By Jon Johnson
THATCHER – In the crisp November air of the Gila Valley, where playoff dreams hang as heavy as the scent of mesquite smoke, the No. 4-ranked Thatcher Eagles hosted the No. 13 Florence Gophers in the opening round of the Arizona 3A State Football Playoffs on Friday, and the Gophers burrowed their way to a shocking 14-6 victory at John Mickelson Field, ending Thatcher’s season in a defensive slugfest that left Eagles fans stunned and the visitors dancing.
The favored Eagles (6-0 region, 9-2 overall) had four straight turnovers in the first half. They started the second half with a punt and an interception before scoring their lone points of the game.
It was a night of what-ifs and near-misses for the Eagles, who entered as heavy favorites with a workhorse ground game led by senior running back Ryan Jones and quarterback Chad Johnson. But Florence’s opportunistic defense and a gritty rushing attack spearheaded by Victor Juarez and Soldier Blouir turned John Mickelson Field into a house of horrors. The Gophers, who leaned on quarterback Brody Ramirez’s arm and a jumbo formation that proved kryptonite for Thatcher’s front, held firm through a scoreless first half before unleashing two second-half touchdowns that the Eagles could only answer too late.
“It wasn’t supposed to be like this,” said Thatcher head coach Daniel Jones in a postgame interview, his voice thick with emotion as 18 seniors walked the field one final time, helmets in hand, embracing teammates amid tears and hugs. “We just couldn’t get traction. Every time we took two steps forward, we took three steps back. I don’t know. I don’t have a lot of words for you today. Hey, but we’re brothers — Thatcher Eagles. Go green. Love you guys.”
For the Gophers (4-2 region, 6-4 overall), head coach Mike Carlin was enthusiastic after the win. He said a tough regular-season loss against Thatcher helped mold his team into what it is now.
“We had a couple breaks go our way, and I couldn’t be more proud of my boys,” Carlin said. “It’s awfully exciting beating them down here . . . We went through a tough patch at the beginning of the season (with) a lot of ranked opponents, but they all taught us how to play football hard. Thatcher is one of those teams that taught us how to play football hard.”
A scoreless stalemate: Turnovers and heartbreak in the first half
The Eagles came out swinging, leaning on Jones’ legs to chew up yards early. On their opening drive, the senior back powered around the right edge for a first down, but a 13-yard sack on Johnson forced a third-and-long. Undeterred, the junior signal-caller rifled a strike to wideout Hudson Conrad, pushing into Gophers territory. Jones again shouldered the load, dragging four Florence defenders for extra yards, setting up a third-and-3 from the 12.
Enter fullback Josiah Matagaono, who burst through a Vincent Bejarano block for what looked like the game’s first score—until a procedure penalty wiped it clean. On fourth-and-9, Matagaono was stuffed short, handing Florence its first Red Zone defense.
The Gophers wasted no time. Juarez, Florence’s speedy scatback, ripped off a 20-plus-yard scamper to midfield, then bullied his way to the Thatcher 31. Another Juarez carry planted them at the 6-yard line, first-and-goal. But the Eagles’ goal-line stand was ferocious: Dylan Riney sniffed out a pitch and dropped Juarez for a loss. On fourth-and-goal from the 10, Ramirez aired it out to Wyatt Stenson in the corner of the end zone. Stenson hauled in a spectacular grab, his left toe dragging the turf in bounds on slowed-down replay—but officials ruled him out, preserving the shutout and sending the teams to the second quarter knotted at 0-0.
Thatcher responded with flair. Johnson flipped a screen to Jones for a gain, then tucked and ran for 22 yards, evading Blouir’s lunge to the Gophers’ 38. Enter Smith “Mighty Mouse” Mangum, the shifty senior who danced through traffic to the 10—only for another procedure flag to erase the magic, drawing a heated sideline exchange from coach Daniel Jones.
Desperation set in: Johnson launched deep to Ryan Jones, but Keantum Greeley high-pointed it at the Gophers’ 14 for the INT. Thatcher forced a three-and-out, and Johnson connected with Riney for a 30-yard bomb to the 30. Matagaono again churned forward, shrugging off tacklers—until Zayden Cundiff jarred the ball loose at the goal line, a red-zone robbery that epitomized Florence’s bend-but-don’t-break resolve.
