Chandler Holds Off Centennial 20-16 in Crazy Finish

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The Chandler Wolves took down the Centennial Coyotes 20-16 in a matchup that lived up to the hype.

Even though they hadn’t played a game in 22 days, Chandler head coach Ty Wisdom said he did not see any rust from his group.

“I wouldn’t say rusty,” Wisdom said. “Just some things to clean up; I’ll coach them better.”

Scoring first would be the Coyotes, though.

On their opening drive, Centennial was able to march down the field to get on the board.

2028 quarterback Titus Hill slinged it to 2027 wide receiver Noah Urquiza, who was left wide open and scored a 31-yard touchdown.

Even though they let up the first score of the game, Chandler didn’t take long to match the score.

The Wolves ran the ball early and often to move down the field.

Another big play during the drive saw Oregon 2027 5-Star QB commit Will Mencl connect with Weber State tight end commit Gage Scheurn for a 35-yard gain.

A few plays later, Chandler 2028 running back David Douglas was able to score a 2-yard rushing touchdown.

Rounding out the first quarter, both teams had a few mistakes.

For Chandler, they forced a massive blocked punt that gave them the ball near the goal line.

However, the offense for the Wolves could not capitalize on the special teams play as they turned the ball over.

Centennial 2027 defensive back Elijah Carothers was able to snag a crucial interception to get the ball back.

The Coyotes were able to march down the field after the interception and take back the lead.

Getting them down the field was Centennial 2028 running back Jaylee Abraham.

During the drive, Abraham had a huge contested 35-yard catch.

Then, capping off the drive, Abraham would get the ball one more time and score a 1-yard rushing touchdown.

Centennial wound up getting the ball one more time before halftime and threatened to add to their lead.

That was not the case, however, as Chandler's defense came through with their first takeaway of the game.

2027 defensive back Marshawn Coleman was able to get the jump ball and snag the interception.

As halftime neared, Chandler was able to get back in the end zone following the interception to tie the game.

Mencl called his own number down near the goal line and was able to score a 6-yard rushing touchdown.

At halftime, the game was tied at 14.

Coming out of halftime, both defenses made life difficult for both offenses.

For a majority of the third quarter, neither offense could gain any momentum.

However, near the end of the quarter, Chandler was able to get into field goal range.

2027 kicker Ryan Zima drilled a 47-yard field goal to give the Wolves their first lead of the game.

Early in the fourth quarter, Chandler tacked on one more field goal to extend their lead.

It was once again Zima drilling in the field goal, this time from 31 yards out.

With eight minutes left in the game, Chandler led 20-14.

Fast forward to the final three minutes of the game, and Centennial got one last chance to go down the field and take the lead.

The Coyotes ended up getting the ball at the 1-yard line and a chance to win the game.

On third and goal, Centennial attempted a quick slant in the end zone for the score.

2028 defensive back Brivid Laudermilk prevented the touchdown by punching the ball out of the receiver's hand to force a fourth down.

“I just knew I had to make a play for my team,” Laudermilk said. “So I punched it out at the last second.”

Chandler also got the stop on fourth down after 4-star Wisconsin athlete commit Jai Jones got a pass breakup on the following play.

The Wolves took the ball over on their own 1-yard line and were forced to run QB sneaks.

With 30 seconds left in the game, Chandler just needed to complete one more QB sneak to win the game.

Chaos ensued, however, after the snap was fumbled and Centennial was awarded a safety because of it.

With 15 seconds left in the game, Chandler led 20-16 and had to kick the ball back to Centennial following the safety.

After the kickoff, the Coyotes had five seconds left and one last Hail Mary attempt.

Chandler’s defense, however, had other plans and would come up with another huge stop.

2027 defensive lineman Cau’Re Smith got the sack on the final play of the game to seal the win for the Wolves.

Chandler now moves to 7-1 on the season and has not lost since week one.

The schedule doesn’t get easier for Chandler, though, and they are ready to move week by week and finish out the season strong.

“We got another game next week, then we’re onto Pinnacle and Hamilton,” Mencl said. “Our schedule is not easy the rest of the year. Move week by week.”

Next up: 6-1 Chandler looks to extend their win streak when they face 0-7 Valley Vista. 6-1 Centennial looks to bounce back when they face 3-4 Mountain Ridge.