Electric, All-Out Crazy
Several alumnus, current and former coaches, journalists and administrators offered their thoughts on the atmosphere of a Chandler-Hamilton game.
Chandler-Hamilton provides among the most unique experiences in the Arizona high school sports landscape. Those who have directly been involved during the years offered their takes on what it’s like to be a part of it.
Former Chandler High coach Jim Ewan: “Any Hamilton game, it didn’t matter which place you were at, there would be people in the stands lined up at 4:30 p.m. waiting on the gates to open and get in and get a seat. Some of the posters that were up posted on both sides definitely crossed the lines of political correctness, but were funny. Just the rivalry and the buildup for when Chandler finally won in the end, was really big. Obviously, being on ESPN and Fox nationally and one year ESPN brought in portable lights. When they fired them up, it was unbelievable. That part was neat. Some of my favorite memories are some of the kids’ performances. Paul Perkins had a run that is still on YouTube and you can find, where it was one of the most impressive runs I’ve ever seen in my lifetime. It was unbelievable. Dion Jordan being on the sideline after his accident, and he was burned so severely, for him to be on our sideline was a night that I’ll never forget. Doctors were telling him he would be lucky to walk again, and here he is in the NFL. You look at some of those kind of things. Cameron Jordan, people don’t know just how tremendous of an athlete he was. People forget he won discuss his senior year and didn’t really love being involved in track because it involved too much running. He was just unbelievable. He would have been a great tight end, but didn’t want to play tight end because he didn’t want to compete with his dad’s reputation. He wanted to carve his own niche, so that’s why he loved defensive line and those kinds of things. The rank and file kids that played for us over the years like the Spear brothers, just great kids. O’Shea Hatch, the running back, he just was cursed with bad luck and injuries. He probably would have been as good as any running back we’ve ever had, but because of injuries no one really remembers him or knows him. He was just a great kid, and I had him as a freshman, sophomore and junior before his senior year he kind of because injury-prone. It’s how good he was, and the quality of man he’s grown up to be. The list of good kids at Chandler, the Lopez brothers that played for us and went on to play small college football. So many of those kids are what made it so special.”
Former Hamilton High coach John Wrenn: “You have to deal with it. The only time it was ever a really huge thing was in the state playoffs. During the season, it’s just a game. The goal for me is to win a state title, and you can’t win a state title until you get into the state playoffs. That’s when the big games are the big games. Other than that, the kid [should handle it]. Coaching football, it doesn’t matter if you’re in front of 100,000 [fans] or you’re in front of 100. You’re still just worried about the kids and just coaching football and having fun. The big thing is making sure that that’s not lost — it’s a fun game.”
Chandler High coach Shaun Aguano: “That’s why I want to go and play those big games. The atmosphere for our kids and Hamilton, I don’t think there’s any atmosphere like that ever in Arizona. You’re talking between 15 and 20 thousand people separated between sidelines. You can’t go to the other side. The hatred between the two schools. The kids have played together in Pop Warner and youth football leagues together on the same teams and now they’re separated. That is probably one of the best rivalries [in the country]. ESPN and FOX and those guys keep on coming to those games to do it because they’ve never been in an atmosphere like that. It’s incredible.”
Hamilton coach Steve Belles: “The only thing I can compare it to as a head coach is when I was at Mountain Ridge and we played Peoria. That was an up and coming rivalry, where it isn’t now because they’re in two different divisions and then it kind of lost its luster. That, and then the St. Mary’s-Brophy rivalry would be the only thing I could compare it to. Probably more so the St. Mary’s-Brophy rivalry because in the 90s, the teams were both really good kind of like the Chandler-Hamilton series. Those would be two examples of maybe closeness to it, but the Hamilton-Chandler rivalry is by far the best rivalry in the state right now.”
