Talia Massi is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Hamilton High School for AZPreps365.com

The Hamilton Huskies found great success in their season opener on Friday night against the Centennial Coyotes. The Huskies topped the Coyotes, 42-0. 

Straight from the opening drive, Hamilton, the home team and ranked No. 5 in Arizona, had great energy. The Huskies' first drive ended with a 36-yard touchdown pass from Nicco Marchiol to Christian Anaya. Hamilton's first three drives resulted in scores. The Huskies were especially prolific running the ball.

Marchiol, the newest addition to the Huskies, transferred from Regis Jesuit High School in Aurora, Colorado. Marchiol was excited to play his first game in Arizona and did exceptionally well clicking with his new teammates.

“Big change to the speed of the game and the intensity. Finally being out here is something that I can’t even describe right now and to just finally come out with a win is really special to us. We have been working all offseason and to finally come out with this is great,” Marchiol said after the game, wearing a neck gaiter for his post-game interviews. 

Marchiol had a big performance against Centennial, who came in ranked No. 13 in the state by MaxPreps. His target passes were crisp, he escaped tackles and he picked up substantial yards on the ground throughout the night. 

“We have been scheming them for a week and a half. They had a bunch of threats everywhere, so I knew I had to make some guys miss and beat some coverages and it’s been a really fun journey. I think we prepared well and that the biggest portion of our win tonight was our preparation into it,” Marchiol said.

Under constant pressure, Marchiol, a Division I prospect, showed some real versatility on the field.

Marchiol is looking at eight different schools including Arizona State, Florida State, LSU, USC and others.

Other players who were big contributors to the high-scoring game for Hamilton were Noah Schmidt and Deshaun Buchanan, who each had at least one rushing touchdown on the night.

“They were different… A lot different than what I saw on [the] freshman [team] last year… They were a lot faster up here. It was just a good learning experience,” said Buchanan, after making his varsity debut.

Centennial was inconsistent, had trouble converting on third down and with moving the ball down the field. The Coyotes had moments of efficiency, but they had trouble running the ball and couldn’t get any numbers on the board. Centennial did have success in rushing the quarterback. 

No matter the final score, it meant a lot to see high school football being played in the Valley despite the coronavirus pandemic. The highly anticipated game between Chaparral and Saguaro was postponed this week after a Chaparral player tested positive for COVID-19, forcing players and staff members to follow a 14-day quarantine and adhere to SUSD protocol and guidelines.  

At Hamilton’s home field in Chandler, all coaches and inactive players wore masks. Most players wore neck gaiters, even under their helmets. At least 1,000 fans were in attendance, according to MaxPreps.com. Fans were spread out in the stands and were required to wear masks. 

The Hamilton student section was packed with football supporters and had great energy as they cheered on their team. All students wore masks but were very close together. 

During these unnerving times, parents of the players remain very supportive of their sons playing during the global pandemic. Darby Davis, mother of Jaxon Haynes, said she was “looking forward” to her son playing in the 2020 season. Haynes, a sophomore wide receiver for the Huskies, has been on the team for two years. 

“It is so important to have normalcy. I had no concern[s],” Davis said.

With a 42-point lead with three minutes left in the third quarter, the Huskies put in some of their players who normally do not see a lot of playing time. Their offensive line had significant personnel changes on the field. They also had a switch at quarterback giving Roch Cholowsky some playing time. Cholowsky had a great 20-yard run in the third quarter. 

As the Huskies celebrated the win, they vowed to remain humble and continue to practice and compete.

“This sets the tempo a lot,” Buchanan said. “They were a high-ranked team and we [beat them] 42-0, so we should have a lot coming for us the rest of the season… [but] this is just a small step in the road."

The Huskies take on Perry next week at home and are excited to get back to work.

“It is looking really good. We got a bright future with these guys. I love each and every one of my boys. We have become really close and can’t wait to keep building this relationship,” Marchiol said.