Rivalries, rematches, restorations: Arizona high school football top 10 Week 5 storylines

With the Arizona Interscholastic Association asking more and more schools if they can play on Thursdays, there have been about 15 varsity games a week played on that day through the first part of this season.

But there hasn't been a Thursday night like this yet. There are three marquee games, spreading the top games of this week between Thursday and Friday. A few rivalry games are revving up, one team is starting to put distance on the rest in an otherwise unpredictable season so far.

Here are The Arizona Republic's Top 10 high school football storylines for Week 5.

1. Open implications

This will be playoff-intense, and will have Open implications with the winner having the best shot at getting into the elite eight.

Last year, when they met in the 5A quarterfinals, Higley outlasted Desert Edge 45-42, before winning a 35-33 nail-biter over Scottsdale Desert Mountain on its way to its first football title. "Last team with the ball won," Higley coach Eddy Zubey said about the Desert Edge game. Fans can only hope this meeting will be as dramatic. With two high-powered offenses, expect a lot of the same from last year's game. But even though Higley is 3-0, this won't be the same offense it will be the second half of the season when the transfers become eligible and it becomes even more high-powered. The same goes for Desert Edge (2-1).

2. Another Open and shut case

On Thursday night, the Pinnacle-Horizon rivalry heats up like never before at Horizon with so much at stake in this battle of 3-0 teams. The winner should be able to have a say in making the Open. Horizon plays in 5A, Pinnacle in 6A. It's a case of a great Pinnacle offense, led by unflappable quarterback Wyatt Horton, against a Horizon defense that has been outstanding through a 3-0 start in which the Huskies have outscored opponents 177-17.

3. Brophy-Chaparral is turning into a don't-miss rivalry

Another great Thursday night game will be played at Phoenix Central High, where Brophy Prep will walk across the canal to take on Scottsdale Chaparral (1-2), a work-in-program team still under new coach Doug Nisenson that still is finding its footing behind sophomore QB Marcel Jones and senior wide receiver Plas Johnson. The Firebirds' losses came against Super 10-ranked teams Sandra Day O'Connor and Desert Mountain. The 24-21 loss last week to a really good Desert Mountain might have made skeptics believers in Chaparral. But was it more of a sign of the disparity between 6A (Chaparral) and 5A (Desert Mountain)?

These teams have met up the past three seasons with Chaparral beating Brophy 35-0 in its 2020 COVID 6A championship season, before Brophy won the past two seasons. The 2021 game was a thriller with Brophy making a stop in the end to win 21-20. Will there be more thrills?

4. Cactus tries to bounce back against tough foe

After O'Connor went back to pound-and-ground and amassed 529 rushing yards including a six-TDs-rushing night by Nathan Bayus in a 55-21 win over Cactus, the Cobras (2-1) don't have long to regroup with Thursday's big 5A showdown at home against 3-0 Desert Mountain. If you're looking for a great individual matchup, it might be Cactus wide receiver Nikko Boncore against Desert Mountain cornerback and Texas-commit Santana Wilson.

5. Central's chance to make its biggest statement

Phoenix Central is a feel-good story at 3-0 in the Phoenix Union district, showcasing a potent offense behind a freshman QB, Cam Allen, and a game-changing RB from Tennessee, Khameron Athy. But the competition finally catches up to the Bobcats, facing their most formidable foe of the season on Friday night at Phoenix Mountain Pointe, a team that won't be in a good mood after suffering a humbling 35-0 loss to Peoria Centennial.

Republic special: Basha High School: Beyond the Gridiron

6. Liberty putting neighborhood rival in rear-view mirror

Usually, when neighborhood rivals Liberty and Sunrise Mountain play, you never know what you're going to get and they're usually thrillers down to the final seconds. But last year, when Liberty opened the season with a 50-0 win over Sunrise Mountain, it might have been a sign of the times and how Liberty has put a big distance on Sunrise Mountain. The Mustangs (1-2), who won only three games last year, take on the big underdog role against Friday against the No. 18-ranked (MaxPreps) team (3-0) in the nation that has put the running clock on Hamilton, Sandra Day O'Connor and Queen Creek to open the season. But this is still one of the best rivalries and the stadium will be packed maybe a good hour before kickoff.

7. O'Connor, ALA Queen Creek on Open track again

Both Sandra Day O'Connor and American Leadership Queen Creek surprised some by getting into the Open last year. ALA Queen Creek came through out of 5A, after making the Open out of 4A in 2021. When they meet Friday in Queen Creek, they might be on that same track. O'Connor's only loss was to Liberty, but that's a quality loss. ALA QC also has a quality loss against Scottsdale Saguaro. SDO coach Brian Cole might have to stick to the ground game to keep ALA QC QB Enoch Watson off the field. Watson has thrown nine TD passes without an interception in the last two games.

8. Perry's restoration job behind Ortiz

Gilbert Perry has a chance to start the season 4-0 with a game at Tolleson, a talented but young team going through growing pains. Perry hasn't begun a season 4-0 since current San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy was a senior in 2017, leading the Pumas to the 6A championship game. But it's not time yet to claim the Pumas are back to 2017 form. Last year, they started 4-1 in coach Joseph Ortiz's first year leading the program, before going winless the second half of the season in the Premier Region. When Perry beats a Chandler Unified School District team again, it's time to get excited.

Related: The Republic's high school football rankings: Open through 1A

9. Thatcher's brutal schedule leads to Yuma Catholic

What did Thatcher do after reaching the 3A final last year? The Eagles (2-2) built the toughest small-school schedule in the state. Their two losses came against top 3A teams, Surprise Paradise Honors and Chandler Valley Christian. Now they have their longest road trip of the year to take on a 3-0 Yuma Catholic team that is ranked No. 3 in 4A by The Republic and is led by Oregon-commit edge rusher Jaxson Jones, who already has seven sacks and 12 tackles for losses.

10. SCA can make a big statement

How much of a disparity is there between 3A and 2A football? We will find out Friday night when top-ranked 3A Valley Christian (4-0) travels to play second-ranked 2A Scottsdale Christian. SCA has had two weeks to get ready after having a bye last week, coming off a 23-20 loss to No. 1 2A Pima. This is VC's first week atop the 4A rankings after Tucson Sabino lost to 5A Tucson Mica Mountain.

To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert atrichard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter:@azc_obert

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona high school football Week 5 top 10 storylines