WEEKLY BLOG: 11/1/19

At the midway point of the season, Mountain View walked off the field at Phoenix College with a record of 1-4. A tight first half (6-3) against Brophy Prep went south in next 24 minutes with a 26-3 defeat.

A combination of factors have helped the Toros make a return to the 6A Conference playoffs.

For starters, Mountain View plays in the East Valley Region, which isn't as difficult from top to bottom as most of the other 6A leagues. The Toros dominated Mesa, Westwood, and Skyline by a 140-14 count. Mountain View did take a loss to region champ Red Mountain in Week 9.

The new Open playoff benefits the Toros as well. While the one-time powerhouse (kids, ask your dads about those guys) won't be playing games in the Super-8, having three or four teams taken out of the 6A playoffs lowers the bar below 16.

And then of course, there's what's taken place on the field. Mountain View has a senior quarterback in Brandon Nieto that got a couple starts late last season and has been consistent this year. Coming off back-to-back 300-yard games, Nieto continued that upward trend with a productive first half in a 42-0 victory at Dobson to even up the Toros' record.

Mountain View started the night holding on to the No. 16 ranking (after Open teams were factored out). The Toros likely cemented another week of practice. Gridiron Arizona is projecting Mountain View as a 15 seed in next week's playoffs.

"We felt that if we won this game, we had a pretty good shot of getting in," Mountain View head coach Mike Fell said. "We thought if we took care of business, we had a shot."

Taking care of business is exactly what the Toros did in the opening quarter. It started with two completions by Nieto for 56 yards to get Mountain View (5-5 overall, 4-1 6A East Valley Region) inside the 10-yard line. From there, the quarterback bulled his way up the middle to start the scoring before the game was a minute old.

A defensive stop, followed by a high snap on a punt (which went 19 yards), gave the Toros the ball at the Dobson 30-yard line. Senior running back Joe Ball, who later left the game with a leg injury, scored his fifth touchdown of the season on a draw play.

Nieto dialed deep to 6-3 wide receiver Ethan Davidson on the next possession. He was knocked out of bounds at the 2-yard line and Nieto called his own number for another rushing touchdown.

The barrage continued with Joey Syrek recovering a Mustang fumble and returning it to the Dobson 30-yard line. Nieto connected with Cash Clark to cap a 28-point opening quarter.

"We came in this week knowing it could be our last game," Nieto said. "We were going to play it the best we can."

Fell calls the plays for the Toro offense and on Friday, it was very pass-oriented.

"We just like to attack," Clark said. "We like to hit quick hitches and slants. And when teams aren't ready, we like to burn them deep with go's and posts."

In that first quarter, Mountain View outgained Dobson 149-3.

Dobson (3-7, 1-4) reached the red zone just once in the game. It was late in the first half. However, sophomore defensive back Matt Clark intercepted a tipped ball.

Four plays later, the Toros beat the clock to halftime as Davidson made a spectacular one-handed grab before diving into the end zone for a 35-0 halftime lead.

"Ethan Davidson is a monster," Clark said. "I haven't seen anyone able to guard him in our region."

Nieto played just one series in the second half. He went deep once again, this time to junior Nico Remus, who leaped in the air for the game's final points. Nieto finished 13-of-17 for 259 yards and three touchdown passes (to three different receivers). He also rushed for two scores.

"That makes my job super-easy when I have so many targets to throw to," Nieto, who has 21 TD passes this season, said. "Cash, Ethan, Nico, even Tanner (Johnson) and Deshaun Jackson, when they're in. They're all great."

Meanwhile, the defense was putting the clamps on Dobson's run game. The Mustangs operate out of a Power Pistol, a read-option offense that uses pulling guards and tackles.

Dobson was limited to just 105 yards of offense (61 rushing, 44 passing). The Toros forced three turnovers and sacked the quarterback twice to register their third shutout of the year. The last time MVHS had that many in a season was in 2008.

The Mustangs aren't your prototypical 6A team. DHS suited up just 38 players each week and the levels are similar at both the Freshman and JV teams. First-year head coach Bill Godsil came over from Coolidge in March. He is the school's third head coach in four seasons.

"The seniors allowed us to build continuity," Godsil said of the 18 that were honored in pregame ceremonies. "Our motto was Brick by Brick and laying the foundation down. We're heading in the right direction."

Indeed, Dobson had a great opportunity to go 5-5. The Mustangs were on the wrong side of close games against Mesa (10-6) and Skyline (30-28). Against the Coyotes, DHS held a 20-16 lead entering the fourth quarter.

It's likely that the 6A East Valley Region will have a different look in 2020 when realignment will alter the course moving schools by past win-loss history rather than enrollment. Currently, all six schools are in the Mesa Public School District. In December, the shifting will begin and Dobson (8-22 over the past three seasons) could find itself moving to 5A, which would be a good thing.

"Looking at the size of 6A kids, I think we fit better at 5A," Godsil said. "We're going to have to build them up in the weight room this offseason."

Mountain View will officially find out its playoff fate (and opponent) on Saturday morning when the AIA reveals the brackets. The 16-team tournament will begin next Friday at the higher seeds with the championship game on Friday, Dec. 6 at Sun Devil Stadium.

First Quarter:
MV - Brandon Nieto 9 yard run (Jesus Garcia kick), 11:04
MV - Joe Ball 9 yard run (Garcia kick), 6:58
MV - Nieto 2 yard run (Garcia kick), 3:40
MV - Cash Clark 15 yard pass from Nieto (Garcia kick), 2:27
Second Quarter:
MV - Ethan Davidson 17 yard pass from Nieto (Garcia kick), 0:10
Third Quarter:
MV - Nico Remus 27 yard pass from Nieto (Garcia kick), 8:47
Fourth Quarter:
No Scoring