Arizona: Military Background Shapes Saguaro Football

As a Marine, John Sanders lived up to the meaning of Semper Fidelis - “Often Tested, Always Faithful, Brothers Forever.”

As the head football coach at Arizona’s Saguaro High School, Sanders makes sure his players live up to the creed of always being faithful in a variety of ways.

“I can’t help but be effected being a recon Marine,” Sanders said. “I am an old-school guy. I believe in hard work and discipline, and I believe my experience as a Marine carries over to the football field. We have a motto of  ‘Take the Extra Step,’ which is meant to be carried out in all aspects of life. Also, I have a ‘Front Row Policy’ with our players. They may not always like it, but they sit in the front row of all their classes. All of our players go both ways and they are warrior ready.”

While Sanders’ ways may sometimes be met with grumbling from his players, the Sabercats cannot argue with the fact that the coach’s methodology has added up to three consecutive Arizona Division I titles, 33 consecutive wins, the school’s first ever top 30 national ranking by MaxPreps and more than 20 Division I coaches paying visit to the small school in Scottsdale.

Core Values

The tradition of representing Saguaro on the gridiron begins with Sanders, who was the team’s defensive coordinator for five years before taking over the top job in 2007.

With more than 30 years in the coaching business, including stops at Boise State, the University of San Diego, University of Colorado, the USFL’s L.A. Express and the Houston Oilers, the former safety and captain at the University of Southern Utah wasted little time putting his stamp on the program.

In his first season at the helm, the Sabercats went 14-0, and it has been nothing but wins ever since.

“I’ve coached all over,” Sanders said. “This past year, I got to call the defense for the Under-Armour All-American Bowl Game in Florida. I can tell you that Arizona high school football has improved over the last three to five years and we rank in the top 10.”

 

And while the numbers speak for themselves when it comes to the Sabercats, Sanders acknowledges there are no secrets.

“Our core values are what make our program special,” he said. “There is a commitment from the coaches to the players. When I got here it wasn’t always that way, but we have turned the corner. Everyone has bought in. The kids on this team are hard workers and fighters.”

The hard work, dedication and commitment to excellence amounted to another state title in 2008 as the Sabercats thumped rival Scottsdale Chaparral 38-0 in the title tilt at Sun Devil Stadium.

 

It was the second of the season over Chaparral as Saguaro outscored its rival 58-0 during the regular season.

In the game, Erik Brown, who is headed to Fresno State, rushed for 199 yards, while Beau Burton notched 138. The Sabercats’ defense had four interceptions.

 

“We pride ourselves on our defense,” Sanders said. “We swarm to the football and we are physical. Offensively, we get creative by trying to match our skill players against your weakness.”

The victory was the fourth straight over Chaparral and marked the second time the Sabercats have knocked their rival out of the state playoffs.

“It’s been a great run and it’s handed down every year,” Sanders said. “Each class does not want to be the one that loses. You feel pressure, no question, but we put the greatest amount of pressure on ourselves. Last year was a big time year.”

However, the win against Chaparral could be the last in the storied rivalry, as the two teams are not scheduled to play for the next two years.

New Season

As Sanders clears out room in the trophy case to add the latest championship trophy, he does so with one eye on the past and another on the present.

Gone from last year’s team are eight players who will be moving on to the Division I ranks, including Burton, who was one of five finalists for the Arizona Heisman Award.

In addition to Burton and Brown, the Sabercats lost Corey Adams (Arizona State), Justin Jungblut (Boise State), Kody Koebensky (Arizona State), Paul Porras (Rice), Sebastian Sica (Northern Arizona) and Max Smith (Arizona State).

“We will only have five seniors, but we are really good up front,” Sanders said. “I have no idea who our quarterback will be right now, probably a sophomore. We’ll also have sophomores at the running back and defensive back positions.”

Three of the players up front Sanders is expecting big things out of are Kody Innes, a 6-foot-4, 280-pound tackle, defensive end Jordan McDonald and center J.J. O’Malley.

Innes has offers from Arizona State, Stanford, UCLA and New Mexico; McDonald is hearing from New Mexico and Weber State; and O’Malley has drawn the interest of Northwestern, Tennessee, Air Force and Navy.

Despite the losses to graduation, Sanders is not ready to change his expectations:

“All of our kids are athletes,” he said. “I have no plans on losing.”

 

Paul Gable is the Senior Prep Writer for football.com. Check out football.com. for NCAA football and NFL coverage.