No. 14 Tanque Verde welcomes Tombstone for both teams' regular-season clash between two explosive offenses. 

Conference 4A is straight region games for all involved, as the 4A Gila and Kino Regions sort out their respective orders with three games to play.

5A hosts seven games to 4A's six, including a 5A Sonoran-Southern crossover between No. 23 Canyon del Oro and No. 7 Desert View. No. 15 Marana visits No. 22 Tucson High for the outright lead in the Sonoran, while No. 20 Buena hosts Casa Grande to face off against their former head coach, Joe Thomas. 

Salpointe Catholic returns to action after a week on bye in 6A and seeks its first win against a conference opponent this Friday against controversial Scottsdale Saguaro.

THURSDAY

2A

Palo Verde (5-3) at Bisbee (1-7)

Location: 325 School Terrace Road, Bisbee

Notable: The Titans’ final game of the season sends them on the road to Bisbee to face a struggling Bobcats squad. A win will give Palo Verde back-to-back seasons with six wins or more since 2008 and 2009. The only losses PV has taken this season are to the three Top 24 Southern Arizona teams: No. 2 Willcox, No. 14 Tanque Verde and No. 23 Tombstone.

FRIDAY

2A

Globe (3-5) at Catalina (3-5)

Location: 3645 E. Pima St

Notable: Globe beat Catalina 48-0 last season. Trojans’ junior Nathan Gasteullum is one of the most explosive receivers in 2A, hauling in 14 catches for 510 yards and six touchdowns, an average of 36.4 yards per catch. He accounts for over half of Catalina’s passing yards and six of their seven receiving touchdowns.

San Carlos (1-7) at Santa Rita (1-7)

Location: 3951 S. Pantano Road

Notable: Santa Rita head coach Cam Gaddis’ final opportunity to give the Eagles their first two-or-more-win season since 2019 comes on Friday at home against San Carlos. Santa Rita broke a 26-game losing streak with its lone win of the year over Desert Christian on Sept. 4. San Carlos won its first game of the season on Oct. 2 over 0-8 Scottsdale Coronado.

Tombstone (4-4) at No. 14 Tanque Verde (5-3)

Location: 4201 N. Melpomene Way

Notable: The Yellowjackets and Hawks meet as the top two teams in the 2A South 1 Region. Both teams run the absolute snot out of the football, with over 180-plus carries on the ground for both squads. Tombstone is the more balanced of the two, with junior quarterback Vincent Ciccariello spearheading the offensive effort. Attached to his hip is senior running back Xavier Lopez, one of the top rushers in the 2A Conference. Four ball carriers in the run-first Tanque Verde offense have 275 rushing yards or more.

No. 2 Willcox (8-0) at No. 7 Benson (7-1)

Location: 360 S. Patagonia St., Benson

Notable: Cowboys’ rushers Asher Ward and Kaleb Cooke are the two big workhorses for Willcox, each boasting just north of 800 yards on the ground with 14 and 17 touchdowns, respectively. They account for over 80% of Willcox’s rushing output. Benson is much more balanced with 1,580 yards on the ground and 1,289 through the air. Benson’s lone loss of the season came against Eloy Santa Cruz Valley, who lost to Willcox 47-0 last week.

3A

Safford (4-3) at No. 7 Pusch Ridge (7-1)

Location: 9500 N. Oracle Road

Notable: Pusch Ridge won its fifth straight game over Coolidge 45-35, completing the sweep of Pinal County schools. The Lions had over 400 yards of total offense in the game. It’s the final tuneup before the regular-season finale against runaway 3A favorite, No. 1 Queen Creek Ben Franklin next week.

No. 13 Florence (2-5) at No. 15 Sabino (3-4)

Location: 5000 N. Bowes Road

Notable: Sabino rebounded from a loss to Pusch Ridge with a dominant 42-0 win over Odyssey Institute last Friday. Junior quarterback Bodhi Sanford was 15-for-17 for 249 yards and three touchdowns. He also had three carries for 77 yards and a touchdown. Sabino and Florence played for the first time ever last season, a 44-24 win for the Gophers.

4A

No. 2 Mica Mountain (6-1) at Amphitheater (1-6)

Location: 125 W. Yavapai Road

Notable: Mica Mountain suffered its first home loss since September 2022 last Friday at the hands of Walden Grove and will certainly take out some of that frustration against a struggling Amphi team on Friday. The Thunderbolts opted to use just two quarterbacks against Walden Grove, with sophomore Adam Becker emerging in the second half. After the loss, it’s an important aspect of Mica Mountain’s game to watch as the playoffs approach.

Catalina Foothills (2-5) at No. 9 Walden Grove (5-2)

Location: 15510 S. Sahuarita Park Road, Sahuarita

Notable: Walden Grove rides into a home game against Catalina Foothills after what head coach Corey Noble called “The biggest win in program history,” last Friday against Mica Mountain. Freshman quarterback Miguel Alvarez is still under center after an injury to senior transfer QB Matt Avelar on his first drive with the team against Sahuaro.

Douglas (5-2) at No. 20 Sahuaro (3-4)

Location: 545 N. Camino Seco

Notable: Sahuaro had two big days on the ground from senior Anakin Alexander and sophomore Lekie Sika against Catalina Foothills last Friday. Alexander has already proven to be a rushing threat and rumbled for 128 yards on 20 carries. Sika returned for his first snaps since early September due to injury and carried the ball 15 times for 148 yards and two touchdowns.

