A 4-6 regular season normally isn’t something to shout about, but in the case of Gilbert Mesquite it meant a step in the right direction coach Mike Reardon appreciated.
A rigorous schedule — automatic when your school is a member of the Fiesta Region — and how the Wildcats progressed from start to finish were the keys to only the second playoff appearance in 10 Mesquite seasons. Now Reardon is looking for more.
“We want to pick up where we left off last year,” Reardon said. “We don’t have as many seniors this year, and we had good senior leadership from that group. We think the kids will be able to pick up more and learn more with our system being installed and a full coaching staff with us.”
Counting a playoff loss to Chandler Hamilton, Mesquite’s final record was 4-7. But the Wildcats gave Hamilton a first-round scare, as they fell late, 26-14. Three weeks earlier Hamilton buried Mesquite 44-8. The playoff result was due in part to how much better and how much more confident Mesquite was from its earlier games. A gradual ascent.
“The second time we played Hamilton we got over the fear factor,” Reardon said. “We played six teams that made the playoffs during the year. And we were two points shy of finishing the season over .500. The schedule we played helped. We have the same schedule this year so it’ll be just as tough if not tougher.”
With four or five starters back on each side of the ball, including the bulk of its offensive line, the Wildcats seem better prepared to deal with the slate ahead of them.
“We don’t get the transfer kids a lot of other schools do,” Reardon said. “We’ll build with what we have. The kids have bought into what we do, and we can get deeper into our offense than we did last year. They’ll be learning more with the full staff we have now at the varsity level.”
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Roster
| No. | Name | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. |
| 2 | Josh Awaal | RB | 5-10 | 180 | Sr. |
| 3 | Angelo Sabud | WR | 5-4 | 150 | Jr. |
| 4 | Gabe Samora | WR | 5-7 | 150 | Sr. |
| 5 | Jake Bambrick | DB | 5-8 | 155 | Jr. |
| 6 | Tim Bledsoe | DB | 5-11 | 170 | Jr. |
| 7 | Charles Robinson | RB | 5-9 | 160 | Jr. |
| 8 | Taylor Rascon | WR | 6-0 | 180 | Sr. |
| 9 | Matt Westergard | QB | 5-9 | 180 | Sr. |
| 10 | Tanner Hernandez | DB | 5-7 | 160 | Jr. |
| 11 | Steven Hansen | QB | 6-0 | 165 | Jr. |
| 12 | Jonny Breeze | DB | 6-0 | 180 | Sr. |
| 13 | Trevor Low | WR | 5-8 | 130 | Jr. |
| 14 | Kaleb Roberts | DB | 6-1 | 165 | Jr. |
| 15 | Brandon McElveen | LB | 5-6 | 145 | Jr. |
| 17 | Quinten Gatewood | WR | 5-11 | 215 | Jr. |
| 20 | Damian Crawford | WR | 5-9 | 175 | Sr. |
| 21 | Dameon Morgan | WR | 5-10 | 165 | So. |
| 22 | Dylan Fisher | DB | 5-8 | 145 | Jr. |
| 23 | Jacob Van Dam | DB | 5-10 | 155 | Jr. |
| 24 | Keith Anderson | DB | 5-10 | 150 | Jr. |
| 25 | Langston Ward | WR | 6-3 | 175 | Jr. |
| 26 | Brett Breunig | DB | 5-10 | 180 | Sr. |
| 27 | Devin Shumway | WR | 5-9 | 165 | Jr. |
| 30 | Brian Foy | RB | 5-7 | 165 | Sr. |
| 31 | Josh Rushing | RB | 5-9 | 160 | Jr. |
| 32 | Mike Taufa | LB | 5-10 | 210 | Jr. |
| 33 | Marcellus Russell | RB | 5-9 | 160 | Jr. |
| 34 | Justin Baker | LB | 5-7 | 150 | Jr. |
| 36 | Nick Nelson | LB | 5-8 | 150 | Sr. |
| 40 | Sam Wilson | DB | 6-1 | 170 | Jr. |
| 41 | Hector Morales | QB | 5-9 | 175 | Jr. |
| 42 | John Anthony | RB | 5-9 | 185 | Sr. |
| 43 | Fine Itaaehau | LB | 5-11 | 220 | Jr. |
| 44 | John Edmondson | LB | 5-8 | 185 | Jr. |
| 45 | Kyle Pastor | DB | 5-10 | 160 | Jr. |
| 47 | Robert Dalton | DL | 6-3 | 185 | Jr. |
| 50 | Mota Fahina | DL | 6-2 | 250 | Sr. |
| 51 | Zak Sanderson | DL | 6-5 | 200 | Jr. |
| 52 | Mike Steiger | DL | 6-0 | 205 | Sr. |
| 54 | Ryan Wulff | LB | 6-1 | 175 | Sr. |
| 55 | Fernado Correa | OL | 5-10 | 250 | Sr. |
| 56 | Cameron Crozier | OL | 6-3 | 200 | Jr. |
| 60 | Mike Gurczak | OL | 5-9 | 165 | Jr. |
| 61 | Chris Selder | OL | 6-2 | 200 | Jr. |
| 62 | Garret Hommel | OL | 5-10 | 200 | Jr. |
| 63 | Steve Navarro | OL | 5-11 | 195 | Jr. |
| 64 | Logan Hille | OL | 6-3 | 200 | Sr. |
| 65 | Cesar Salcido | OL | 5-9 | 185 | Sr. |
| 66 | Mike LaMorgese | DL | 6-1 | 235 | Sr. |
| 67 | Dylan Brady | OL | 5-10 | 270 | Jr. |
| 68 | Jake Solomon | OL | 6-3 | 260 | Sr. |
| 70 | Greg Lebarre | DL | 6-1 | 190 | Sr. |
| 71 | Mike Callan | LB | 5-10 | 180 | Sr. |
| 72 | Cory Allen | DL | 6-2 | 180 | Jr. |
| 73 | Jimmu Stivers | OL | 5-8 | 210 | Sr. |
| 74 | Nate Jameson | OL | 6-2 | 275 | Sr. |
| 75 | Jarred Solomon | OL | 6-4 | 265 | Sr. |
| 76 | McKay Howell | OL | 6-2 | 250 | Jr. |
| 77 | Alec Horne | DL | 5-3 | 185 | DL |
| 80 | Brandon Fehd | WR | 6-2 | 170 | Jr. |
| 81 | Akber Durrani | WR | 5-4 | 145 | Sr. |
| 82 | Ryan Nonnenmacher | K | 6-0 | 190 | Sr. |
| 83 | RJ Rickert | WR | 6-3 | 210 | So. |
| 84 | Jason Curtis | DB | 5-11 | 185 | Jr. |
| 85 | Zach Turilli | DB | 5-9 | 150 | Jr. |
| 86 | Randall Alcantar | WR | 5-11 | 170 | Sr. |
| 87 | CJ Randall | DL | 6-6 | 220 | Jr. |
| 88 | Brad Utter | DL | 6-4 | 215 | Sr. |
| 89 | Fernando Rueda | WR | 5-8 | 145 | Jr. |
| Jacob Padilla | DB | 5-6 | 140 | Jr. |
