It’s often what first comes to mind when asked what my favorite Arizona high school football game I’ve ever covered is. And for many reasons.
It was my first year on the East Valley beat for the Tribune. I was four months in and starting to make a name for myself. My Twitter following was growing. My writing was improving. My relationships with coaches, players and fans had taken off.
Chandler is one team in particular I was told I had to keep track of. The Wolves were a powerhouse led by former head coach Shaun Aguano, who is now the running backs coach at Arizona State. Jacob Conover was the quarterback. Brayden Liebrock was a hybrid wideout and tight end.
I mention those two specifically for many reasons. One, they were very good football players. That’s obvious.
Two, they brought so much joy and excitement to me that night and it has carried on with me to this day. It’s a constant reminder why I enjoy Arizona high school football so much. It’s a constant reminder why I enjoy sports writing. And it’s all because of those two and one singular, seven-letter word: Manapua.
“It’s a great play, isn’t it?” Rick Garretson said to me in 2019.“It’s a play we teach the kids back in camp. We keep it in our back pocket just in case.”
Garretson took over for Aguano following the 2018 season. He was a longtime assistant at Chandler before landing the head job. He was instrumental in the construction of Manapua and in calling the play that chilly November night in 2018.
Chandler, the No. 1 seed, was locked into a tight battle with No. 5 Highland. Brock Farrel had the Hawks playing an inspired brand of football led by Kohner Cullimore, Kaleb Herbert, Daniel Wood and many others who helped Highland have one of its best seasons in program history.
The Hawks hung around all game, eventually tying it to force overtime. Highland struck first in the extra period, and went up by 7. DeCarlos Brooks, who rushed for 220 yards on the night, answered for Chandler.
Down 1, Conover and Liebrock asked their coaches to trust them. They did.
“I looked at Jake (Conover) and Brayden (Liebrock) and I asked them what they thought,” Aguano said that night. “They said, ‘Coach, you always tell us to do it,’ so I said, ‘Let’s do it.’
“I wanted to put the ball in Jacob's hands.”
They called Manapua, the conversion play that had never been stopped in the small handful of times the Wolves had to use it.
The play is all about timing. A fake pitch by the quarterback leads to a roll out to the right. At the same time, the tight end or wideout releases inside to draw in the outside linebacker before reversing course toward the pylon.
Liebrock was wide open. Conover hit him and sent Chandler to the title game. The Wolves went on to win their third straight championship that year, as many believed the 1-5 matchup in the semis would decide that year’s champion.
The play opened many doors for both teams. Chandler went on to win the inaugural Open Division championship the following year. Highland appeared in its first title game two years later and won back-to-back titles in 2021-22. In 2023 the Hawks beat Chandler to move on to the Open Division semifinals for the first time.
In many ways it felt like redemption. But both programs look to that moment in 2018 as a learning experience. Especially Farrell, who was part of Chandler’s staff when it was created.
“He just kept telling us he got it and we kind of looked at him like, ‘What in the world are you talking about?,’” Farrel said in 2019. “He drew it up and it worked.”
Chandler went on to use Manapua on other occasions over the years, most notably against Liberty in the Open Division playoffs. Garretson always kept it in his back pocket just in case.
The future of the play is uncertain. Garretson retired following the 2024 season and Ty Wisdom, an offensive mastermind of his own, returned to the Valley after winning a state title with Millard South in Nebraska. He has loaded his coaching staff with personalities fit to lead the Wolves to success after “down” years by Chandler’s standards.
That may leave Manapua in the hands of Farrell, who has Highland as a top seed in 6A on an annual basis.
One thing is for certain. For one night, and many more in the last few years for me, Manapua has meant more than just a barbecue pork-filled bun. It became a lasting memory and arguably one of the top moments in one of the best games in Arizona high school football history.
