Las Vegas High School Football Games - Week 8 - 2026 | Basic Hands Our No. 1 Their First Loss

Week 8 High School Football Games: NIAA

#1 Bishop Gorman had the week off, and so did #7 Faith Lutheran. That left the top of the NIAA side to #2 and #3, and both took care of business.

#2 Mater East bounced back from its first loss, the one in Sacramento (catch up on our Week 7 recap), by shutting out Pinecrest Cadence by more than 60 points. The Knights are 5-1. #3 Sloan Canyon beat #5 SLAM! Nevada 42-6 and is 5-1 too, which sets up next Friday nicely: the Pirates go to Bishop Gorman, and SLAM goes to Mater East.

On the road, #9 Somerset Losee went to Midland, Texas, and lost 61-6 to Midland Lee. #4 CIVICA lost at Steele Canyon in California. And at home, #8 Lake Mead led White Pine 7-0 at the half and 10-7 after three quarters, then lost 13-10.

#6 GV Christian hosted Lincoln County, and #10 The Meadows hosted Needles. No result reported for either game yet.

Week 8 High School Football Games:  Independents 

#3 Liberty did not play its best game and still won 42-0 at Shadow Ridge. The Patriots were flagged 14 times for 165 yards, and it took a Mustangs penalty to get them going: roughing the punter late in the first quarter kept a 13-play drive alive, and Ezra Sanelivi finished it from 6 yards out. Then Liberty went no-huddle, and Madden Delacruz hit a wide-open Selby Griego for 40 yards and a touchdown on the very next drive.

“Anytime as an offense you can vary the tempo of the game it puts stress on the defense,” Coach Rich Muraco said.

The defense did the rest. Maximus Paogofie returned a fumble 45 yards for a touchdown, Champion-James Ualesi took an interception 82 yards for another, and Shadow Ridge finished with 162 yards, 64 of them after the running clock started. “I think this is our fourth shutout of the year,” Muraco said. “I knew our defensive group was special. We were really good last year defensively, and eight of the starters came back for this year.”

Sanelivi scored twice, Delacruz went 10 of 17 for 190 yards, and junior defensive lineman Tafatoluomalua Atualevao had a sack and a tackle for loss. Liberty is 5-2, and Shadow Ridge is 3-4. David Cook shot this one for us, so the highlights are in the show.

#6 Sunrise Mountain made homecoming a party. The Miners shut out #9 Del Sol 34-0 and clinched the Division III East League title. Mills ran for 158 yards and three touchdowns, including one from 49 yards out right before the half, and senior James Sherrod broke a 56-yard score. Sophomore quarterback August Krael went 8 of 12 for 212 yards, and junior Malaki Thomas caught six of those for 185 yards and a touchdown. The Miners out-gained the Dragons 517 to 115, and every one of Del Sol’s yards came on the ground.

“That’s the best I did all year,” Mills said. “I’ve gotta give props to my O-line.”

“Anytime you can raise a banner, it’s a good thing, because we just won our side of the bracket tonight,” Coach Patrick Achord said. Del Sol came in 5-0 and leaves 5-1. Sunrise Mountain is 6-1, and since losing to Eldorado by a point, the Miners have won two straight. Amazon shot this one for us.

#2 Coronado shut out Las Vegas High 48-0 and scored 28 of those in the second quarter. The Cougars are 6-1. #4 Legacy beat Sierra Vista 26-8 and is 6-1. #8 Arbor View beat Mojave 62-0, with Thaddeus Thatcher throwing two touchdown passes in limited time; since coming home, the Aggies have scored 55, 56, 49, and 62. #10 Foothill scored 21 in the third quarter and beat Desert Oasis 27-13.

And then there is Green Valley 84, Silverado 54. EIGHTY-FOUR. That is 138 points in one high school football game. The Gators are 5-1, and we would love to see the box score on this one.

