By Erik T. Masingill ’12
THE ROUNDUP
First Down: Broncos’ playoff run comes to early ending
A 32-29 quarterfinal loss to No. 7 Basha at Phoenix College on Thursday, Nov. 10 not only marked the first loss of the season for the Broncos, but also the last game of the year.
This loss also marks the third straight season in which the Broncos have been eliminated from the playoffs in the quarterfinals.
Basha will advance to play Desert Vista in the semifinals Nov. 18. The winner of that game will face the winner of Hamilton and Desert Ridge in the state championship Nov. 26.
As for the 11-1 Broncos, they will begin their offseason and prepare for 2012. The majority of the starting offense will be returning as seniors while the majority of the starting defense will be graduating this year.
Second Down: Broncos end 11-game win streak
A loss for Brophy put an end to the Broncos’ 11-game win streak, which began Aug. 26 in a 32-0 win over Mountain Ridge.
The streak lasted close to three months. In that time, the Broncos won five home and road games, clinched the No. 2 seed in the playoffs and won their first-round game.
This streak led to an undefeated regular season, which has not been achieved since the 1978 team.
Although the year may be over for the Broncos, this team will be remembered for their accomplishment of their undefeated regular season, which no Brophy team has done in the last 33 years.
Third Down: Offense and defense fail to meet regular benchmarks
With 29 points in the loss, the offense came away just one point shy of the regular amount of points scored per game at 30.
There have only been three games of the 11 in which the offense has scored less than 30.
After a 21-12 halftime lead, the offense scored eight points in the second half while Basha scored 20 to retake the lead and eventually win the game.
The defense also did not allow less than 10 points to Basha’s offense.
Basha was able to put up more than 10 in each of the first and second half, which ruled out the Broncos’ chances of a seventh game where the opponent only scores single-digits.
The defense still contributed to two turnovers. However, the offense also had three turnovers in the game which meant a loss in the turnover margin 3:2.
Fourth Down: Another crew of seniors say goodbye to Brophy football
As another season of Brophy football comes to an end, so do the high school playing careers of 22 seniors.
This group of seniors may have not experienced a state championship win as the class of 2011 did in 2007. However, they were a part of an undefeated regular season and a No. 2 seed playoff team.
Although the season did not end the way the players and coaches wanted it to, there was still plenty of excitement and success from the team throughout the entire year including a total 472 points scored and 145 points allowed.