Just maybe your son is a better young man for having played football? Hopefully, he will have far more positive memories from his high school experience than whether he won a state championship or not.
