Any chance Arbor View had to hang with Bishop Gorman in the Class 5A Division I football state championship game came down to a fourth-and-16 late in the first quarter.
The Gaels were in control and held a 14-point lead. Their defense had been stout early — then it ended any chance of an upset for the title.
Gorman defensive back Jett Washington intercepted Arbor View’s Thaddeus Thatcher in the end zone and returned it to the Aggies’ 34-yard line. Two plays later, Gaels quarterback Maika Eugenio threw his third touchdown pass of the first quarter, a 2-yard score to Trent Walker.
The top-seeded Gaels never looked back and crushed No. 2 Arbor View 69-7 to win the state title Tuesday night at Allegiant Stadium. The entire second half was played under the running clock. It’s Gorman’s fourth straight state title and 21st overall.
Eugenio completed all five of his first-quarter passes, including touchdowns of 38, 30 and 2 yards. The junior right-hander completed 12 of 15 passes for 274 yards and five touchdowns in the first half. Eugenio, who did not play in the second half, completed passes to nine receivers, and five Gaels caught touchdowns.
Gorman’s defense made its presence felt in the first half. The Gaels, ranked No. 4 nationally by MaxPreps, allowed just 32 yards of offense and added three sacks and three tackles for loss.
In the regular season, Gorman (11-1) rolled to a 49-14 win at Arbor View (10-2) on Oct. 10. The 14 points were the most points the Gaels had allowed to a local team this season.
The Gaels kept the pedal to the metal in the second quarter. Eugenio connected with LSU commit Derek Meadows on a long pass that had some yards wiped off following one of 11 first-half penalties on the Gaels. But seven plays later, Eugenio hit running back Terrance Grant Jr. for a 3-yard score on fourth down to go up 28-0.
It didn’t take long for Gorman to strike again. It recovered the ensuing onside kick, and on the next play, Eugenio threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Aizen Torres for a 34-0 lead after the extra point was missed.
After Gorman’s defense forced a three-and-out, Myles Norman found the end zone on a 2-yard run to trigger the running clock. The Gaels made a special teams play late in the first half when Alexander Perez blocked an Arbor View punt and grabbed it in the end zone for another touchdown.
Gorman went into halftime leading 48-0.
Eugenio had first-quarter touchdown passes of 38 yards to Meadows and a 30-yard strike to defensive back Isaiah Nickels.
The Gaels’ defense made life rough for an Arbor View offense that averages more than 395 yards and 38 points per game. The Aggies were held to minus-14 rushing yards in the first half, and Thatcher completed just 9 of 18 passes for 46 in the first half while under constant pressure.
Washington, a four-star 2026 recruit, added a tackle for loss, and Utah commit Sione Motuapuaka recorded two sacks for the Gaels.
Arbor View got on the scoreboard on a 4-yard TD pass to Sean Moore with 1:20 left in the fourth quarter.
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.