CAMP VERDE — Finishing one win shy of a 2A Agua Fria region title a season ago, Camp Verde made sure their record went unblemished in 2023, defeating Highland Prep 68-24 a week ago to seal the deal.

And a big reason why they sit at No. 6 in the power rankings and are now region champions is their senior quarterback, Tyson Buckley.

Buckley completed 15 of 21 passes for 299 yards and four touchdowns Oct. 20 against the Honey Badgers (2-7, 0-5 2A Agua Fria), giving him 37 overall on the season.

He threw 44 in 2022.

“He’s a special talent at the position for this level,” Camp Verde head coach Aaron Gronwald told AzPreps365.com via email Thursday, Oct. 26. “He truly goes through his progressions. He knows the offense as good as our offensive coordinator and makes audibles, adjustments on the fly.”

In 2023, the 6-foot-3, 240-pound gunslinger who gets to walk off his home turf to an air raid horn blowing every time he throws another touchdown, has thrown for 2,504 yards this season, completing 64% of his passes and has a QB rating of 121.4 in nine games so far this fall.

Of course, Buckley couldn’t do it without his counterpart, wide receiver Christian Sanabria, who has quietly become one of the top receivers in 2A football.

The senior is nine yards shy of 1,000 on the season and has caught 15 touchdown passes. He has amassed 125 catches for 2,305 yards and 40 touchdown receptions in his three years on varsity.

And don’t sleep on running back Noah Collins, who had one of his best games all season against Highland Prep, carrying the ball 12 times for 102 yards and two touchdowns in the win.

REGULAR SEASON FINALE

For the Cowboys (7-2, 6-0 2A Agua Fria), which have now won five straight, the goal of accomplishing a region championship is now behind them. Next up is No. 17-ranked Bisbee, with a potential No. 4 spot in the 2A playoff bracket on the line.

Gronwald said the strategy is simple. Stop No. 3.

That No. 3 he’s speaking of is quarterback Sebastian Lopez. The double-threat junior has completed 126 of 209 passes for 1,665 yards and 11 touchdowns to 13 interceptions, but he leads the Pumas (5-4, 4-2 2A San Pedro) in rushing yards with 1,142 on 88 carries and 20 touchdowns.

“We’ve got some things in the gameplan defensively to keep him in the pocket,” Gronwald said via email.

Earning a Top 4 seeding in the upcoming 2A state playoffs could mean the difference between one home game, or two. And with that air raid horn filling the night sky in Camp Verde, the Cowboys likely prefer two.

Kickoff Friday, Oct. 27, is set for 7 p.m.

Brian M. Bergner Jr. has covered professional, collegiate and high school sports for more than 20 years. Follow him on Twitter @AzPreps365Brian. Have a story idea? Email Brian at bbergner@azpreps365.com.