Rincon (0-7) at Cholla (4-3)

Location: 2001 W. Starr Pass Blvd

Notable: Cholla saw a three-game win streak come to an end against Pueblo in the classic I-19 rivalry last Friday, a game which the Chargers haven’t won since 2020. Rincon is still on the hunt for its first win in a disappointing season that’s seen the Rangers lose to 2A Palo Verde and hand 4A Somerton its first-ever varsity win after 13 straight losses to open its program.

Empire (0-7) at No. 22 Sahuarita (5-2)

Location: 350 W. Sahuarita Road, Sahuarita

Notable: A 4A Playoff bubble team with two losses to the top 4A programs in the area, Mica Mountain and Walden Grove, the Mustangs have been quietly chipping away at other teams around the area. Junior quarterback Dane Hartnett is a strong dual-threat player. Against a winless Rincon team, Hartnett was 11-for-17 for 136 yards and five touchdowns through the air. He also had five carries for 85 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.

Rio Rico (2-5) at No. 24 Pueblo (5-2)

Location: 3500 S. 12th Ave

Notable: Senior Rio Rico quarterback Sebastian Castro had one of the strongest quarterback performances in Southern Arizona on Friday, as the Hawks drubbed Empire 58-0. Castro was 8-for-11 for five touchdowns, all to different receivers. Pueblo has won two straight against Rincon and Cholla after a freak loss to Catalina Foothills.

5A

Casa Grande (1-6) at No. 20 Sierra Vista Buena (4-3)

Location: 5225 E. Buena School Blvd, Sierra Vista

Notable: This matchup carries far more emotional weight than it does in terms of regional significance. Joe Thomas, who coached Buena for 11 seasons between 2015 and 2025, left the Colts to coach at Casa Grande this offseason. Thomas won 54 games with Buena and made three consecutive state playoff appearances. Buena has been resurgent without him, boasting a 4-3 record with a signature win over region foe Marana. Casa Grande’s lone win is over Phoenix North, a bottom-five 5A squad.

No. 23 Canyon del Oro (4-3) at No. 7 Desert View (7-0)

Location: 4101 E. Valencia Road

Notable: CDO is riding high after an upset of No. 22 Tucson High to get them back in the hunt for favorable playoff positioning and back in region contention. Unfortunately, the Dorados are set to run into the 5A Southern favorite and the only remaining undefeated team in Southern Arizona, No. 7 Desert View. The Jags have outscored seven opponents 313-34.

Casa Grande Vista Grande (3-4) at Ironwood Ridge (4-3)

Location: 2475 W. Naranja Drive

Notable: Ironwood Ridge looks to rebound after being outscored by Marana and No. 1 Desert Mountain, 106-3. Vista Grande has suffered four straight losses, starting with Walden Grove before three straight L’s to region opponents Tucson, CDO and Buena.

No. 15 Marana (4-3) at No. 22 Tucson (5-2)

Location: 400 N. 2nd Ave

Notable: The battle for 5A Sonoran supremacy. Both teams enter Friday night’s game with a 3-1 region record, but very different paths to the top of the standings. Marana lost three of its first five games, including a 10-point upset at the hands of Buena. The Tigers have clawed back with dominant wins over Canyon del Oro, Ironwood Ridge and Casa Grande. Tucson came out of the gate with a 5-1 start, its best since 2018. The Badgers beat Buena in overtime, then dismantled both Casa Grande schools.

Flowing Wells (4-3) at No. 24 Cienega (3-4)

Location: 12775 E. Mary Ann Cleveland Way

Notable: Cienega has charged back into contention after an incredibly challenging 0-3 start to the season against two ranked teams and a third on the playoff bubble. The Bobcats have won three of their last four, all region games. Junior running back Josiah Keyes carried the ball 25 times for 234 yards and five touchdowns in a 35-11 win over Sunnyside on Friday.

Mountain View (2-5) at Nogales (2-5)

Location: 1905 Apache Blvd, Nogales

Notable: Mountain View got back in the win column on Friday for the first time since Sept. 4, beating Flowing Wells 29-0. Junior running back Drake Davis carried the ball 25 times for 229 yards and two touchdowns. Nogales has lost five straight since a Sept. 4 win over Rio Rico.

Sunnyside (2-5) at Maricopa (5-2)

Location: 45012 W. Honeycutt Ave, Maricopa

Notable: Despite a 2-5 record, Sunnyside remains in the playoff hunt at No. 29, with four of their five losses to future playoff teams at the 4A and 5A level. Maricopa has recorded three wins over Tucson teams in four tries, only falling to Desert View.

6A

Salpointe Catholic (2-4) at Scottsdale Saguaro (0-5)

Location: 6250 N. 82nd St., Scottsdale

Notable: The Lancers return from a bye week to face one of the state’s most talked-about teams, the Sabercats of Scottsdale Saguaro. One of Arizona’s greatest football factories and a school that mirrors the athletic success of Salpointe with a smaller enrollment than a traditional 6A school, Saguaro has been in the spotlight for dwindling program numbers and game cancellations. It’s a great opportunity for Salpointe to pick up its first win against a 6A team this season.