Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024 | 2 a.m.
Kenneth Rossi won a trip for two from his hometown in Hawaii to Las Vegas.
Rossi had been here before — but never like this. Instead of spending his time exclusively in the tourist areas, he met up with a high school football coaching friend who lived in Summerlin.
Rossi saw Las Vegas neighborhoods, its big homes and got to sense the feeling of community that exists here. He returned to the islands to tell his wife that they’d be relocating here.
A schoolteacher in Hawaii couldn’t afford their own property, but in Las Vegas, there were big lots available and the family started plotting their move.
Rossi, a math teacher, got a job in 2018 at Mojave High School, where he is the Rattlers’ assistant coach and one game away from winning the Class 4A state championship. Mojave plays Canyon Springs for the title at 3:40 p.m. today at Allegiant Stadium.
Rossi isn’t the lone Hawaii transplant leading Mojave. Head coach Wes Pacheco a year later followed his friend from James Campbell High in Ewa Beach, Hawaii, to chase the American dream of being a homeowner.
“It was a total leap of faith,” Pacheco said. “I cashed in my pension and headed to Las Vegas.”
After some initial struggles, the men have done wonders with the Rattlers’ program. Mojave had just one victory in 2019, didn’t compete in 2020 because COVID eliminated the season, and like other programs, was a work in progress in 2021 when emerging from a year of no team-related activity.
Along the way, Pacheco said it was important to see small signs of progress. That progress gave him the belief that a winner could be built at Mojave.
“When I took over the program, the immediate goal was to create a culture that enabled success to happen,” Pacheco said. “Success had to mean different things. Are we doing things the right way? Are we academically eligible? Are we disciplined and have respect? If you develop that success, the next type of success is winning.”
Mojave enters the championship game on a 10-game winning streak, starting over Labor Day weekend with a 34-0 victory against Canyon Springs, its state-title game opponent. This is Mojave’s second state title game appearance in its 30-year existence; a victory today would give the Rattlers their first championship.
“This is an opportunity to validate our success,” Pacheco said.
That success was reaffirmed Friday when Pacheco was named coach of the year by the Las Vegas Raiders’ in a ceremony at Allegiant Stadium. His wife and three kids were on hand for the announcement in a full-circle moment — they wouldn’t be here if the family wasn’t all-in on relocating. His wife, Sheena, is also an educator.
At Mojave, the coaches fell in love with the students and community. In some ways, the sense of togetherness reminds them of being back in Hawaii.
“My greatest contribution to education is working in schools with underserved kids,” Rossi said. “To some people, they look like troubled kids. That’s far from the truth. They might not be the most polished, but they have a lot of potential.”
The football team has reached that potential this fall. The Rattlers have outscored opponents 378-97, including a stretch with five consecutive shutouts.
In Hawaii, teams looked to advance to Aloha Stadium for the state championship game. Here, Pacheco had his players focused all season on reaching the title game at Allegiant Stadium.
There, they hope to accomplish something else they sought when leaving Hawaii: a championship.
“This is a culmination of everything that we have been working for,” Rossi said. “We lost 10 games in 2019 and didn’t stop believing in these kids. Give credit to them — they didn’t stop working.