Friday football recap: Silverado ends 2-year winless drought

It had been more than two years since Silverado’s football team last won a game.

Things hadn’t gone smoothly for the Skyhawks after the program dominated and won back-to-back Class 4A state titles in 2021 and 2022. But on Friday night, the program started the 2025 season on a high note.

Silverado broke its 18-game losing streak in a big way with a 69-40 home win over Spring Valley, which was No. 1 in the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Class 4A rankings.

“We anticipated to have success, but the kids really just rose to the occasion. They played a great game,” Silverado coach Anthony Barilla said. “You never expect to score 69 points, but when momentum gets going and those guys get some confidence, they’re a tough team to stop.”

Silverado’s last win was 30-22 against Basic on Aug. 25, 2023. The Skyhawks went 0-10 last season.

“The weight (of losing), as a coach, it’s not nearly as much as you watch your kids pour into something and they don’t understand the result — there’s a lot of things that go in results,” said Barilla, who is in his second season leading Silverado. “To see them invest their time and energy, and everybody wants to win football games and when you don’t get that, you feel for your kids.

“That’s just the biggest weight off my shoulder is that we have all these families and kids and parents that dedicate so much time and sacrifice, it’s just good to see them get the fruits of their labor.”

Silverado (1-0) played two quarterbacks against Spring Valley (1-1). Dillon Elliott threw three touchdown passes and Clemente Jones ran for two scores. Armani Combs ran for over 200 yards and two touchdowns, and Jonah Alipio had a pick-six that Barilla said “changed the momentum.”

Silverado posted consecutive 12-0 seasons in 2021 and 2022 on its way to winning back-to-back titles. After an eventful realignment process, the Skyhawks were placed into 5A Division I with Bishop Gorman, Liberty and Arbor View for 2023. They started the year 2-0 and then lost their last eight games that year before going winless in 5A Division II in 2024.

After last year, Barilla said he put a greater focus on the weight room and team-bonding activities, such as 7-on-7 tournaments and camps, to create a “competitive spirit” within the group.

“They’re just a great group of kids and they like to play for each other,” Barilla said. “It’s the first team I’ve really ever been around where I’ve seen them celebrate each other’s success. Those are the types of things that allow you to be a good football team.

Crusaders dominate

Faith Lutheran also broke into the win column in a big way with a 42-14 road victory at Northern opponent Damonte Ranch. The Crusaders (1-2) had suffered a pair of one-possession losses to out-of-state opponents in their first two games.

“It speaks to the character of our players,” Faith Lutheran coach Jay Staggs said. “They’re a hardworking bunch. We fell short in the last two games and I think that it showed that their hunger outweighed their sorrow. They looked for another opportunity and when they got out there against Damonte, they took full advantage of that opportunity.”

Faith Lutheran started fast and held a 42-0 lead in the second quarter to trigger the running clock, and the Crusaders got some of their backups playing time.

Freshman Ace Brimmer had a pick-six, and Nami Meeks scored on a fumble recovery. Staggs credited offensive lineman Carter Besser for helping the offense be productive and defensive lineman Joey Nicci for making plays in the backfield.

Staggs took over as head coach after Mike Stanford retired last December and the team graduated 29 seniors that helped the Crusaders reach a second straight 5A Division II state title game last year.

Faith Lutheran hosts Valor Christian, one of the top teams from Colorado, on Saturday. Then the Crusaders host Arbor View the following week before getting into 5A Lake League play, where other top teams like Liberty and Coronado await.

“You got to be able to go through the ups and downs to really see who you have and who you are,” Staggs said. “That’s what these first three weeks have shown us. The guys in our program are going to be there to compete.”

Sunrise snaps skid

Sunrise Mountain also snapped a long losing streak on Friday night. The Miners (1-2) defeated Western 48-0 to end a 13-game losing streak.

It was the first points the team has scored this season. The Miners lost to Democracy Prep 48-0 on Aug. 15 and at Boulder City 33-0 on Aug. 22.

Sophomore Damian Relierford did a little bit of everything for Sunrise Mountain. He rushed for 190 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 120 yards. James Sherrod rushed for 91 yards and two touchdowns for the Miners.

Sunrise Mountain lost to Centennial in the 2023 4A state title game and then went winless in 5A Division III last year. Under first-year coach Patrick Achord, the Miners will look to be competitive in a new-look 4A.

Up next

Bishop Gorman faced Kahuku late Saturday night in Hawaii and the Gaels return home on a short week to host Lone Peak, the second-ranked team in Utah by MaxPreps, at 7 p.m. Friday.

Arbor View (0-2) will look to bounce back after a 49-7 drubbing from Millard South (Nebraska) at 7 p.m. Friday when the Aggies travel to San Diego to play Lincoln (California).

Three rivalry games will be played Friday.

Chaparral (0-2) will host Eldorado (1-0) at 6 p.m. in the “Cleat Game.” It’s one of the longest-standing rivalries in the state with the teams playing for a bronzed cleat of former NFL defensive lineman Merlin Olsen.

Desert Oasis (1-1) heads to Sierra Vista (1-2) for the “Railroad Rivalry” at 6 p.m., and Cheyenne (0-1) hosts Cimarron-Memorial (0-1) at 7 p.m. in the “Duel in the Desert.”

In other local competition Friday at 6 p.m., Green Valley (0-1) hosts Palo Verde (0-2) and Sloan Canyon (2-0), off an impressive win over 5A opponent Foothill, plays at Losee (0-2). At 7 p.m., SLAM! Nevada (1-2) heads to Overton to face former 3A rival Moapa Valley (0-3) and Desert Pines (1-1) hosts Mojave (0-2).

Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.