Mountain View put together over 600 yards of offense Thursday night to get past Sunnyside 52-8. The win pushed the Mountain Lions to 2-1 on the year while the Blue Devils fell to 2-2. The win also avenged a 46-20 loss to Sunnyside last year that ultimately prevented the Mountain Lions from making the playoffs.

Sunnyside was a very different team last year. QB Nick O'Hagin graduated along with his 1,900 yards passing and his 800 yards rushing. In fact, O'Hagin threw for almost 300 yards (3 TDs) and rushed for almost 130 more in that big win over Mountain View.  This year? Meet Mountain View QB Caleb Ryden.

Ryden threw for 282 yards with four touchdowns against Sunnyside Thursday night and he rushed for 123 more. Now a senior, Ryden waited his turn in the huddle due to the presence of Justice Summerset.

Summerset finished his career at Mountain View with over 5,200 yards passing, putting him sixth on the all-time list for Southern Arizona.  Summerset also set the Arizona high jump record at 7 feet, 2 1/2 inches. An Olympic hopeful, Summerset chose to jump for the University of Arizona rather than pursue a football scholarship.

 

Tucson Career Passing Leaders

Reggie Robertson, Sahuaro, 7,106 (1997-99)
Andrew Cota, Salpointe, 6,635 (2011-13)
Brian Chason, Tucson Christian: 6,408 (1982-85)
Adriell Alvarado, Cienega: 5,910 (2012-15)
Adam Rodriguez, Desert View: 5,774 (1985-89)
Justice Summerset, Mountain View: 5,264 (2013-15)

 

 

Seven of O’Hagin’s top receivers also graduated with him. Only 134 yards of receiving came back. Defense? The top 12 tacklers graduated.

“I told my team to keep playing hard,” first-year head coach Roy Lopez said. “We are young. Seven of the 11 guys out there are just sophomores. We are going to learn to take our lumps but we are also going to work our tails off and get better.”

A longtime coach at Marcos de Niza, Lopez led the Padres to an 11-2 record in 2012 and a runner-up finish in 2009.

Summerset graduated as did running back Bryce Coleman (1,124 yards rushing). The Mountain Lions also lost WR Stanley Berryhill to California (where he moved with his family) but standout receivers Sebastian Spencer and Isaiah Lovett have suited up for their senior years.

Lovett pulled down 96 yards against Sunnyside and Spencer added 95. Junior Wyatt Adams collected 68 yards and sophomore Josh Hart had 59.

Lovett’s father, Lamont Lovett played for Arizona and his two senior cousins, Edwin Lovett (Pusch Ridge) and Shawn David Fontenette (Cholla), have also made an impact on the football field.

“My dad would obviously like me to play for Arizona,” Lovett said with a smile. “But he told me to go where I feel comfortable and keep my options open.”

Lovett is averaging 25 yards a catch for 350 yards through three games along with six touchdowns.

“It feels pretty good to be consistent and get wins,” Lovett added. “We can’t take anyone lightly and we needed to jump on Sunnyside early.”

Sunnyside went with four different signal callers in the game with Joe Fuentes showing the most promise with 126 yards (7-10) through the air. Fuentes also rushed for a touchdown and connected on a 2-point conversion. Carlos Perez pulled down 89 yards receiving and Jose Silva added 56. Cameron Orozco rushed for 39 yards.

Lopez has little time to rest with Salpointe (2-0) visiting on Friday, Sept. 16 while Mountain View head coach Bam McRae will be visiting Tucson High (2-1).