Hamilton offensive coordinator Deke Schutes: “You know, maybe because I’ve been in like 20 of them, I don’t think about it as much as I used to. But whenever you’re walking out there to warm up and the stadium is already full, that’s when it kind of hits you. Like wow, this means something to a lot of people. As far as in the game, you’re working and you’re trying to do what you’re trying to do to move the ball, so you don’t think about it as much. Usually on the bus ride over there you’re trying to stay focused as you’re pulling up to the stadium over at Chandler at like 4 or 5 o’clock. Then you realize what it means to the community. There’s a lot of people there interested in that game, so then your adrenaline gets going and you want to compete. Coaches are the same way [as players]. We don’t like to lose, either. We’re pretty competitive. But once the game starts, you don’t think about it as much as before. We have a lot of respect for their staff. Those guys are friends of ours. We don’t hang out on the weekends, but they’re definitely guys that we respect and think they’re really good coaches. We have a respect for what they do and how they do it, because when you’re a coach you understand all the time and effort that it takes to get your team to be pretty good. You always have respect for the other guys that you’re going against.”
Former Chandler offensive coordinator Dave Shapiro: “Crazy. Just flat-out electric. Electric and crazy. [The Hamilton athletic director and I] would walk through each sideline to double-check on what signs were made to make sure there was nothing racial or outrageous or stuff. Two hours before the game starts, the stands are already filled with those dang clapper things and people screaming and yelling. Electric.”
Chandler offensive coordinator Rick Garretson: “It’s just a great rivalry. It’s not a hate rivalry, though some people think of it as one. But it’s not. Coach [Steve] Belles and Shaun [Aguano], they are not enemies by any means. It’s just a high-octane, high school environment. Last year, they were what, №20 in the country and we were whatever we were? It was two of the top teams in the country just a couple miles down the road from each other in the same city. You just don’t find that too often in the country, and it’s unique. They play at a high level this year and every year, and so does Chandler. It’s just a pretty cool thing, and we’ve been fortunate enough to win a few the last couple years. We’ll see what happens this year and ultimately when it all comes down to it, you’re probably going to have to play each other a second time down the road in a playoff game, whether it be a semifinal, a final or maybe even sometimes a quarterfinal. When it really counts, so to speak. When it’s a one-and-done type of thing.”
Chandler principal Larry Rother: “It was jam-packed. Our student section was huge, of course, but the crowd was really just a total mix of parents, longtime alumni and just Chandler supporters. And then to see all of the Hamilton folks come out, and their side was packed as well. Both teams that year were very, very good. The energy was just outstanding. As the game went on, it was a close game and neither side really gave up. It was the way a high school football game should be. I wish every game was like that. The atmosphere was just electric. It was outstanding.”
Arizona Republic high schools writer Richard Obert: “It’s just all-out crazy. You have fans from not just the communities that come out, although the community is as strong as, if not stronger than Ahwatukee. Everybody’s involved, everybody’s there and sometimes it’s like two hours before the game and the stands are already filled. I know there’s been national coverage and they’ve been on national TV and ESPN. You hear and see all these incredible followings between the two schools. It’s not just Chandler, but it’s across the Valley and they talk Chandler and Hamilton. You’ll see fans from all over the Valley who just want to come and watch it because they know it’s going to be epic. It’s going to be an incredible game. A lot of fans are also watching just because of all the future college players and they want to see how they end up being.”
Arizona Republic high school sports columnist Scott Bordow: “It’s nuts. I wrote this this past football season, it is the only game where, I like to stand on the sidelines during the game to get a feel for the game and hear what the coaches are saying, but it’s the one game that’s hard to do because there are so many people on each sideline. Parents, former players, alums, they give sideline passes to all of them and it’s hard to see the game. They’re lined up three-deep along the sidelines. If you go to any other high school football game, you have a clear view from any part of the sideline. If you go to Hamilton-Chandler, wherever it’s at, there’s 50–100 people from the 25-yard line to the end zone on both sidelines and both corners. It’s a huge crowd in the stands and a huge crowd on the field, more so than any other high school game.”
