BATTLE OF STATE CHAMPS
Final score: Brophy Prep (Phoenix, Ariz.) 16, Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) 6.
Offensive stars: Brophy - TE A.J. Steimel (four catches, 38 yards, 1 TD). Gorman - QB Joe Huber 79-yard TD run.
Defensive stars: Brophy - DE Trent Murphy (3 sacks, 1 blocked extra point), LB Mathew Padilla (12 tackles, 1 sack), LB Brandon Bayardi (interception). Gorman - DL Miles Langston and DE Justin Chaisson (fumble recoveries), Trevor Stuart (interception).
Key stat: Other than Huber’s TD, Gorman managed just 46 yards on 51 plays.
Key play: Senior QB Beau Maggi completes 8-yard TD pass to Steimel with 54 seconds to play to seal win.
More stories on the game: Game preview, Tribute to Barry Sollenberger
Video/interviews: Click here.
By Mitch Stephens
MaxPreps.com
GLENDALE, Ariz. – It was neither crisp nor pretty or all that exciting for that matter. Certainly not by state championship standards.
But Brophy Prep of Phoenix’s 16-6 victory over Bishop Gorman of Las Vegas in a battle of defending state champs was by all standards hard hitting, defensive and a fight to the finish.
In the third annual Barry Sollenberger Classic before about 8,000 fans at lush and spacious University of Phoenix Stadium, Brophy gave up one big play – a 79-yard touchdown keeper by Joe Huber in the first quarter – but just 46 yards on the other 51 plays.
The Broncos, with eight returners on defense, swarmed and stuck an inexperienced Gorman squad, which graduated all its skill position players off last year’s 14-0 Nevada 4A state title team.
Brophy sacked two Gorman quarters six times, including three by 6-foot-6 defensive end Trent Murphy, who also blocked an extra point. The Broncos, which returned just three starters on offense from last year, rode its strength to victory.
“Our defense came up huge and kept us in the ball game all the way along,” Brophy coach Scooter Molander said. “We won a tight ball game and I was proud of our guys getting a touchdown late to seal it.”
Brophy, which squandered great field position all night and finished with just 221 yards, finally put it away on an 8-yard touchdown pass from senior backup quarterback Beau Maggi to junior tight end A.J. Steimel with 54 seconds to play.
Steimel, who led all receivers with four catches for 36 yards, scored his first varsity touchdown.
“Typically I’m used more as a blocking tight end but whatever works,” said a giddy Steimel afterward. “I was open at the time and give all the credit to Beau. He made a heck of a pass.”
Steimel was understandably star struck after the game. He played sparingly at the same beautiful facility where the NFL Cardinals play and watched from the sideline almost all of Brophy’s state 5A championship victory over Desert Vista nine months earlier.
But on Saturday, Steimel was his team’s most visible offensive weapon. First-year quarterbacks Maggi and Sam Quinif, who combined to 14 of 21 for 119 yards, looked to the 6-foot-4, 225-pound junior most of the night.
It was a pretty and memorable place to score a first varsity touchdown.
“Honestly I can’t explain or describe it,” Steimel said. “It’s just a great feeling. … Honestly though, we have to give all the credit to the defense. They held us in the entire game. The TD was just icing on the cake.”
Indeed both defenses deserved some sort of dessert, as the teams combined for just 346 yards and 13 first downs.
Led by Murphy, an impressive 6-foot-6, 230-pound defensive end, all-state linebacker Matt Padilla and defensive end Oluwesyl Adebayo, the Broncos gave up just 125 yards and other than Huber’s TD jaunt, Gorman managed just two yards rushing on 29 carries.
Brophy controlled the line against a team that returned five starters on the offensive front.
“We played hard, we hit them in the mouth and they just couldn’t run the ball,” Padilla said. “We really disrupted all their plays and forced them to pass which is really not their game.”
Gorman, led by defensive end Xavier Grimble, linebacker Raphel Finley and Oklahoma-bound defensive end Justin Chaisson, somehow stayed in the game despite the offensive woes and a nightmarish punting game.
Besides a poor punt snap that led to Brophy’s first touchdown, Gorman managed three other punts of 10 yards or less. That led to Brophy drives starting on the Gorman 29, 49, 49 and 41. The Broncos also started four other drives at their own 40 or better.
Gorman’s defense, which also forced three turnovers, definitely deserved a better fate.
“We had some great hits and took it to them and forced them to struggle also offensively,” Gorman coach Bob Altshuler said. “We definitely had two great defenses out there.”
