FSM Essential Recap: Gorman vs McQueen - Las Vegas High School Football - State 5A State Championship

Las Vegas High School Football: State 5A State Championship – Gorman vs McQueen

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The 5-A Divison title was on the line between Bishop Gorman and McQueen High School.

 

Bishop Gorman is back where they are accustomed to after a decisive 56-7 win over McQueen High School at Allegiant Stadium Thursday afternoon. The Gaels started fast, and if it weren’t for five penalties on the first drive, they would have scored more points early and often.

“In my opinion, the king is back, and I think we’re going to hold that for a very long time,” Jake Taylor said after the game. One of the nation’s best offensive linemen, currently committed to Oklahoma, Taylor scored the Gaels’ first touchdown to start the scoring with a 1-yard run.

“I was doubting (we’d run it),” Taylor said. “I was thinking, OK, let’s have some fun in practice, or I thought if we were going to run it, it’d be at the end of the game or something like that. Then I heard ’30 gut’ and was like, OK, here we go.”

Bishop Gorman scored touchdowns on all seven of its possessions and added a Jamih Otis 17-yard fumble return for a defensive touchdown in a dominant performance. The game’s score could have been a lot worse, but it seemed like the refs threw a flag every time the Gaels scored a touchdown. Gorman was flagged for 163 total yards worth of penalties.

 

The Gaels dominated the Lancers. Gorman’s offense put up 549 yards to McQueen’s 90.

 

The Gaels defensive effort limited McQueen star running back, and Nebraska current commit Ashton Hayes to just 22 yards rushing and a touchdown on 11 carries.

Zach Branch, the Valley’s best player, had six catches for 132 yards and a touchdown. The Gaels’ other receiver, Jonathan Brady, caught three passes for 84 yards, including a 61-yard score.

Branch scored twice on a punt return and jet sweep, only to have them called back due to penalties.

“I wasn’t getting frustrated because I know every time I touch the ball, I’m going to make a play,” Branch said. “And my teammates were all balling, too, so I was just happy for them.”

There was some controversy in the title game. The game was chippy from the start due to some trash talk in the papers from the Lancers. When McQueen fell behind 42-0 at halftime, they requested a running clock.

Per NIAA rules, there is no running clock in championship games, so the governing body went to Bishop Gorman and asked if they would allow it.

The Gaels declined the Lancers’ request, and McQueen threatened not to play the second half and leave the stadium altogether. The NIAA overruled the Gaels, and the running clock started once the second half kicked off.

“There’s a sense of accomplishment, more than there has been for a long time,” Bishop Gorman coach Brent Browner said. “When you go on that run, that’s (winning state) expected. Theirs is unexpected. That’s a great team we just played, but we just rose to a different level.”

 

For the 2021 Bishop Gorman Gaels, this was a season that reset the program’s future.

 

When the season began, Gorman was on a mission. Still stung by the 2019 loss to Liberty in the state semi-finals, they had to sit and wait an entire year to claim what they felt was theirs. The 2021 season was about revenge and redemption for the Gaels. They had one focus and one goal, to beat any and every team in Las Vegas to become the state champions once again.

When Bishop Gorman beat Liberty last Friday night, they knew they had just won the state championship. But, they also knew that they had to beat a team from the north to finalize that dream. The only hiccup on the way was a fluke loss to Hamilton (AZ) High School, and now the Gaels sit at the doorstep of starting another dynasty.

Next up for Bishop Gorman is a yet-to-be-determined opponent in the Geico Bowl, taking place in early December at Fertitta Field. It could be that same Hamilton team that beat the Gaels in Arizona earlier in the year. The Gorman revenge tour would love that.

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Franchise Sports Media has your 702 High School Football season covered. Make sure you tune into The FSM Prep Rally for the end of the year recap. Interact with us on all our social media platforms in the comments sections.

 

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