Former East Valley Tribune sports writer Kyle Odegard: “Just the attendance where both sides are packed and it seems like a rivalry but it’s not nasty. Sometimes there are certain fans or certain students who can take it a little over the line, but it seems like both sides do a pretty good job most of the time of focusing on the football and not getting too nasty with it. It’s nice to have both sides full. There have been some rivalry games where on the field it’s really competitive, but the fans don’t care as much, so the fact that all of Chandler really knows what this is about and every year you can count on those two teams facing off and having a really fun game and a really competitive game I think just makes it special.”
CTownRivals.com publisher Ralph Amsden: “When you’re at Chandler, the game is definitely an exciting, energetic sort of hostile almost environment. What’s nice about having the game at Chandler is that the visiting bleachers are so large, so so many people from Hamilton show up. Playing at Chandler has this reputation for being more intimidating than Hamilton for several reasons, so they love to kind of play that up a little bit. It’s just a lot of energy. When it’s at Hamilton, you get more of that traditional sort of Notre Dame feel to it. They treat it just like any other game. One of the things you’ll see is they wheel in tiny little makeshift rented bleachers if you’re a Chandler fan. They’ll accommodate you, but they’ll let you know it’s temporary. It’s a different feel depending on where it’s played, and the few times in the playoffs when it’s been a neutral site, it’s been a different energy. It really just depends on where it’s at. I would say that at Chandler it’s probably its most fun and Hamilton, for 10 years they hadn’t lost a game there. That’s when you can really feel Hamilton’s dominance, when it’s at Jerry Loper.”
Chandler Unified School District public relations director Terry Locke: “The Chandler-Hamilton football game is one of those events where athletics transcends the actual game on the field. It becomes about school pride, community pride. People that don’t even go to a game all year get into this game. Athletics transcends the actual game, and this case is the best example of it. Our community is buzzing for a week or two [for the game]. It begins at the beginning of the season when every looks at what week the game is. We had a couple years where it was in the middle of the fall break, which was kind of unfortunate and out of our control, but the first thing is, ‘When is the game?’ and traditionally it was the final game of the year. That’s when the excitement begins to build. Both of the teams traditionally have great seasons that build it up and it just reaches a climax as we get into the actual game.”
Former Hamilton linebacker Jimmy Rogers: “Oh, it was awesome. I don’t know what it is now, because I haven’t been to a game in years, but the games, they were packed. They were pretty much standing room only, and anybody that had played prior had come back. At that time, it was just Chandler and Hamilton [in the district] and Basha, I don’t even know if they were built yet at the time. As far as the Chandler high schools, it was just Chandler and Hamilton. Everybody that had played prior would come back, and it was a pretty big deal. The atmosphere was awesome.”
Former Chandler receiver Dalton Guerra: “It is amazing. I remember the first time I played as a junior on varsity, first Hamilton-Chandler game on the big scale like that. I mean, you come out for warmups and it’s just already packed. Like the stands are full at least an hour before game time. The people are screaming and yelling, and you’re looking around and you can’t make any faces individually because there’s so many people. It’s a one of a kind experience. You can’t explain it. It’s just incredible.”
Former Hamilton defensive back Cole Luke: “A lot of people, when you look at the Chandler-Hamilton rivalry, they look at — the teams are obviously a big part — but like the rivalry wouldn’t be what it is without the parents, the fans, the friends, the family coming out and making it just as big as the year before. I feel like it easily could have fell off and maybe not been as important without the support that both teams had every year when they go against each other. The fact that they keep it going every single year, I mean there’s been years when we had to bring in extra bleachers just to hold enough people. I feel like the support in the community is definitely what makes it what it is, and that goes overlooked, for sure. I think that’s one of the most important parts. They make it such a great environment to play in. It’s so loud, the atmosphere is electric and I know all the players for sure enjoy playing in it just for that sole reason right there.”