Outside the list: Centennial beat Desert Pines 52-26. Valley beat Chaparral 50-6 behind sophomore quarterback Nah’Iage Butler, who threw four touchdown passes and ran for another. Clark beat Spring Valley 54-41 and snapped the Chargers‘ three-game losing streak. Durango shut out Canyon Springs 16-0. Cimarron-Memorial beat Cheyenne 36-12, Bonanza beat Rancho 13-7, Virgin Valley beat Eldorado 28-7, and Moapa Valley beat Boulder City 48-13.

Out in the rurals: Spring Mountain 69, Beatty 16. Tonopah 64, Indian Springs 8. Round Mountain 54, Beaver Dam 14. Pahranagat Valley 36, Laughlin 14.

FSM Prep Rally Independent Game of the Week: #5 Basic at #1 Palo Verde

Palo Verde came in 6-0 and had already survived a four-point game at Moapa Valley in Overton. Basic came in 5-1, a year removed from 0-10. The top spot in Division II East was on the line, and our crew (TQ, Trisha LaCoste and Ethan DeLeon) was there for every snap of it.

It was a track meet from the first play. On Basic’s first snap, Rodriguez hit Cahill for 58 yards, and senior Lynn Saltmarch punched it in from 2. Palo answered with a 73-yard touchdown from Cooper Roberts to junior X’Zavier McZeal. Then came the play of the night: third-and-30 from midfield, and Rodriguez found Cahill for a touchdown anyway. Roberts tied it at 21 with a 57-yarder to junior Zion Rich, and Rodriguez and Louden Cahill answered with a 33-yard score with 30 seconds left in the half. Basic 28, Palo Verde 21. Cahill had 10 catches for 199 yards at halftime. TEN FOR 199. In one half.

Cahill opened the second half with a 21-yard field goal, because of course, he also kicks, and it was 31-21. Palo did not blink. Senior Beau Gardineer went 52 yards for a touchdown on the Panthers’ first play of the half, and in the fourth quarter Roberts turned a broken play into a 79-yard touchdown to junior Joshua McLeod, his only catch of the night. Palo Verde 34, Basic 31.

Basic had to answer without Cahill, who got hurt in the fourth quarter.

With under five minutes left, the Wolves got to the Palo Verde 30 and faced third down. Andrew Rodriguez found Webb in the end zone. Webb juggled it, held on, and that was the ballgame. 37-34. Rodriguez finished with 337 passing yards and four total touchdowns, one on the ground. Roberts threw for 288 yards and three scores in the loss.

Our player of the game is Basic’s Senior QB Andrew Rodriguez, who accounted for four TDs on the night. #4 assured us he was “taking his guys over anybody’s guys.” The full interview is in the show.

“We got a big one next week. Nothing’s settled yet, so our kids have to lock in and be ready,” Basic head coach Jeffrey Cahill said. Speaking about a high-powered offensive first-half performance from the Panthers and what changed the night for his team. “Our defense clamped down, and they didn’t score again” 

What it means:

Basic and Palo Verde are both 6-1 and tied atop Division II East with one regular-season week left. Basic hosts Silverado. Palo Verde goes to Canyon Springs. And the team that went 0-10 last year owns the head-to-head.

(Quotes via the Las Vegas Review-Journal and our own postgame interviews. Stats via the Review-Journal and MaxPreps.)

Next Friday is a big one. #1 Bishop Gorman hosts #3 Sloan Canyon. #3 Liberty goes to #2 Coronado. SLAM! Nevada goes to Mater East. #7 Green Valley goes to #4 Legacy. And with a share of Division II East on the line, Basic hosts Silverado while Palo Verde goes to Canyon Springs. Our latest FSM Top 10 Rankings drop Monday morning, and with our #1 going down, both unbeatens losing and Green Valley scoring 84, there will be movement. Nominate your player for Las Vegas High School Athlete of the Week, and find every Las Vegas high school football story in one place. Make sure you keep coming back to FSM for all your 702 High School Football game coverage. Thanks for visiting FranchiseSportsMedia.com for your Las Vegas Sports news today.

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