Grace Hand is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Brophy Prep for AZPreps365.com.

A 28-point first half powered Brophy Prep to a 49-7 victory at home on Friday night against the Sunnyslope Vikings in the first game between the two teams in 40 years.

Senior quarterback Charlie McGinnis threw for 205 yards and three touchdowns in almost three quarters of play.

The Broncos defense also played a critical role. An interception off a deflected Sunnyslope pass was returned by defensive back Cree Thomas for a touchdown 10 minutes into the game, allowing Brophy to take a 14-0 lead. Three sacks by senior defensive lineman Brandon Byrne helped shut down Vikings quarterback Luke Moga. 

“That was the number one goal of the week, stop Moga,” Brophy coach Jason Jewell said. “He’s a very good player, arguably the best football player on this field today. If we could contain him, we’d win this football game.”

The only points for the Vikings came with 25 seconds left in the first half as they capitalized on a Broncos fumble. The five-play drive ended with a 43-yard touchdown pass from Moga to wide receiver Dillon Dwiggins. The lack of offensive momentum was not the case in Sunnyslope’s first two games of the season, where they scored 32 and 38 points, respectively. 

“Brophy’s a really good team,” Sunnyslope coach Sam Jacobs said. “When you play a team like that, you’ve got to execute pretty good. And we didn’t execute fantastically tonight.”

While the defense kept the Vikings’ score low, the Brophy offense moved up and down the field with efficiency. Sophomore Harrison Chambers rushed for 27 yards and caught one 22-yard touchdown pass from McGinnis, while junior Carlos Estrada rushed for 64 yards and one touchdown, leaving the game just before halftime with an apparent injury. 

McGinnis rushed for 67 yards of his own, including a 2-yard touchdown in the third quarter that gave the Broncos a 42-7 lead. The difference of 35 points forced a running clock for the rest of the game.  

“The run game was really stout,” McGinnis said. “It was helping us out a lot. We threw the ball when we had to. We just kept driving down the field, scoring touchdowns.”

Each of the Broncos' seven touchdowns was scored by a different player. Junior Christian Camarata and seniors Ryan de Koning and Eddie Martinez-Estrada added to the final tally. 

“I didn’t think their DBs could hold on with our wide receivers,” McGinnis said. “We have a lot of wide receiver depth and I tried to get them all the ball. I don’t think any of them could stop my wide receivers.”

The Broncos’ performance gave players and fans plenty to celebrate right after the game, but so early in the season they remain focused on their upcoming schedule.

“We need to continue this momentum,” Jewell said. “We can’t get too high, just like we didn’t get too low after our loss week one, and come out and do the exact same thing. Run the football, be efficient on offense, and play solid defense.”

Brophy Prep (2-1, 0-1) will host Chaparral at 7 p.m. Thursday. Sunnyslope (1-2, 1-1) will travel to Notre Dame Prep at 7 p.m. Friday.