Pieces in place for Centennial football to continue winning ways

By Taylor Bern

Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2015 | 2 a.m.

The final score, 52-7, wasn’t close. And by the end of the game it looked like another one of many Bishop Gorman High romps.

But last year’s Sunset Regional semifinal against Centennial started much differently.

On Centennial’s second play from scrimmage, running back Rhamondre Stevenson went 80 yards for a touchdown to even the game with the local power, and the Bulldogs even recovered the ensuing onside kick to make things more interesting.

While Gorman finished with 45 unanswered points, those highlights from the first quarter are something Centennial coach Leon Evans thinks stuck with his returning players.

“In a game like that, if you don’t take chances and you don’t go out there and go after those guys, they’re going to crush you,” Evans said. “So for us, hanging for a half is a huge accomplishment.”

The pieces are in place for another run for the team that started the 2014 season 9-0 before losing to Arbor View in the regular season finale and then to Gorman in the playoffs. Stevenson is a senior in the backfield, junior defensive tackle Greg Rogers is one of the best college prospects in the state and senior Tishawn Barnaby is a heavy hitter at linebacker. The defensive line in experienced, including Sky Rodriguez and Tyler Williamson.

Not only does Centennial seemingly have the personnel in place, but after some close calls last year they don’t intend on leaving anything to chance.

“We can’t settle for less,” Barnaby said. “Every game we’ve got to come out hyped. We can’t take a team for granted.”

At quarterback, junior Jamaal Evans looks to take over after splitting duties as a sophomore. The coach’s son recently made the all-camp team alongside Rogers at Alabama, and it’s that type of skill that helps allow Leon Evans to treat his son just like everyone else.

“I’m hard on all of them,” Evans said. “I don’t really notice a difference, he’s just a player when he’s on the field.”

There was another camp this offseason that could end up playing a large role in Centennial’s pursuit of the playoffs. At Utah State, the Bulldogs were in attendance alongside several other teams, including Gorman.

After getting an up-close look at their biggest annual roadblock, Evans noticed an increased amount of confidence from his players on the way home. Perhaps they won’t be able to take down the giant, but they certainly believe they can.

“Our kids walked away from it feeling pretty good about themselves,” coach Evans said, “so we’re going to use that and carry on into our season.”

Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.