Palo Verde seeking return to ‘glory days’
Joe Aznarez is well-aware of Palo Verde’s history on the football field.
That’s what makes the present even tougher for the second-year head coach to swallow.
“It’s not something that sits well with me as somebody who’s been part of this program for 14 years now,” Aznarez said of the team’s 0-1 start after a 4-6 finish in 2015. “I’ve been part of the glory days when we were the nationally ranked team in town. We definitely hope to even our record and then kind of go on a little bit of a win streak here.”
The Panthers advanced to 10 Sunset Region championship games from 2002 to 2013, winning five region titles and one state championship. They are looking to even their record when they host sixth-ranked Green Valley (1-1) at 7 p.m. Friday.
“We’re looking to bounce back,” senior linebacker Tyler Thornton said. “Everybody’s waiting for it. We just have to do it.”
Palo Verde is coming off a bye week and hopes the extra time to prepare for Green Valley will help the team come back from a 28-7 loss to Las Vegas in the season opener.
“We worked on a lot of conditioning, finishing the fourth quarter to make sure everybody’s in shape,” Thornton said. “We really made sure the defense knows their keys this time. Everybody’s doing their job 100 percent of the time.”
Aznarez said the team also used the time to focus on fundamentals.
“The first week was not what we expected, the performance that we expected,” Aznarez said. “I think we’re going to try to get back focused on some of the fundamental things that we’ve been known for up here at Palo, and that’s kind of the direction we’re going to be headed.”
That means looking to grind things out on offense to limit the opposition’s possessions. Although Palo Verde rushed for 237 yards against Las Vegas, the Panthers struggled in the red zone, and had key holding penalties that stopped drives.
“We have to run the ball,” Aznarez said. “We have to run the ball, and then when we’re done running the ball, we’re going to run it some more.”
Keeping things simple also could be important for Palo Verde, which features three newcomers in the backfield in quarterback Jonathan Schofield and running backs Chamere Thomas and Terrill Jimerson.
“I think we tried to do too much, so we’re going to try to simplify things a little bit more for the new guys,” Aznarez said. “What seems easy for a coach may not seem easy for a 17-year-old kid.”
Thomas, a junior who was a standout on the junior varsity last season, had 97 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries against Las Vegas. Jimerson added 80 yards on 10 carries.
“We’re going to come out a lot harder than last week and give it everything we’ve got,” Jimerson said. “Everybody bought in, and we should get this ‘W.’”
Contact prep sports editor Damon Seiters at 702-380-4587 or dseiters@reviewjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter: @DamonSeiters
