Show Low took a little time to get its offense going, but the lift from defense and special teams was enough to start the Cougars on their way to another championship game.

Stopping Florence twice in the red zone in the first period without points ignited Show Low and the Cougars went on to topple the Gophers, 31-14, in a Division IV semifinal game at Paradise Valley High School.

Show Low (11-3) gets a date for a repeat opportunity  Nov. 26 at 3:30 p.m. at NAU against Blue Ridge, a 45-14 winnerover Seton Catholic in Saturday's late semifinal. Florence, which reached the semifinals for the third year in a row, left frustrated and finished the year 10-3.

"The defense had our back," Show Low coach Randy Ricedorff said. "They moved the ball on us the first drive, but we stopped them on downs. Then they missed a field goal.  We got rolling on offense in the second half, but the defense early and all game was the difference."

With Florence failing to score on its first possession and then not capitalizing on a Show Low fumble by missing a 25-yard field goal, the Gophers allowed confidence to come the Cougars way. Ricedorff made a key decision late in the quarter when he had quarterback Josh Weeks quick kick on third down inside its 15.

With noone back deep for Florence, Weeks punt got a nice bounce and rolled dead 64 yards down field. Florence ended up with possession on its 22. Show Low forced a three-and-out and retook possession at  the Florence 46. Show Low netted a 25-yard field goal from Donnie Borrego for a 3-0 lead early in the second period thanks to the drastic change in field position.

"Those plays were huge," Florence coach George De La Torre said. "It set the tone and gave Show Low confidence. We'd been very successful offensively this season with our speed. They did  a good job defensing us. We had a couple plays where we were one step away from some big ones, but didn't get them."

Show Low bumped the lead to 10-0 a little more than two minutes after Borrego's field goal. A 58-yard punt return for a touchdown by Weeks was the damage with 7:05 left until halftime.

Florence outgained Show Low, 124-70, in the first half, but that changed quickly with Show Low's first possession of the second half. The Cougard marched 65 yards in six plays with Brice Rova scoring on a 14-yard run two  minutes in to the third period.

Weeks added a 4-yard TD run six minutes later to make it 24-0. The game was firmly in Show Low's hands.

Show Low rushed for more than 200 yards in the second half and had particularl success running counters.

"They outmanned us on some formations and we didn't respond in the secondary," De La Torre said. "They had more big runs in the second half."

Florence finally scored on a 2 yard run by DeShaun Davis with 11:11 left in the game to make it 24-6. But Show Low reeled off one more explosive drive, marching 68 yards in three plays. Daniel MacLeod did the honors with a 37-yard run with 9:54 to play.

 

 

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