Not that many years ago the vaunted 3A East, or more specifically the White Mountain teams, dominated the 3A or Division IV football landscape. From 2011 to 2013, East Region teams represented at least two of the final four, and always had at least one team in the final game, including Blue Ridge, which won two of its many titles in 2011 and 2013. That win four years ago was the last time an East Region team has won the state title.
In the past few years there has been a shift in power at the 3A level. In each of the past three years, only one of the final four teams in the state playoffs was from the East and none of those teams won a state title. Snowflake did finish as runner up in 2014.
This season it appears the East may still be on a decline in terms of where the power lies in 3A football. With the football rankings just unveiled earlier this week, only Winslow is ranked inside the top 10, with the Bulldogs currently sitting in the third position with an unbeaten 5-0 record. The other nine teams are from the South, except for Monument Valley and Ganado, which are in the North, but are generally over ranked due to their schedules.
From the East Region, Winslow leads with that No. 3 ranking, Snowflake is No. 12; Show Low, No. 15; Blue Ridge, No. 20; Payson, No. 25; and Holbrook, No. 28. This week marks the beginning of region play for those six teams. The next five weeks of the regular season will all be region games for everyone.
Friday, Sept, 29, is Homecoming Night in Holbrook, where the Roadrunners will welcome in Blue Ridge. Like Holbrook, the Yellowjackets come in with a 2-3 season mark. Blue Ridge is nowhere near the team it was just a few years back. The teams have Page as a common opponent and both struggled mightily against the Sand Devils. Last year this game, played in Lakeside, went down to the final moments before Blue Ridge prevailed 34-28. With all the distractions of Homecoming activities, the question will be which team will play better at Roadrunner Stadium. Holbrook’s defense has not been good in recent weeks, but its offense has become a little more multi-dimensional behind quarterback Frankie Ulibarri. Both teams will score in this game, but unless the Roadrunners can fix their defensive issues, the Jackets may be able to make it two straight over their hosts and spoil Homecoming Night.
Snowflake travels to Winslow to take on the third ranked Bulldogs. Winslow is unbeaten and still untested on the season. The Lobos are just 3-2 but have played a more difficult schedule than has Winslow. They have two common opponents thus far this season, with both posting easy wins over Tuba City, and Chinle by similar scores. This match up has been totally dominated by Snowflake over the past four years, with the Lobos outscoring the Dawgs by an average of 36 points in those four wins, including last year’s 48-0 shutout in Snowflake. This game won’t be a shutout by either team, but with the Lobos having played a much tougher schedule in the first five weeks, they should be better prepared for a close game, which could be enough for them to hand the Bulldogs their first loss of the season.
Payson’s Longhorns, just 1-4 on the season, will play at Show Low, which comes in at 3-2. The Cougars do not have a quality win in those three victories, while the Longhorns may have played the toughest early season schedule of any of the East Region teams. Show Low won this game last year 43-34, but don’t be surprised if Payson picks up a win in Cougar country this year.
Joseph City travels to El Capitan on Saturday afternoon, Sept. 30, to take on an Eagle team on a two-game winning streak, bringing its record to 2-3. The Wildcats, now 3-2, are licking their wounds after last week’s drubbing by Williams, a game in which the Wildcats totaled just 22 total yards on offense. Obviously, they will need a much better offensive output to have a chance, but their recent history against El Capitan has been favorable. Joseph City won the last two meetings by 49 and 31 points, respectively, so despite the long bus ride, the Cats should have a chance to return home with a win in their pocket.
