Cactus takes revenge over Mesquite in season opener

In the past two seasons, Mesquite ended the Cactus Cobras’ season with a series of one-point playoff victories. On Friday at the Walkup Skydome in Flagstaff, the Cobras exacted their revenge, defeating the two-time defending state champion Wildcats, 56-6, in the 2021 season opener. 

The game started off slower than the final score would indicate with neither team moving the ball consistently for the first quarter-and-a-half. However, the game broke open when Mesquite star wide receiver/linebacker Andrew Morris reeled in a 23-yard touchdown pass to give the Wildcats a 6-0 lead with 7:42 remaining in the first half. 

The celebration evaporated quickly for Mesquite after Cactus’ Chris Thomas Jr. took the ensuing kickoff 82 yards to put the Cobras up 7-6 only 13 seconds after Morris’ touchdown. Little did anyone suspect that the defending state champions would not score again and that Cactus would add another 49 points to their total. 

Special teams, defensive stands and big plays helped Cactus run up the score quickly. In fact, Cactus did not record an offensive first down until late in the third quarter, at which point they were already up 43-6. Between kicker Rameel Yaro’s several touchbacks, punter Aki Pulu pinning the Wildcats and key turnovers, Cactus owned the field position battle nearly the entire game. The Cobras’ average starting field position was on their opponents 43-yard line, while Mesquite averaged starting on their own 19. 

“We focus very hard on special teams,” Cactus coach Joseph Ortiz said. “We just were very successful on our special teams because we put a lot of work in it. Every week. We put in a lot of work.”

Junior quarterback Will Galvan led the charge for the Cobras, finishing the game 8-for-10 passing with 132 yards, along with another 75 yards rushing. Additionally, Galvan accounted for two passing touchdowns and a rushing touchdown, all while only playing three quarters. 

In the state championship game against Mesquite last December, Galvan only scored a single touchdown and was held to under 100 yards passing. After the game, Galvan said he and his teammates talked about how much they needed to improve to beat Mesquite from the moment they lost last winter. 

“Honestly, I just think I’m playing better as a quarterback and I just trust everybody on my team 100 percent,” Galvan said. “They’re all going to have my back no matter what.”

For Mesquite, senior quarterback Gerardo Saenz was making his debut as a starter for the Wildcats, replacing four-star Oregon recruit Ty Thompson. Saenz was 10-for-24 passing with 139 yards, a touchdown pass and an interception against a Cactus defense that returned 10 starters from the previous season. 

Despite the outcome, Mesquite head coach Scott Hare thought Saenz performed fine for his first start and would rather place the blame on himself. “Nobody made more mistakes than I did,” Hare said. “We didn’t get everything right, the shifts, the formations… Our special teams were always running guys on and off. Nobody today made more mistakes than I did. I can’t really say anything about any individual player because they would be making less mistakes than I made.”

Mesquite plays next week at Gilbert, who they defeated in a 47-46 nailbiter last season. They may be without the services of Morris, their captain, who left the game midway through the third quarter while being treated for a lower-body injury.