Mojave football determined to make amends for disappointing finish

By Jesse Granger

Friday, Aug. 21, 2015 | 2 a.m.

After losing two games in the final minutes on long passes, and missing the playoffs at the hands of an over-complicated, five-team tiebreaker, the Mojave High football team is ready to start anew.

“It was really disappointing to go 6-3 and not make the playoffs,” Mojave coach Joe Delgado said of the 2014 season. “It was one of the better records in my tenure.”

Delgado has coached the Rattlers to three straight winning seasons, and notched the school’s first playoff win in 2012. That only magnifies last year’s disappointment.

“We can only look at ourselves,” Delgado said. “A bunch of games came down to the end, if we were a little more disciplined we could have been as good as 8-1 and not been involved in that mess.”

Improvement might not be easy. Mojave must replace one of the most productive backfield combinations in Southern Nevada.

Ty Flanagan, who rushed for more than 1,200 yards and 16 touchdowns last season on his way to being named Division I-A Sunset League’s Most Valuable Player, has moved on to Idaho State. They will also have to replace quarterback Zack Arave, who like Flanagan was a three-year starter.

Senior quarterback Lamaja Cunningham (6-foot-1, 180 pounds) only completed five passes last season as a junior and will likely take the reins of the offense.

“I understand we lose a couple big-number guys, but we have some other athletes that can easily do the job,” Delgado said. “I believe that everything we did last year, we can surpass this year.”

Mojave does return 10 starters on the offensive side, and eight on defense, many of whom are along the offensive and defensive lines.

Senior linemen Daijon Payno (5-foot-7, 200 pounds) and Kaleb Friedman (5-foot-10, 220 pounds) will anchor both lines, and try to ease the transition into the new skill players behind them.

“This year we are a little more focused on our jobs, so I feel like we are going to do much better this year,” senior defensive end Kyle Reynolds said. “We aren’t worried about any other team. We are worried about Mojave.”

Part of the reason for Delgado’s optimism is the program's continuity. Going on his fifth season as head coach, his schemes and playbook are deeply rooted with the players.

“I think we have a lot of stability,” Delgado said. “A lot of the players know the system so that makes things easier.”

If Mojave does in fact compete for the Sunset Division title with Faith Lutheran and Cheyenne, it will take some breakout seasons. And that is exactly what Delgado expects.

“There are some players that you guys haven’t even heard of that will be in the headlines this upcoming season,” Delgado said.