CHAMPIONSHIP BLOG: 12/1/18

Before he heads off to Cal to begin his college career, DeCarlos Brooks left one final impression as a Chandler Wolf.

The 5-11, 195-pound running back had career-high numbers in yardage (334) and touchdowns (six) in a 65-28 rout over district-rival Perry. It was Chandler's third consecutive 6A championship.

It was a consistent theme all Saturday night long at Sun Devil Stadium. Brooks scored in each quarter and finished with a trio of TDs in each half.

The title game was a rematch of a 49-42 thriller from just one year ago. Chandler got us started off by cruising 75 yards in seven plays with Brooks scoring on a 1-yard dive just over two minutes in. Chandler's plan, as it was in the regular season meeting with the Pumas, was to give its main back the ball as much as possible. He had five carries for 41 yards in that drive alone.

It was quickly 14-0 as the Wolves' defense limited Perry to three plays and a punt on its opening possession. Another 1-yard run by Brooks capped a scoring drive that began at midfield.

Perry, which came into the game averaging 48.8 points per game, moved the ball into Chandler territory, but a fumbled exchange resulted in a turnover. Senior Max Sandlin recovered it for the Wolves.

"I saw the quarterback fumble," Sandlin said. "The ball was on the ground and I just dove on it. Chubba Purdy is a crazy good runner. We had a spy going on him from the defense."

As the opening quarter came to a close, Perry was down a pair of starters. Linebacker Braxton Smith and offensive lineman Jacob Warren were both knocked out of the game.

Chandler faced a pair of fourth-down situations in the semifinals against Highland (a 36-35 overtime win) and went for it each time. Once again, the offense stayed out on the field at fourth-and-two at the 14. Senior quarterback Jacob Conover not only gained the first down, but he scored a touchdown on a keeper.

Purdy got into a rhythm in the second quarter completing seven consecutive passes. Like Chandler, the Pumas had a fourth-and-two deep in enemy territory. Perry converted it into a touchdown as well with senior running back Jalen Young, who got loose on the left side and scored his 10th TD of the season.

Many teams in the NFL, and in high school, distribute carries among a few different running backs. Chandler continues to follow the path of having a single workhorse back. A 34-yard run by Brooks pushed him above the 2,000-yard mark making it the third straight year a CHS player has accomplished that feat (TJ Green and Drake Anderson did the past two years). That helped set up a four-yard run up the middle giving the Wolves four touchdowns in four possessions, and a 27-7 halftime lead.

In the second half of last year's championship game, neither side could stop one another. The difference in this one was the Wolves' defense. In addition to the forced turnover, senior defensive lineman Miles McNair had a pair of sacks (he finished the game with three). Perry was limited to just 56 yards on the ground in the games first 24 minutes (on 20 carries).

"I though our defense did really well controlling Chubba," Chandler head coach Shaun Aguano said. "We didn't want the big plays."

Perry (11-3) got a big play on its first drive of the second half with a 33-yard run from senior Jaden Burns. That drew the Pumas closer at 27-14, but momentum didn't stay on that sideline for very long.

On Chandler's first play from scrimmage in the third quarter, Brooks answered by blowing through a hole up the middle and turning it into a 58-yard touchdown.

"Our offensive line is really physical up front," Brooks said. "We do a lot of things to make people confused."

Chandler (13-1) tacked on a field goal from Tim Boyd to extend its lead. Perry gave it one last shot as Purdy broke off an electric 81-yard run to set up a touchdown pass to Colby Dickie. That made it 37-21 midway through the third quarter (a two-score game).

But that was as close as the Pumas would get.

Conover, who went over the 10,000-yard mark for his career, found his reliable senior tight end wide open for a short touchdown pass. It was also the 11th time that Chandler scored more than 40 points this season.

The next three drives for Perry all ended with interceptions and the Wolves turned each one into a touchdown.

Picking off the passes for the Wolves were Javan Ah Quin and Ramone Robinson (who had two).

It seems many times there is an unsung hero that you don't hear much about during the season that comes up big in championship games. Robinson announced his presence with those interceptions.

"We harped on him all week to not get beat deep," Aguano said. "He just did exactly what we told him. His two interceptions sealed the deal."

Brooks finished a wild third quarter (48 total points) with a short touchdown run and started the fourth with another for his sixth of the game.

Brooks was on the varsity team for three seasons. He began as a cornerback his sophomore year, was the No. 2 back on last year's team, and got to be the main rusher in his senior season.

"I knew this was my year," Brooks said of the opportunity. "I had to focus all year."

Centennial established a new big-school record (which had stood for 48 years) by scoring 60 points against Notre Dame Prep in the afternoon. The Coyotes' mark only lasted a few hours because Jaheim Brown-Taylor scored on a 21-yard run midway through the fourth quarter.

The Wolves had 11 complete possessions (the 12th mercifully ended with three kneel downs at the Perry 7-yard line) and scored nine touchdowns and one field goal.

"That is as much of a dominating game that I've seen them play against a good football team," Aguano said. "DeCarlos Brooks - that guy can run the football."

For Perry, it was the third straight season that its season ended at the hands of Chandler in the playoffs.

You can make a good argument that this CHS dynasty is the only thing standing in the way of Perry accumulating a few gold balls of its own. Over the past three seasons, the Pumas, who play in the 6A Premier Region, have a record of 0-6 against Chandler and 34-1 against everyone else.

"Hold your heads up," Perry head coach Preston Jones said he told his team after the game. "We had a great run. There's nothing to be ashamed of."

In the first meeting between the teams on Sept. 28 (a 45-34 Chandler win), Brooks had 43 carries for 246 yards and two touchdowns. So, a steady diet of DeCarlos was hardly a surprise.

"We were expecting a lot of Brooks and that's what we got," Jones said. "It really hurt losing our Mike linebacker (Smith). We had to move a safety to linebacker."

Purdy is just a junior as are linebackers Jackson Ford and Cole Sabetta (nine tackles). Also returning on the offense will be center Hezekiah Lockhart, another offensive lineman, and a couple tight ends.

"We're really excited about our program," Jones said.

This was the last high school game for Conover, who finished his varsity career with a 35-4 record (three losses against out-of-state teams). He is the first player in Arizona history to win three state titles in the state's highest classification. Conover threw 102 touchdown passes and will attend BYU after going on a two-year church mission.

"Jacob is an unwavering leader," Aguano said. "These senior kids are 4.0 GPA and incredible character kids."

First Quarter:
Chan- DeCarlos Brooks 1 yard run (Crew Peterman kick), 9:52
Chan - Brooks 1 yard run (Peterman kick), 5:41
Second Quarter:
Chan - Jacob Conover 14 yard run (Peterman kick), 10:37
Perry - Jalen Young 17 yard run (Sam Cross kick), 6:24
Chan - Brooks 4 yard run (kick failed), 3:04
Third Quarter:
Perry - Jaden Burns 33 yard run (Kyler McCarthy kick), 11:27
Chan - Brooks 58 yard run (Tim Boyd kick), 11:17
Chan - Boyd 29 yard FG, 9:09
Perry - Colby Dickie 4 yard pass from Chubba Purdy (McCarthy kick), 7:41
Chan - Brayden Liebrock 7 yard pass (Boyd kick), 5:12
Chan - Brooks 2 yard run (Boyd kick), 3:25
Fourth Quarter:
Chan - Brooks 1 yard run (Boyd kick), 11:21
Chan - Jaheim Brown-Taylor 21 yard run (Boyd kick), 7:05
Perry - Purdy 9 yard run (McCarthy kick), 2:53