And clearly, two young offenses. The teams had just a combined one skill player returning from last year’s squads. Combine that with this being an early season-opener under the spotlight in an NFL stadium and this was a predictably less than perfect showing.
“We shot ourselves in the foot more than once,” Molander said. “But at the end of the day, the reality is we have a bunch of young guys (on offense) so we’ve got to come together a little bit. We had 19 days to prepare so it’s going to be sloppy. Do we accept it, heck no. Then again, if you like defensive football, we really came out to play tonight.”
Altshuler also took away positives.
“We knew coming in we were playing one of the top defensive teams if not the best defensive team we’ll face all year,” he said. “It’s easy to say we didn’t move the ball and do some things we should have and that’s true. But we played a national caliber team and we came out healthy.”
A poor Gorman punt snap resulted in a 26-yard loss and led to Brophy’s first touchdown drive, a 29-yarder in six plays capped by a 5-yard TD run from Max Leonesio with 4:56 left in the first quarter.
On third and goal, Leonesio took a pitch from Quinif, swept left, cut inside and just got in giving the Broncos a 7-0 lead.
“That was a good start,” Molander said.
Two possessions later, it was not so good for Brophy as Gorman senior quarterback Huber faked an inside handoff, raced past an over-pursing defense and raced 79 yards, cutting the deficit to 7-6 with 1:29 left in the first quarter.
Brophy coaches had warned all week to wrap up and not to over pursue against the fleet Gaels. On the TD, nobody even touched Huber.
“Joe read it and busted it,” Altshuler said. “He’s got 4.6 speed and was able to run past those guys.”
Said Padilla, who had 12 tackles and a key sack in the fourth quarter: “We didn’t do our assignments on that play and he was gone. We fixed it though. We barked at each other a little and pulled each other up.”
The extra point was blocked by Murphy, leaving Brophy up by a point.
“Murphy was everywhere,” Padilla said.
Brophy dominated field possession the rest of the half but couldn’t take advantage until Huber, also the team’s punter, took a safety with 3:03 left in the half.
Back-to-back sacks by Murphy, put the ball at the Gorman 1 and rather than risk a punt block, Huber took the snap and dropped into the end zone, giving Brophy a 9-6 lead, one which it took into halftime and would never relinquish.
Neither team really threatened to score in the second half – no one got within the other team’s 34-yard line – until Brophy’s final possession when it took over at the Gorman 41 after yet another short punt.
A big third-down 22-yard completion from Maggi to Max Eller put the ball at the 13 and two plays later, Steimel put it away with his TD grab.
“I think we just kind of wanted it more than they did,” Adebayo said.
The Brophy defense came up with one last big play as senior linebacker Brandon Bayardi intercepted a Chase Cresto pass and actually returned it 25 yards for a touchdown.
The score was nullified by a clip, but Brophy then ran out the clock.
"Our defense was big all the way to the end," Molander said.
Gorman players didn't hang their heads afterward.
“Our defense was at the top of their game but we just have to go back to practice and go harder and fix all the mistakes,” Gorman tight end and linebacker Grimble said.
Altshuler is confident they will.
“The positive is we got game experience for all those new faces,” he said. “I’m awfully proud of the kids and we got to put it behind us and get on to the next game and get better. That’s going to happen.
“The thing is we didn’t just play any old team from our home state. We challenged ourselves and played the 5A champions from Arizona.”
E-mail Mitch Stephens at mstephens@maxpreps.com.
Brophy Prep 16, Bishop Gorman 6
Gorman 6 0 0 0 - 6
Brophy 7 2 0 7 - 16
First quarter
B – Max Leonesio 5 run (Alex Garoutte kick), 4:56
G – Joe Huber 79 run (kick blocked), 1:29
Second quarter
B – Safety, Huber falls in end zone, 3:03
Fourth quarter
B – A.J. Steimel 8 pass from Beau Maggi (Garoutte kick), :54
TEAM STATISTICS
First downs: Brophy 6, Gorman 7
Rushing attempts/yards: Brophy 28-102, Gorman 30-81
Passing attempts: Brophy 14-21-1-119, Gorman 8-22-1-44
Sacks: Brophy 6, Gorman 0
Total yards: Brophy 221, Gorman 125
Plays: Brophy 51, Gorman 52
Turnovers: Brophy 3, Gorman 1
Penalties: Brophy 8-71, Gorman 6-42.
