Week 2 of the high school football season was one to remember as all 15 desert teams played, but two of them put on one of the best regular-season shows we've seen in a long time.
Let's look back at the most memorable moments from the week that was:
Game of the year already?
With apologies to John Belushi, Eddie Murphy, Adam Sandler, Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig, I don't recall a more entertaining show on a Saturday night than the one put on by Coachella Valley and Rancho Mirage this week.
Two elite teams, tons of elite players all doing elite things in the same game, and it comes down to a one-handed touchdown catch on fourth down in the final seconds of the game. Final score, Rancho Mirage 34, Coachella Valley 31 in a game fit for Hollywood and the big screen.
This game included five of The Desert Sun's Elite 11 football players and all five of them showed out. It was exactly what you hope for in a marquee game, and it's going to be hard to match this season.
Thinking of other remarkable regular-season games in recent years, two come to mind: the 2022 Yucca Valley-Coachella Valley clash that went to the Arabs 40-39 on a final-play two-point conversion stop. The 2022 Flag Game where La Quinta, which had lost 16 straight league games, upset Palm Desert 41-34 on a 55-yard touchdown in the final seconds to a guy who had never caught a pass before.
However, Saturday night's game may have topped them all.
Good bounce-backs
In Week 1, three Desert Empire League teams were shut out in lopsided losses. In Week 2, all three of them bounced back with wins. Rancho Mirage in the above classic over Coachella Valley. Xavier Prep regrouped to beat La Salle 49-6 and Palm Springs topped Grand Terrace 33-21.
Sure, the caliber of opponent may have been different than the previous week, but to start the season with such a thud can start to sew the seeds of doubt, for all three to bounce back with lopsided wins reinforces that the hard work and high expectations they had weren't unfounded. All three can put the opening week behind them now and move forward with confidence and conviction.
Shoutout to the undefeateds
Remarkably, after just two weeks of action, only three of the 15 desert football teams are undefeated. Of course, all schedules aren't built the same, but as Herm Edwards famously said "We play to win the game" and so far these teams have done that:
Shadow Hills: After rolling past Indio in Week 1, the Knights made quick work of Palo Verde Valley for a 28-0 win on Friday. While the win may have been expected, to shut out the traditionally powerful and tricky running game of Palo Verde Valley was impressive. That's a 2-0 start by a combined 61-8.
Desert Hot Springs: Those Golden Eagles found a way to win again. Another late score to pull out a close, low-scoring game for the second week in a row has DHS sitting at 2-0. After a 20-14 win over Rubidoux in Week 1, DHS pulled out a 14-7 win over Jurupa Valley in Week 2. A Golden Eagles team with a ton of new faces is getting valuable varsity experience while winning at the same time, a dream scenario for Roy Provost and the DHS coaches.
La Quinta: The Blackhawks are 1-0 after continuing their tradition of having their bye week in Week 1. The Blackhawks looked impressive in a 42-8 win over Heritage. What stood out about the Blackhawks' win was that to go with the running game, which you knew was going to be good, the passing game with first-time starter Roman Ansley at QB looked sharp, too. The degree of difficulty turns up in the coming weeks, but a good start for La Quinta.
Shad's show-stoppers
Best win: — Desert Chapel 30, Workman 6: OK, yes there may have been bigger wins and more dramatic finishes, but no one else made history in Week 2. Congratulations to Desert Chapel for recording its first-ever win as an 11-man football team, after making the jump from eight-man last year.
Best performance — Michael Ramos Jr., Yucca Valle y: Ramos Jr. went off in another instant classic of a game as the Trojans fell to Rancho Christian 44-41 despite Ramos' SIX-touchdown performance. Ramos had 330 yards passing and three touchdowns, and 99 yards rushing and three more touchdowns. A six-touchdown performance and a near-win against a team that beat the Trojans 40-19 last year. Impressive.
Best moment — Have to go with the Yanni Padilla to Kobee Finnikin fourth-down, game-winning, one-handed, jaw-dropping catch to win the game for Rancho Mirage over Coachella Valley. I mean, this play will go down in desert football history for sure.
Best game coming in Week 3 — La Quinta at Rancho Verde on Thursday night: I'll be interested to see how La Quinta does against a much tougher opponent this week. The Blackhawks lost to Rancho Verde 40-13 last year, but I believe La Quinta is much more equipped to compete this year. They don't have to win this game to impress me, but I think we'll get a great feel for where La Quinta stands after this one.
Week 2 results
- La Quinta 42, Heritage 8
- Hemet 45, Indio 13
- Calipatria 65, Desert Mirage 12
- Canyon Springs 40, Twentynine Palms 22
- Palm Springs 33, Grand Terrace 21
- Central (El Centro) 20, Palm Desert 14
- Xavier Prep 49, La Salle 6
- Shadow Hills 28, Palo Verde Valley 0
- Desert Hot Springs 14, Jurupa Valley 7
- San Bernardino 28, Cathedral City 20
- Rancho Christian 44, Yucca Valley 41
- Desert Christian Academy 27, Riverside Prep 20
- Rancho Mirage 34, Coachella Valley 31
- Desert Chapel 30, Workman 6
Week 3 schedule
THURSDAY, SEPT. 5
(All games at 7 p.m. unless otherwise listed)
- Xavier Prep at Notre Dame
- La Quinta at Rancho Verde, 7:30 p.m.
- Twentynine Palms at Victor Valley
FRIDAY, SEPT. 6
- Eisenhower at Palm Springs (Site TBA)
- Palm Desert at Elsinore
- Shadow Hills at Yucaipa
- Rancho Mirage at Tahquitz
- Indio at Barstow
- Eldorado at Coachella Valley
- Citrus Hill at Desert Hot Springs
- Desert Christian Academy at Desert Mirage
- Serrano at Yucca Valley
Off week: Cathedral City, Desert Chapel
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Week 2 high school football takeaways: Did the game of the year already happen?
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