Former Chandler offensive lineman Tyler Shank: “For me, it wasn’t too bad because once I get into game mode, I always kind of block everything out. But there’s just something about running out onto the field and seeing that one section of Chandler blue and that one section of Hamilton black or white, and they’re just all screaming so loud. That’s definitely a bit of a distraction, and then all the signs, the history of the signs and all the cameras that you don’t usually see around when you’re at a game. All those distractions, they do get in your head a little bit, but I think for me it wasn’t bad because I’m pretty good at blocking things out.”
Former Chandler offensive lineman Tyler McClure: “Playing in a game like that, you have to have a certain level of mental maturity. You cannot let it affect you. I mean, I didn’t really let it affect me. When you get on the field, it really doesn’t affect you that much because all you’re focused on is playing. I was able to do that, I’m not sure other players do, but I don’t personally let it get to me. There’s definitely an element there that, if you’re not mentally mature enough, it will disrupt you and could overwhelm you because it’s a lot of people screaming and cheering. It could be a distraction if you let it, but you just can’t let it be.”
Former Chandler wide receiver Dionte Sykes: “I was super nervous coming into the game. We were coming out for warmups, and I remember tripping in front of the whole Hamilton student section and they all started laughing. I was just like, ‘Man, this is going to be a tough day.’ That was the biggest game I had played in besides the one we had played at Basha my sophomore year against Chandler. The Chandler-Hamilton game my junior year was the biggest game I’d ever played in. What I took from it was to not really let the crowd noise get to you, because that was the loudest game I had played in up until that point. I had never experienced that many people, and that many people on the sidelines, none of that. That was my whole thing, not to let anything bother me. Just focus, focus on coach Aguano and your assignment, that was it.”
Former Chandler receiver Elijah Sykes: “I feel like it’s a college football game. It’s the best atmosphere any player can ever play in. It’s what you dream of. When you think of big time games, that’s exactly what it is.”
Former Chandler offensive lineman Keola Daniels: “Everybody was just ready for that game. Everyone was worried for that game. People marked their calendars and made sure that they were at that game, because for a lot of people that’s one of the — actually, the biggest rivalry at the high school level of football in Arizona. A lot of teachers, they would come up to me asking if I was ready for the game or something like that and everybody was just ready for that game. Especially now that the two teams have gone back and forth with wins, I feel that it’s a lot bigger than it was before. My freshman year, not a lot of people had faith in Chandler, but now it’s a really big thing.”
Former Hamilton quarterback Sam Sasso: “My first introduction to it was my freshman year. It was actually the Chandler-Hamilton game that was on ESPN and I was fortunate enough to be able to travel to that because it was at Chandler that year. I got to experience it up close and personal my freshman year on the sidelines and it was a nationally televised game, which was a pretty cool experience. I got my taste and saw how big of a rivalry it really was. They didn’t like each other. I would say that was my first experience of it, and it was a pretty cool one.”
Former Hamilton linebacker Santana Sterling: “I mean, the intensity of going out there, there’s nothing that compares to it. I remember my sophomore year I went out there and was the third-string punter and the whole student section was there with their horns, just yelling at us, talking crap. I just thought wow, this was really live out here. This is grown-man football. As the years went on, it just got more intensified. It was just the best game to play in. You’d look forward to that on the calendar every year, too, because it was a chance for you to go out there and just ball out in front of the whole state of Arizona. You know everyone’s going to be out for that game, too. It’s just a great feeling. The intensity is fun, the bands are always loud, sidelines are always packed, crowds always going crazy, student sections going at it. It’s just a great — I don’t think there’s a better high school game that I’ve ever played in than the Chandler-Hamilton rivalry. It’s just the best game ever.”
Former Hamilton running back Tyrell Smith: “The atmosphere in that game is absolutely nuts. We played at Chandler, and Chandler was sold out. We played at Hamilton, and then Hamilton was sold out. It felt like it was in college, playing on TV and on a big screen. It was really cool. Even from going to that state game, just the rivalry alone brought out 10 to 15 thousand people, tops. It was just absolutely nuts, the amount of people we had at that game. It was so loud, and it was just surreal. It was really crazy.”
