Chandler's Brett Hundley is serious about winning a state title as a senior.
Photo by James Conrad
senior quarterback
Brett Hundley got an all-expenses paid trip to Maui last weekend. But this was a business trip, not a vacation.
Hundley, one of the state’s top recruits, was one of seven high school quarterbacks to make the Maui cut from the more than 1,400 who began Steve Clarkson's 14-city "Dreammaker Tour."
The other six QBs chosen were: Kyle Boehm, Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.); Jerrard Randall, Chaminade-Madonna (Hollywood, Fla.); Bennie Coney, Plant City (Plant City, Fla.); Jeff Lindquist, Mercer Island (Mercer Island, Wash.); Max Wittek, Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.); and Jacoby Brissett, Dwyer (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.).
Clarkson's Super 7 alumni include stars like Matt Leinart, Jimmy Clausen and Matt Barkley. In three days in Maui, Hundley participated in drills and chalkboard sessions at the Grand Wailea in Maui. Among the teachers were Leinart and Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana.
"I’m just a high school quarterback and Joe Montana has already done all the things that everybody else in my sport wishes they could," Hundley said moments before boarding a plane back to Phoenix on Monday night. "Sometimes, when he was talking I’d be like, 'Wow, I’m getting coached by this guy.'
"He was such a great guy. He taught me a lot. All the coaches taught me a lot, and when you have veteran guys like Joe and Matt and Steve teaching you, you learn a whole lot more."
The 6-foot-3, 210-pound Hundley topped 1,000 yards passing and rushing last season when he led Chandler to the Class 5A Division I state semifinals. He is still considering offers from UCLA, Washington, Arizona, Texas A&M and Oregon. But those thoughts are far from his mind as he prepares to begin his senior season July 26 at Chandler, which runs on a year-round class schedule.
"I want to win a state championship and I’m very serious about that," he said. "But I just want to live life and enjoy me senior year. High school has gone by so quick. I want to make sure I have fun this last year."
The Wolves open training camp in Snowflake, Ariz., on Monday.
AIA sued
Three families with sons in the Cesar Chavez (Laveen, Ariz.) football program are suing the Arizona Interscholastic Association for relief from its probation penalty.
The families want the penalty lifted, charging that the AIA acted in an "arbitrary and capricious" manner when it placed the program on probation after an investigation of recruiting charges. The lawsuit also contends that AIA Executive Director Harold Slemmer had a conflict of interest.
Cesar Chavez was placed on probation for one year after a North (Phoenix, Ariz.) player said a Cesar Chavez coach attempted to recruit him. The school and the Phoenix Union High School District filed the report.
Slemmer used to coach against Cesar Chavez coach Jim Rattay while the two were at competing Ahwatukee schools Mountain Pointe (Phoenix, Ariz.) and Desert Vista (Phoenix, Ariz.). The suit claims Slemmer's dislike for Rattay is an "open secret" in Arizona high school football circles.
The Cesar Chavez parents representing their sons in the lawsuit are Terry Cobb, Willy and Artimesa Ruiz and Francisco and Ramona Sanchez.
The AIA has requested that the lawsuit be dismissed. The first hearing for the case is scheduled for July 13.
MLK: Part III
Mesa district athletic director Steve Hogen and Mesa Parks and Recreation Coordinator Marc Beasley are adding another tournament to their portfolio. The Mesa Summer PrimeTime will run June 24-25, 2011 at Mesa Community College and will include eight of the state's best teams in a bracket-style format with four games guaranteed.
Beasley and Hogen already oversee the Martin Luther King Classic, the Junior College MLK and the VisitMesa.com Arizona Basketball Challenge tourneys.
Offensive lure
Over the past several seasons, there has been no Arizona offense more exciting than the one at Desert Ridge (Mesa, Ariz.). So it’s understandable why junior quarterback Parker Rasmussen couldn’t resist a chance to transfer into the Jaguars’ program.
Rasmussem led Highland (Gilbert, Ariz.) in rushing and passing yards per game last year. He was 71 for 146 for 896 yards, with eight touchdowns and nine interceptions. He also carried 104 times for 510 yards and a touchdown. He was the quarterback for Desert Ridge at the recent Fiesta Bowl 7-on-7 Tournament at Brophy Sports Complex.
Kevin Pantastico, Desert Ridge's quarterback the past two years, graduated in the spring. He averaged nearly 266 yards per game in the Jaguars' pass-oriented offense. Highland runs an option attack, limiting the passing opportunities.
Nike Web Nationals
Chandler Club won the Nike Track Nationals girls championship July 2 at the University of Oregon's Hayward Field in Eugene. Chandler, which scored 7,721.65 points in decathlon-style scoring, took all five field events, led by Hannah Carson in the shot put and discus. Jasmine Todd won the long jump, Cadija Harris won the high jump and Haley Bowser won the pole vault.
Todd, the Gatorade Arizona Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year, also was third in the 100 meters.
All seven of Chandler's athletes return next high school season.
Recruiting news
The Arizona Republic reports that Chaparral (Scottsdale, Ariz.) senior offensive tackle Andre Yruretagoyena (6-4, 270) has committed to Oregon. Yruretagoyena's father, stepmother and brother all live in Oregon.
Also from The Republic, Louisiana State could be the next major college football program to give a verbal scholarship offer to Chaparral junior receiver/defensive back Davonte' Neal.
Mountain Pointe (Phoenix, Ariz.) safety/linebacker Izzy Marshall told The Republic that Boise State has pulled its scholarship offer from him. Marshall doesn't have the money to visit Boise, Idaho, this summer on an unofficial trip, and he wanted to at least look at the school before committing.
Craig Morgan is a freelance writer who has covered professional, college and high school sports in the Phoenix area for the past 18 years. He currently serves as the Phoenix correspondent for CBSSports.com, covering the Arizona Cardinals and other local teams. He also writes a weekly column and other features for The Arizona Republic. You can reach him at craig@wordsmithonline.com.
