Bishop Gorman only played one half of its season opener against Losee on Friday night in a game called due to persistent lightning, but the Gaels were able to get a look at both of their quarterbacks heading into next Friday’s showdown against top-ranked St. John Bosco (California).
Senior Kansas commit and California transfer Chance Thomas and junior Ace Amina both played in Gorman’s 41-0 win over Losee. Amina started the game, but Amina and Thomas both alternated possessions during the first half.
Gorman coach Brent Browner wouldn’t name a starter ahead of the Gaels’ game against St. John Bosco, ranked No. 1 nationally by MaxPreps, but said it’s possible both could play against the Braves.
“Everything’s on the table,” Browner said when asked if both QBs will play Friday. “This place is built on a simple concept: competition. Everybody in the building is going through the same thing (the QBs) are going through. Everybody’s competing for a spot every single week.”
Amina, known for a strong arm similar to past Gorman QBs like Micah Alejado and Maika Eugenio, and Thomas, more of a dual-threat QB, were both strong in their brief time on the field.
Amina, a three-year Gorman varsity player, completed four passes for 70 yards and had a touchdown. His highlight play came on a 45-yard completion to Brendan Koch in the second quarter. Amina played in three series.
Thomas, who transferred in from Western (Anaheim, California), threw for 3,327 yards and 33 touchdowns with a 71.5 completion percentage and seven rushing touchdowns last season. On Friday, Thomas completed two passes for 21 yards and added a 1-yard rushing touchdown in two series.
Gorman’s focus shifts to a crucial week of practice to prepare for St. John Bosco, which begins a stretch of four games in five weeks against the team’s out-of-state opponents – including Columbus (Florida), Lone Peak (Utah) and Mater Dei (California) — that will determine if the Gaels win a fifth mythical national championship.
“We wish we could have had a little longer on the field so they could do more stuff, but they both did good,” Browner said. “That was kind of the hard part of not having a full game to really give those some good (evaluation).
“We just have to figure it out and keep moving forward. They both bring two different things, dynamically two different guys. We’re blessed to have them both. We just got to figure it out and see.”
Game cancellations
Lightning wreaked havoc across Las Vegas. The following games were not played or completed due to Friday’s weather.
Green Valley at Foothill
Eldorado at Las Vegas High
Coronado at Centennial
Spring Valley at Durango
Boulder City at Valley
Central East (California) at Sloan Canyon
Bonanza at Chaparral
Sierra Vista at Desert Oasis
Sunrise Mountain at Western
Sierra Vista and Desert Oasis are scheduled to play Friday in the two team’s annual “Bell Game.” It is unclear if any other games will be resumed or rescheduled.
Friday’s completed games
Some games were competed on Friday with two teams making statements in their wins, and another with a wild ending.
Legacy crushes Silverado: After a brief lightning delay, Legacy went on to roll to a 57-16 home win over Silverado. Cameron Turner rushed for 200 yards and four TDs for Legacy and QB Jaelynn Love Carter threw for 150 yards and two TDs. Kyree Perkins had a kickoff return for a score and a receiving TD. Jaiden Swanson had an interception return for a TD and a rushing score for Legacy, which finished 2-8 last year.
Moapa Valley wins in final seconds: Kamden Drosos threw a 3-yard TD to Jett Levy with 19 seconds left to help Moapa Valley defeat Beaver (Utah) 27-21. Drosos added two rushing touchdowns, and Briggs Hickman had 80 yards on the ground and 44 receiving yards. Ashton Hickman had an 84-yard kickoff return for a TD.
Palo Verde outlasts Desert Pines: X’Zavier McZeal caught two TDs to help Palo Verde defeat Desert Pines 34-18. It’s the first win for first-year Palo Verde coach Dru Smith, a former Gorman assistant who is the school’s third football coach in its 30 years of existence.
Close out-of-state losses: Arbor View and Liberty both suffered losses in out-of-state games. Arbor View lost at West (Utah) 20-14. The Aggies had two TDs called back due to penalty. Liberty led Mililani 24-14 at halftime, but the Patriots were held scoreless in the second half in a 31-24 loss in Hawaii.
Up next
All eyes will be on Bishop Gorman next Friday when the Gaels, ranked No. 2 nationally by MaxPreps, hosts No. 1 St. John Bosco at 7 p.m. The game will be streamed nationally on MaxPreps’ YouTube page.
Foothill will get another crack at its first game of the year when the Falcons host Henderson rival Basic at 6 p.m. Friday in the “Battle for Boulder Highway.”
Palo Verde hosts Legacy at 6 p.m. Friday in a battle of 1-0 teams. Sloan Canyon will head north to face McQueen at 1 p.m. Saturday at UNR in a rematch of last year’s 4A state title game, won by McQueen.
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
Week 1 scores
Friday
Completed games
Bishop Gorman 41, Losee 0
Mililani (Hawaii) 31, Liberty 24
West (Utah) 20, Arbor View 14
Palo Verde 34, Desert Pines 18
Legacy 57, Silverado 16
Moapa Valley 27, Beaver (Utah) 21
Pahrum Valley 29, Providence Hall (Utah) 6
Pahranagat Valley 36, Indian Springs 0
Hurricane (Utah) 47, Virgin Valley 12
Lincoln County 35, Parowan (Utah) 28
Saturday
Mater East 43, Faith Lutheran 35
Week 2 schedule
All gams at 7 p.m. unless otherwise noted
Thursday
Cadence at Desert Star (Arizona), 6 p.m.
Friday
Basic at Foothill, 6 p.m.
Arbor View at Carlsbad (California), 6 p.m.
Centennial at Cathedral Catholic (California), 6 p.m.
Green Valley at Canyon Springs, 6 p.m.
Legacy at Palo Verde, 6 p.m.
Durango at Shadow Ridge, 6 p.m.
Tafuna (American Samona) at Mojave, 6 p.m.
Sunrise Mountain at Bonanza, 6 p.m.
Valley at Cimarron-Memorial, 6 p.m.
Clark at Douglas, 6 p.m.
Galena at Pahrump Valley, 6 p.m.
Army Navy Academy (California) at CIVICA Academy, 6 p.m.
St. John Bosco (California) at Bishop Gorman
Faith Lutheran at Bakersfield Christian (California)
Lancaster (California) at Coronado
Desert Pines at Las Vegas High
Chaparral at Cheyenne
Hurricane (Utah) at Moapa Valley
Virgin Valley vs. SLAM! Nevada, at Faith Lutheran
Parker (Arizona) at Needles
West Wendover at Lincoln County
Pahranagat Valley at Beatty
Saturday
Sloan Canyon at McQueen, 1 p.m. at UNR
