National Signing Day begins Feb. 3 for those signing their names to National Letters of Intent in football, soccer, track and field and cross country. Football power Peoria Centennial expects to lead the charge with offensive lineman Nick Rowland (Oregon), two-way lineman Dylan Lusk (New Mexico State), offensive lineman Junior Nieves (Northern Colorado), linebacker Austin Arias (Air Force or UNLV), quarterback Dain McFarland and wide receiver Matt Baugh all likely to ink their names.
If talented Centennial running back Anthony Hughes passes his college-entrance exam, he could also garner a number of offers. So far, only Northern Arizona has made Hughes an offer as others schools take a wait-and-see approach.
Other top storylines from the week
2. Charging ahead:
Tempe McClintock is in high gear with just five games remaining in the regular season. The Chargers got 26 points from 6-foot-5 junior guard Cameron Forte and 18 from Terrin Elam in a 73-66 victory over Scottsdale Saguaro on Tuesday that clinched the Class 4A Desert Sky Region title. McClintock has won five straight games, including a 70-52 rout
Phoenix Sunnyslope on Martin Luther King Day. Sunnyslope had been The Arizona Republic’s No. 1 4A-I team. McClintock is now.
3. Tigers roar back: Ausha Cole led a balanced attack with 12 points as Gilbert, MaxPreps’ No. 3 girls basketball team, rallied to top No. 2 Mesa Dobson, 58-45, in a key 5A Central Region game Tuesday at Gilbert. The Tigers trailed 36-30 midway through the third, before putting the defensive clamps on the Mustangs. Gilbert leads the region race at 7-1 with state title contenders Mesa Mountain View, Gilbert Highland and Dobson all lumped right behind the Tigers.
4. Refocused Red Mountain: The
Mesa Red Mountain wrestling team had little trouble coasting to a 25-0 overall record this season. But the Mountain Lions got a wake-up call in their own tournament last weekend. Mesa Desert Ridge stunned the Mountain Lions in the opening match, 34-32. Red Mountain, The Arizona Republic’s No. 4 5A-I team, rallied to win its remaining four matches but still finished fourth at the Nate Johnson Memorial Wrestling Tournament. Mesa Dobson won the event.
5. Bad decision: Chandler High School has suspended boys basketball coach Mike Ellsworth for the remainder of the season for
posting a note on the coaches' office window that criticized four players who recently quit the team (7-13). The note included the words: "Chandler's quitters" and "don't be one of them."
The Fab 5
1. Corey Hawkins, Goodyear Estrella Foothills, Sr., G: OK. We admit Hawkins is here every week. But how can we leave him off? Check out his most recent three-game stretch: 38 points against Phoenix South Pointe, 56 points and seven 3-pointers against Buckeye, and 43 points against Wickenburg. Any arguments?
2. Brian Shrader, Flagstaff Sinagua, cross country: Shrader didn’t run a race this month, but he added to his hardware case when he was named the Gatorade Arizona Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year. Shrader, a three-time state champ, won the Foot Locker West Regional and finished fifth in the Foot Locker National Championship last month.
3. Rasta Nashio, Whiteriver Alchesay, Sr., G: Capped a run of three straight games with 30-plus points with 39 in a tough, 69-65 loss to Holbrook, the Arizona Republic’s No. 4 3A team.
4. Daniel Bejarano, Phoenix North, Sr., G/F: The University of Arizona commit had 30 points, including five 3-pointers in a 74-51 rout of Phoenix Maryvale.
5. Terrell Stoglin, Tucson Santa Rita, Sr., G: Scored 21 points (and had seven assists) on Friday to become the city of Tucson's all-time leading scorer with 2,556 points. He broke the city record of 2,535, held by Charles Overton of Tucson Cholla (1989-92).
On deck
A host of teams are jockeying for playoff position and playoff berths as Arizona enters the final week of the regular season in wrestling, boys and girls soccer. A week’s worth of rain will make this week all the more pressure-packed since many teams will play multiple games in an effort to make up cancelled contests. The soccer state tournaments begin Feb. 2 and 3, while the individual state wrestling tournament opens Feb. 11.
Recruiting news
Phoenix Brophy Prep kicker Alex Garoutte committed play football for Arizona State. Garoutte made 15 field goals this season, including three beyond 50 yards.
Craig's cranium
I’ve been asked by a number of people, locally, if I think Hawkins will make a good college player at Arizona State. My honest answer? Who knows? With a few exceptions, predicting what players will do on the bigger stage is a crapshoot – and anyone who tells you otherwise is either a scout, a college coach or an egomaniac.
Here’s what I do know about Hawkins: He can shoot. Man, can he shoot. From the perimeter. From the foul line. From just about anywhere. It remains to be seen how well he will be able to create his own shot in college, and in particular, if he will be able to get to the rim. But, by all accounts, he’s a terrific kid, coachable, humble and hard working. If he does nothing more than space the floor for ASU coach Herb Sendek with his dead-eye aim, he will benefit the Sun Devils. But Hawkins’ penchant for elevating his game against higher-class teams the past two years suggests another quality that is impossible to teach. And with a coach as capable as Sendek, optimism is warranted.
Craig Morgan is a freelance writer who has covered professional, college and high school sports in the Phoenix area for the past 17 years. He currently serves as the Phoenix correspondent for CBSSports.com, covering the Arizona Cardinals, Phoenix Suns and other pro and college teams in Arizona. He also writes a weekly column and other features for The Arizona Republic. You can reach him at
craig@thewordsmithonline.com.
