Gorman football disappointed it won’t be part of Sollenberger Classic

By Ray Brewer (contact)

Tuesday, March 29, 2011 | 1:55 a.m.

A potential clash of top 20 high school football teams involving Bishop Gorman High won’t happen this summer.

The Sollenberger Classic, the annual late-August game previously featuring the defending Arizona and Nevada large-school state champions at a neutral site, is changing formats to include a second game.

But instead of two-time defending state champion Gorman matching up against Arizona champ Chaparral High of Scottsdale, classic officials at the Arizona Interscholastic Association have changed the large-school game to include a team from Colorado — likely Mullen High, which finished No. 15 last fall in the USA Today rankings.

Nevada will be represented, in a way, with 3A champion Truckee High of California (near Lake Tahoe) likely to be invited to face a small-school team from Arizona, according to officials at both the Arizona and Nevada activity offices. The games should again be at Northern Arizona University, where Gorman lost last year to Hamilton High of Chandler in the final minutes.

“The irony in all this is that there is a California team representing Nevada in Arizona,” said Eddie Bonine, the executive director of the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association.

At Gorman, the news comes as a disappointment.

Chaparral, led by five-star quarterback prospect and Texas verbal commit Connor Brewer, is expected to be ranked in the top 20 — if not higher. Gorman will also be ranked, meaning the game would have been one of the most anticipated nationally of the early season. It was already receiving publicity from national media.

“We were disappointed because it was such a competitive game last year,” Gorman coach Tony Sanchez said. “It was a great representation of the classic and what it is supposed to be about. The idea of getting to compete against a quality team is something we were excited about.”

Gorman’s schedule will still feature two quality out-of-state opponents.

The Gaels on Aug. 26 will host Armwood High of the Tampa, Fla., area in game that is reportedly in consideration to be televised by ESPN. On Oct. 1, they host perennial power Servite High of Anaheim, Calif. Servite (14-1) finished No. 7 overall in the Maxpreps.com rankings while Armwood (14-1) was No. 40 and No. 4 in Florida.

“I’m glad we did load up our schedule,” Sanchez said.

Last year, Gorman (13-2) played three national teams, also losing to De La Salle of California. Gorman led at halftime, but couldn’t hold on in falling 28-14 to a team that finished ranked in the top 10 of virtually every poll.