Marana Tigers roar past Sunnyslope to advance to second round

In the final week of September, the Tigers were 2-3 off the heels of a 10-point loss to Class 5A Sonoran Region rival Sierra Vista Buena. A month prior, across five days in early August, the Tigers experienced the resignation of head coach Phillip Steward, his subsequent rescinding of that resignation 24 hours later, and then lost star senior wideout Sean Roebuck Jr. due to injuries suffered in a car crash.

In just under three months after that tumultuous week, the No. 16 Tigers (8-3) have returned to their elite form that Arizona has become accustomed to, as Marana dominated No. 17 Phoenix Sunnyslope (7-4) in the 5A first round to open its 2026 postseason campaign.

“This win means a lot to us because of what we went through,” Steward said. “At the beginning of the season, it was like a movie, and in those movies, the team ends up winning it all. So we’re just sticking to it, believing in what we’re doing.”

In a game that a lot of media members and fans of high school football picked Sunnyslope to win, the Tigers dominated.

Marana scored on each of its first two drives, cruising past the Sunnyslope defense through the air behind an excellent performance from junior quarterback Trenton Hicks. The junior gunslinger, who began the season splitting reps with his younger counterpart, sophomore Isaac Flores, threw two touchdowns on each of Marana’s first two drives.

The first went to senior wideout Jesse Howell on a 24-yard strike, a precursor to the monster night Howell would go on to put together. Marana’s second touchdown came on the first play from scrimmage after the Tigers’ defense stuffed a fourth-down effort from Sunnyslope. Hicks dumped off a wide receiver screen to senior Jaxsun Sharp, who accelerated down the home sideline to free field for a 50-yard score.

Hicks completed 11 of 20 attempts for 245 yards and four touchdowns. Three of his touchdowns went to Howell, a second in the second quarter for 86 yards and a third in the third quarter from inside the 10-yard-line. Howell hauled in six catches for 160 yards and the touchdown trio.

“I knew we had better athletes and I could trust them if I just threw the ball downfield,” Hicks said postgame. “Jesse had a great game with three touchdowns; Jaxsun had a great touchdown. I just had to trust the O-line to give me enough time."

And then there’s the performance of junior running back and linebacker Jeffrey Smith III.

One of the best two-way players in Arizona, Smith was an absolute force on Friday against the Vikings. The junior broke off two touchdown runs of 47 and 61 yards, tallying 12 total carries for 208 yards and the two scores. Defensively, Smith accumulated 20 total tackles, leading all players in the contest.

“Our offensive game plan was to give it to number three,” Steward said of Smith. “He’s a workhorse, man. I am so proud of him. He’s doing his thing this year, and so we try to keep it simple — give it to number three, and he makes his magic work.”

Through 11 games in 2026, Smith has well surpassed his total of 1,094 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns he accumulated across 12 games in 2025. He’s logged 1,363 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns with 32 fewer carries than his 2025 workload. He also has significantly more tackles — 147 in 2026 to 108 in 2025. He has more tackles for loss, more sacks and more forced fumbles as well.

“This was just another week to prove ourselves,” Smith said. “We really got down to the bottom of the run game, so we implemented that, and when they wanted to crash on it, our pass game was open and ready. Defense also did our job and held down their strong players to give our offense plenty of chances.”

Marana managed to hold at least a two-score advantage over Sunnyslope for nearly the entire contest. Even after surrendering some untimely touchdowns towards the end of each half, the Tigers bounced back every time to re-extend their lead.

2026 is the fifth straight season for the Tigers in the playoffs, and the first since 2023 with a first-round game. The beginning of this multi-season playoff run began with a win over Sunnyslope in the first round in 2022. Marana lost in the first round to ALA - Gilbert North in 2023, was the No. 1 overall seed in the Open Division in 2024, falling to Chandler Hamilton and reached the 5A quarterfinals in 2025.

The Tigers’ next challenge comes in the form of No. 1 Scottsdale Desert Mountain (8-1), the top 5A team and a force that has rolled opponents all season long. The Wolves’ only loss of the season came by way of a forfeit against Chandler Arizona College Prep due to an ineligible player. Their regular-season finale against No. 3 Scottsdale Notre Dame Prep was canceled due to weather.

The Wolves have not played football since Oct. 23, a 24-15 win over No. 2 Scottsdale Horizon. In the meantime, Marana has rattled off two wins against Casa Grande Vista Grande and Sunnyslope, and is firing on all cylinders.

The two squads meet Friday in Scottsdale at 7 p.m.

“We want all the smoke, man,” Steward said. “We are going to play the No. 1 team at their place, and that’s how we want it. We wouldn’t want it any other way. Let’s go get the No. 1 team, and we’ll do our thing.”