Chas Messman is a student journalist at the Walter Cronkite school at Arizona State University assigned to cover the Chaparral football team.

The Chaparral Firebirds took down the Pinnacle Pioneers 28-21 in a rivalry showdown on a very special senior night at Chaparral High School. The atmosphere in the stadium was electric all night. The Birdcage, Chaparral’s student section, was bumping the whole game. Following the final buzzer, the students from the Birdcage stormed the field, trampling everyone in their path. They joined up and celebrated with the Firebirds, jumping up and down and chanting in unison. The scenes in Scottsdale were incredible. 

The Pioneers jumped out to an early 7-0 lead in the first quarter. Then the Firebirds, led by their seniors in their final regular season game at home, put up 21 unanswered points. Pinnacle attempted a late fourth quarter comeback, but it was not enough, as the Firebirds held on to win their fifth straight game. 

“This feels awesome,” Chaparral senior quarterback Jack Miller said. “Our team played great. Our defense really stepped up and this was an amazing team win.”

The Ohio State commit made big plays all night. Miller was 15 of 23 for 305 yards and three touchdown passes.

“He was great,” head coach Brent Barnes said. “He has the ability to make the throws when you have to, but then a lot of times when things aren’t there. He was making plays with his legs too tonight. I can’t say enough, the guy is who is for a reason.”

One of Miller’s highlight-reel touchdown passes felt SportsCenter-Top-10 worthy. Miller evaded the Pinnacle pressure as he ran outside the pocket to the right. He threw on the run across his body to wide receiver Sean Parker for the long, go-ahead touchdown. 

“I saw that corner on the right side sitting on the No. 1 receiver, so I knew I was going to have Sean coming on the bend,” Miller said. “I just put it up there trusting Sean to make a play and he did.” 

For Miller and senior receiver Tommy Christakos, senior night reflected all they have done together for four years. The Miller-to-Christakos connection, a back-bone of the Firebird offense, was on fire once again Friday. The pair connected for six times for 167 yards and a touchdown.

“Ever since freshman year, we have just been working and building the connection,” Miller said. “We are super close off the field and that only helps us on the field.” 

Chaparral’s defense has been improving all season and they showed just how good they have become in their victory over the Pioneers. The Firebirds forced three turnover-on-downs and constantly applied pressure on Pinnacle quarterback JD Johnson.

Immediately following Miller’s touchdown pass to Parker Smith, Chaparral senior linebacker Christian Bowers picked off Johnson, a future Michigan Wolverine, and returned it all the way back for a touchdown. This gave Chaparral all the momentum in the game, and it extended their lead to two scores going into halftime. 

“It was the best feeling ever,” Bowers said. “I was just reading JD’s eyes the whole play, and I undercut the route.”

Bowers' play showcase what Chaparral was able to do defensively all night. 

“Our guys played huge on defense and made big time plays,” defensive coordinator Derrick Nsubuga said. “I was absolutely loving it. We have to make a run at it right now. This is our time.” 

As the post season approaches, the Firebirds defense will be key in their efforts to win a ring, especially with so many high-scoring offenses standing in their way. The Firebirds did not allow a point in either the second or third quarters. 

“If we play assignment football, I like us against anyone in the state of Arizona,” the emotional Nsubuga said. “We are primed for a deep run in the playoffs and we love our chances against everybody. I love these kids. They earned it. They played hard. They tackled well and we made stops all night.”

The now 7-2 Firebirds travel to play Liberty in their final game of the regular season next Friday night.