With 4:18 left in the half, Florence faced a 90-yard trek. Blouir’s 15-yard burst sparked hope, but a fumbled snap nearly gifted Thatcher the ball. A roughing-the-passer call on Travis Larson extended the drive, only for Angelo Juarez to cough it up—Jackson Bryce forced the fumble, Hudson Conrad scooped, and a Florence penalty gifted the Eagles first-and-10 at the 29 with 1:24 remaining.
But the Gophers’ pass rush swarmed. Kaiden Valle sacked Johnson on second down, backing Thatcher to third-and-15 at the 33. A flag negated a Josh Jones grab, pushing it to third-and-25 at the 43 with 28 ticks left. Johnson found Mangum for 18 yards, setting up a 40-yard field goal try by Luke Marble on fourth-and-5. The snap was true, but so was the block—Florence swatted it away, and the halftime whistle blew on a 0-0 deadlock that felt like a moral victory for the underdogs.
Second-half surge: Florence strikes, Thatcher scrambles
Florence received the second-half kick and marched methodically. Juarez knifed to the 45, Blouir plunged into Eagle territory, and on third-and-2, his counter run sealed a first down at the 30. Ramirez mixed it up with a toss to Stenson for 9 yards, then Zayden Cundiff powered through jumbo-set blocks to the 19. Thatcher bottled Juarez, but Ramirez hit Stenson on a slant for a 20-yard strike. The two-point try was stuffed, but with 7:24 left in the third, Florence led 6-0—the ice officially broken.
Thatcher’s kick return via Josh Jones to the 40 promised a response, but a dropped pass by Conrad on third-and-5 forced a punt. Florence, now emboldened, faked a handoff to Blouir and struck for 28 yards on third-and-9, crossing midfield. Ramirez’s scramble drew a flag, but an offsetting holding call kept momentum. Riney’s tackle for loss on Cundiff forced a punt, which Thatcher muffed but recovered deep, entering the fourth still trailing by six.
The Eagles sputtered early in the final frame, punting after three plays. Florence pounced: Juarez rumbled 30 yards to the 29, Ramirez connected with Stenson to the 15, and on fourth-and-3 from the 9, that jumbo formation returned. Double-teaming Landon Robbins, Florence carved out a first-and-goal at the 3. Two snaps later, Blouir’s counter from the 3 burrowed in for six. Stenson’s two-point snag made it 14-0 with 6:19 to play—an upset very much in bloom.
Desperate, Thatcher needed miracles. Josh Jones delivered one, returning the kick to midfield. But Johnson’s deep shot was pilfered by Cundiff, gifting Florence prime field position. The Eagles’ defense, backs against the wall, forced a three-and-out. Jones’ punt return to the 36 with 4:20 left bought time.
Johnson scrambled for yards, then rolled left and pitched to Ryan Jones for a 31-yard gain to the 5. Mangum’s 5-yard plunge capped the drive, pulling Thatcher within 14-6 after a deflected extra point. The onside kick sailed was recovered by Florence, and the Gophers then attempted to run out the clock.
Juarez was stuffed just short on a fourth-and-9, and it was Thatcher ball at its 28 with 1:30 left. Johnson hit Riney, who lateraled to Jones, but the gains stalled. On third-and-6 from the 39 with 39 seconds ticking, Johnson’s prayer to Josh Jones was answered by Stenson’s game-sealing interception.
As the final horn blared, Florence’s sideline erupted while Thatcher’s faithful fell silent. The Gophers advance to next play the No. 5 Pusch Ridge Lions at Pusch Ridge Christian Academy in Tucson on Friday, Nov. 14, starting at 7 p.m. For Thatcher, the sting of defeat tempers a season of promise—another chapter closed, but the Gila Valley’s football fire burns eternal.
In other local prep football playoffs:
In the second round of the 2A State Football Playoffs, the No. 10 Pima Roughriders fell 9-27 to the No. 7 San Tan Charter Roadrunners, and the No. 15 Morenci Wildcats fell 0-55 to the No. 2 Scottsdale Christian Eagles.
