Friday night roundup: Gorman survives to remain unbeaten, prevails 23-20 in overtime against Utah school

By Ray Brewer (contact)

Published Friday, Sept. 5, 2014 | 6:45 p.m.

Updated Saturday, Sept. 6, 2014 | 1:48 a.m.

A sack by Bishop Gorman High safety Nicco Fertitta forced a fumble against Bingham (Utah) in overtime today, being recovered by Garrett Haskell to seal the Gaels' 23-20 victory.

Top-ranked Gorman led 20-17 with less than one minute to play in regulation when it fumbled trying to run out the clock. Bingham recovered and kicked a 47-yard field goal with three seconds remaining to force overtime. The wild final minute included Gorman (3-0) getting a "free kick" at the end of regulation to try to win the game, which it barely missed.

This is a developing story. Check back for more.

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The Bishop Gorman High football team for the third straight week today will play a nationally ranked team, hosting No. 24 ranked Bingham of Utah.

That’s exactly how the five-time defending Nevada state champions like it, scheduling big-time opponents for marquee games and establishing itself as one of the nation’s best programs.

Actually, according to USA Today, Gorman is the nation’s best. The Gaels (2-0) are ranked No. 1, meaning if they escape with an undefeated record this season against six out-of-state opponents, and again dominate Las Vegas competition, they would be national champions.

That’s what makes every Friday night meaningful. If the Gaels continue winning, they’ll likely bring a national championship to Southern Nevada. For an area not previously known as a high school football hotbed, that would be a tremendous feat.

Continue to win, however, is easier said than done considering the competition.

Each opponent has a winning tradition and a roster loaded with Division I recruits, and most are top-25 ranked teams. Bingham, for instance, features big and strong linemen up front and athletic players at the skilled positions. It is Utah’s best team.

After an evenly played first half last week, Gorman scored 34 second-half points to beat California power Servite on the road. Servite might not lose again this season. If Bingham loses to Gorman, it likely won’t lose again this season, either.

The plot will continue to thicken each week as Gorman continues its winning. Conversely, the national title aspirations could end tonight. Stay tuned.

Gorman isn’t the only game of interest.

Arbor View, which is ranked No. 3 in the Sun’s preseason rankings, opens the season at

Silverado anxious to prove they are worthy of the high ranking. This could be Arbor View’s best team since the school opened in 2006. They have college linemen in Malik Noshi, a Northern Arizona commit, and top 2016 prospect Keenen King. And the Aggies' misdirection run attack has given the opposition fits in recent years.

In arguably the game of the night, Green Valley High travels to Palo Verde in a battle of top-10 teams. Green Valley won last week in California and Palo Verde was surprisingly awful offensively in being blanked by Centennial

The “Bone Game” between Rancho and host Las Vegas, where Las Vegas is playing for 19 straight wins in the series, is also tonight. Back when the schools were located together near downtown, the rivalry was the state’s most intense. It’s lost its luster with the Las Vegas domination, but players still consider this the game of the season.

Other games include: Bonanza at Spring Valley in the “Banner Game,” Cheyenne at Canyon Springs and Shadow Ridge at Liberty.

We’ll keep you posted all night. Send us game scores, updates and photos on Twitter using the hashtag at #sunstandout.

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Stories from games around the valley:

• Faith Lutheran gets back on track offensively, downs Virgin Valley

• Del Sol scores 46 points in the first half to beat Western

• Spring Valley tosses shutout to take Banner Game against Bonanza

• Las Vegas takes Bone Game with 60-7 romp against Rancho

• Sloppy performance still good enough for Liberty in 58-26 victory

• Plenty to build on from Canyon Springs’ 28-13 win against Cheyenne

• Eldorado finishes strong against Sunrise Mountain, improves to 2-0

• Palo Verde prevails late in thriller with Green Valley

• Moapa Valley pushes history aside in 28-14 win over Hurricane

• Trenton Carmell and Brooks Roe rack up big numbers in Boulder City blowout

• Basic shuts out Valley to get everyone playing time

• Cimarron’s Maurice Bennett returns two kickoffs for a touchdown in win vs. Durango

• Isaiah Morris ‘carried’ Desert Pines to victory over Clark

• Mojave QB leaves early with injury, teammates fight off Chaparral for win

• Legacy puts up good fight, falls at defending Utah state champion

• Strong second half carries Arbor View past Silverado

Ray Brewer can be reached at 990-2662 or [email protected]. Follow Ray on Twitter at twitter.com/raybrewer21