The Arizona Interscholastic Association confirmed Thursday morning that Brophy and Mountain Pointe will participate in the next Sollenberger Classic and that the annual two-day event is returning to Las Vegas.

Last year, Mountain Pointe used its season opening victory in the Sollenberger Classic to help propel it to an undefeated season. This time, Mountain Pointe will face the team Bishop Gorman defeated in Nevada’s big school final year last year, Reed, which finished 12-2 and graduated its top three skill players last year.

Bishop Gorman is hosting the Sollenberger again but will face Brophy this time at the Las Vegas’ school’s expansive high school stadium to kick off the 2014-15 season. Alize Jones, considered the best high school tight end in the nation, and rapper Snoop Dogg’s son, Cordell Broadus, are just two of the talented players five-time defending state champ Bishop Gorman will start. 

LSU, USC and Notre Dame are some of the schools that already offered a scholarship to Broadus, a 4-star recruit at wide receiver. In 2008, Brophy and Bishop Gorman squared off during the first time the Classic pitted a team from Arizona and Nevada.

This is the fifth time Bishop Gorman will play in the Sollenberger Classic and the third time Brophy gets the call heading into the 9th annual event that honors the late Barry Sollenberger, Arizona’s first ever high school sports historian. Arizona's record is 7-2 since its best programs started playing Nevada's best in the  Classic, an event that now attracts national attention. 

Fox Sports Arizona Plus is scheduled to broadcast the 7 p.m. games on Aug. 22 and 23.

Below is the press release the AIA sent to the media Thursday morning.

9TH ANNUAL SOLLENBERGER CLASSIC HEADING BACK TO LAS VEGAS

Presented by Station Casinos at Fertitta Field on the campus of Bishop Gorman High School

PHOENIX, AZ (May 15, 2014) – The 2014 edition of the Sollenberger Classic, presented by Station Casinos, will again be held in Las Vegas at Fertitta Field on the campus of Bishop Gorman High School.

The Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) participants will feature 2013 Division I State Champion Mountain Pointe High School and a Division I Quarterfinal team in Brophy Prep.  The Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association (NIAA) participants will feature 2013 Division I State Champion Bishop Gorman High School and Division I Runner-up Reed High School.

On Friday, August 22, Brophy Prep will match up against Bishop Gorman.  The game is scheduled to be broadcast live on Fox Sports Arizona Plus at 7 p.m.

Brophy Prep, coached by Scooter Molander, finished the 2013 campaign with five wins and seven losses.  Despite the record, Brophy entered the AIA Division I playoffs as a No. 12 seed and upset No. 5 Westview 28 to 14, before losing to Desert Ridge in the quarterfinals.

Bishop Gorman finished 2013 with its fifth straight football championship after defeating Reed 48 to 14 in the NIAA Division I State Championship.  Bishop Gorman, coached by Tony Sanchez, finished the 2013 season with a record of 13 wins and two losses.

On Saturday, August 23, Mountain Pointe will play Reed.  The game is scheduled to be broadcast live on Fox Sports Arizona Plus at 7 p.m.

Mountain Pointe started the 2013 season by defeating Bishop Gorman in the Sollenberger Classic in a tightly contested match-up by a score of 28 to 21.  Mountain Pointe, coached by Norris Vaughan, never looked back on its way to an unblemished 14 wins and no losses to capture the AIA Division I State Championship 42 to 19 over 2012 AIA Division I State Champion Hamilton.

Reed is coached by Ernie Howren, and entered the 2013 NIAA Division I state playoffs as the winner of the Northern Region.  Reed finished as the Division I State Runner-up to Bishop Gorman, finishing the year with a record of 12 wins and two losses.

Tickets for the Sollenberger Classic are $10.00 for adults, $5.00 for seniors/military and students (ages 6-18.  Children 5 and younger admitted free.

Station Casinos is the leading provider of gaming and entertainment to residents of Southern Nevada, with 16 properties located throughout the Las Vegas valley, and is pleased to serve as the presenting sponsor for the Sollenberger Classic.

Other Fox Sports affiliates may pick up the broadcast of either game, and when they do, that information will become available.

Sollenberger Classic History

The Sollenberger Classic honors the late Barry Sollenberger, a former AIA employee.  As a sports historian, Sollenberger was devoted to the task of documenting the achievements of high school athletes in the state of Arizona.

The first game honoring Barry was held at Sun Devil Stadium on the campus of Arizona State University.  Chandler Hamilton, the 2005 AIA 5A Division I state runner-ups, defeated Mesa Red Mountain 21-7 on Friday, August 25, 2006.

The Phoenix Brophy Prep Broncos hosted Tucson Salpointe Catholic at Phoenix College on Thursday, August 23, 2007.  The Broncos defeated Salpointe Catholic 33-17 to take hold of the Sollenberger Classic Trophy.

In 2008, Phoenix Brophy Prep, the 2007 AIA 5A D-I state champions, defeated Las Vegas Bishop Gorman, the 2007 NIAA 4A state champions, 16-6.  The game was played on August 23, 2008 at University of Phoenix Stadium, home to the Arizona Cardinals.

In 2009, the Sollenberger Classic was played in Reno, Nevada at MacKay Stadium on the campus of the University of Nevada, Reno.  AIA 5A D-II defending state champion Peoria Centennial defeated NIAA 4A defending state champion Reno McQueen 51-20 on August 22, 2009.

The Hamilton Huskies and Bishop Gorman Gaels made their second Sollenberger Classic appearance in 2010 at NAU’s J. Lawrence Walkup Skydome.  The Huskies, the AIA defending 5A-I state champion, defeated the Gaels, the NIAA defending 4A state champion, 24 to 17, in a tightly contested game.

In 2011, the Sollenberger Classic was hosted at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.  This marked the first year the Classic would feature two games.  In the first game, the NIAA Class 3A runner-up Moapa Valley defeated the AIA Class 3A defending state champion Show Low, 28 to 26.  In the second game, the NIAA Class 4A defending state champion Bishop Gorman defeated the AIA Class 5A-II defending state champion Chaparral, 42-22.

In 2012, University of Phoenix Stadium was host for the second straight year, and third time in the history of the Sollenberger Classic.  In the first game, the AIA Division IV defending state champions, Blue Ridge High School, defeated the NIAA Class 3A runner-up, Moapa Valley, 23-14.  In the second game, the AIA Division I state champion Desert Vista defeated the NIAA 4A Sunset Region runner-up, Palo Verde, 20-10.

In 2013, Fertitta Field on the campus of Bishop Gorman High School played host to the 2013 Sollenberger Classic, presented by Station Casinos.  In the first game 2012 AIA Division I State Runner-up Mountain Pointe defeated 2012 NIAA Division I Champion Bishop Gorman 28 to 21.  In the second game AIA Division II State Semi-finalist Salpointe Catholic defeated 2012 NIAA Division I State Runner-up Liberty 48 to 7.

AIA Media Contact: Brian Bolitho; Director of Business Media; bbolitho@aiaonline.org; 602-385-3822