AZ’s Best Regions (6A-3A)
There’s been a ton of talk about who will face the toughest opponents and which regions can potentially come down to the end. Here’s a look at the top regions in Arizona by conference: 6A Premier Region *Hamilton, Chandler, Basha,…
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Continue ReadingThere’s been a ton of talk about who will face the toughest opponents and which regions can potentially come down to the end. Here’s a look at the top regions in Arizona by conference:
6A Premier Region
*Hamilton, Chandler, Basha, Casteel, Perry
Historically, the 6A Premier Region has been touted as the toughest region in Arizona high school football. Well this year, it just became even tougher with the addition of Basha who comes off a 2021 Open Division playoff appearence. Hamilton is the reigning 6A Premier champs and they’ll look to repeat that again this fall, but it will tough test with Basha and rival Chandler looking to grab that region title as well. Casteel is another solid squad that doesn’t get enough respect, as they frequently compete well with AZ’s best. Perry comes off a rough 2021 season, but with former Cactus head coach Joe Ortiz taking over the program will make it very intersting as he’ll look to turn them into competitors.
5A Desert West
*Desert Edge, Cactus, Sunrise Mountain, Millennium, Verrado
All of these teams have some very impressive prospects and a ton of potential to make a run in the 5A playoffs. In terms of talent, I’ve been extremely impressed with that Desert Edge squad as they come into 2022 with a ton of young prospects who have looked the part all offseason and showcased ridiculous athleticism back in 2021. Cactus is always a tough squad, coming off a close open division playoff loss to Saguaro last season. They’re a tough and scrappy team that won’t back down from anyone, and play with a ton of energy. SMHS is another team that is prety consistently solid, and they enter 2022 with some impressive prospects as well. Millennium and Verrado will be intersting, as they are both very similar and have shown to flip the switch and compete with 5A’s best on multiple occasions.
4A East Sky
*Poston Butte, ALA-Gilbert North, Snowflake, Apache Junction, Ben Franklin
4A is tough, as the Grand Canyon Region is a very competitive region as well. However, in the East Sky, you have a tough Poston Butte squad who comess off a 4A championship loss in 2021, the regining back to back 3A champs that got bumped up to 4A in Snowflake, the highly touted ALA- Gilbert North who also made the jump to 4A after a 3A semifinals appearence, and a super explosive Apache Junction squad who are a legit contender heading into 2022. BFHS has struggled recently and will have a tough test matching up against these other 4 this fall, as this region should come down to a dog fight.
3A South
*Pusch Ridge, Sabino, Benson, Thatcher, Safford, Palo Verde Magnet
The 3A South is absolutely stacked, while Pusch Ridge and Sabino having the most highly ranked athletes on our list. Thatcher and Safford are two examples of small towns that play physical with a ton of heart and grit. Palo Verde Magnet looks like they’ll have a difficult time matching up against the other five on paper as we enter the season. With Yuma Catholic, Snowflake, and ALA-Gilbert North bumping up to 4A, this leaves a big opportunity for a tem here in the 3A South to get over the hump and secure a state title.