High school tackle football features a pair of Halloween treats with a packed schedule on Thursday and Friday throughout Tucson and Southern Arizona.
Region titles are up for grabs as 5A, 4A and 3A end their regular seasons. Meanwhile, and .
The 5A and 4A tournaments are 24 teams, with the top eight getting byes, and the 3A tourney is the familiar 16-team affair with the better seed hosting the first round before shifting to neutral sites for the last two rounds.
All games are at 7 p.m.
THURSDAY
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5A
No. 21 Tucson High (5-4) at No. 10 Scottsdale Cactus Shadows (5-4)
Location: 5802 E. Dove Valley Road, Scottsdale
Notable: Tucson High looks to reach the playoffs in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2016.
No. 31 Casa Grande (4-5) at No. 34 Canyon del Oro (3-6)
Location: 25 W. Calle Concordia
Notable: Casa Grande won the 4A state championship in 2021, and CDO won it in 2023.
No. 19 Flowing Wells (7-2) at No. 2 Desert View (9-0)
Flowing Wells’ Jaiden De’Mary cruises into the end zone after getting wide open for a pass against Sunnyside during the second quarter of their 5A Southern game, Oct. 24, 2025. The Caballeros dominated the Blue Devils 43-0 to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Location: 4101 E. Valencia Road
Notable: The game was originally scheduled for Halloween but has been .
No. 18 Mountain View (5-4) at No. 27 Sunnyside (4-5)
Sunnyside's Aaron Fontes (17) manages to run down the ball after bobbling around a swing pass during the second quarter against Flowing Wells in their 5A Southern game, Oct. 24, 2025, in Tucson.
Location: 1725 E. Bilby Road
Notable: After missing out on the playoffs from 2020-23, Mountain View looks poised to make it to the postseason in back-to-back years.
4A
No. 30 Douglas (4-4) at No. 33 Catalina Foothills (3-6)
Location: 4300 E. Sunrise Drive
Notable: Douglas has lost two in a row and Catalina Foothills has dropped three straight.
FRIDAY
2A playoffs first round
No. 19 Globe (6-4) at No. 14 Benson (6-4)
Location: 360 S. Patagonia St., Benson
Notable: Benson hosts a playoff game for the first time since 2021, when it had two at home and went to the state semifinals.
No. 24 Tonopah Valley (4-6) at No. 9 Tanque Verde (8-2)
Location: 4201 N. Melpomene Way
Notable: Although Tanque Verde beat Willcox (8-2) 42-14 in the first-place 2A Region Cross Over game, Willcox earned the No. 6 seed and the bye, and Tanque Verde has to play in the first round.
Bye: No. 6 seed Willcox
2A playoffs quarterfinals
No. 10 Elfrida Valley Union (7-2) at No. 2 Bagdad (8-0)
Location: 500 Sultan Way, Bagdad
Notable: The origin of Bagdad’s name is unknown; it is thought to be named after a father-son mining operation or the Middle Eastern city.
No. 6 Williams (6-4) at No. 3 St. David (7-2)
Location: 70 E. Patton, Street, St. David
Notable: Williams is located near the Grand Canyon and Flagstaff. Its last trip to Southern Arizona was a 56-16 loss to Desert Christian in the first round of the playoffs last year.
6A
No. 16 Gilbert Perry (4-4) at No. 11 Salpointe Catholic (5-3)
Location: 1545 E. Copper St.
Notable: It’s the final regular-season home game for Salpointe, but 6A ends the regular season on Nov. 7.
6A/5A
5A No. 42 Nogales (2-7) at 6A No. 26 Phoenix Desert Vista (2-6)
Location: 16440 S. 32nd St., Phoenix
Notable: Losers of five straight to Desert View, Nogales tries its hand at Desert Vista in its first-ever game against the Thunder, according to .
5A
No. 13 Sierra Vista Buena (6-3) at No. 41 Ironwood Ridge (1-8)
Location: 2475 W. Naranja Drive
Notable: After a three-year absence, Buena looks like it will go to the playoffs for the third straight year.
No. 20 Cienega (5-4) at No. 16 Maricopa (6-3)
Cienega’s Mariano Soto (21) flips on his run to the tunnel as the Bobcats charge out to face Sunnyside at home, Oct. 10, 2025.
Location: 45012 W. Honeycutt Ave., Maricopa
Notable: Could the winner of this game earn a spot in the top 16 and get to host a game in the first round of the playoffs?
No. 5 Marana (8-1) at No. 31 Casa Grande Vista Grande (3-6)
Location: 1556 N. Arizola Road, Casa Grande
Notable: Marana has won 16 in a row against other 5A teams.
4A
No. 38 Empire (3-6) at No. 27 Pueblo (6-3)
Location: 3500 S. 12th Ave.
Notable: Pueblo, winners of six in a row, will win the Gila Region with a victory. If Empire and Sahuarita win, those two and Pueblo will be tied at 4-1 in the region.
No. 48 Rincon/University (2-6) at No. 55 Rio Rico (1-8)
Location: 590 Camino Lito Galindo, Rio Rico
Notable: If the Rangers can top Rio Rico they will secure their most wins since 2019 when they went 6-4 even though one game was canceled due to the weather.
No. 37 Cholla (4-5) at No. 32 Sahuarita (4-5)
Location: 350 Sahuarita Road
Notable: The Mustangs lead this horse rivalry series 9-3, according to . The Chargers have won two of the last three (in 2023 and 2022), though.
No. 11 Mica Mountain (7-2) at No. 6 Sahuaro (7-2)
Location: 545 N. Camino Seco
Notable: Mica Mountain seeks its third region championship since 2022, when the Thunderbolts played their first full varsity season. Sahuaro seeks its first title since 2013, when they were called sections and Sahuaro won Division II, Section II.
No. 54 Amphitheater (2-7) at No. 13 Walden Grove (6-3)
Location: 15510 S. Sahuarita Park Road
Notable: Walden Grove looks set to earn its third straight playoff berth. The Red Wolves have five postseason appearances since their first season in 2012, according to .
3A
No. 1 Queen Creek Benjamin Franklin (9-0) at No. 5 Pusch Ridge Christian (8-1)
Location: 9500 N. Oracle Road
Notable: Since losing 31-7 to Benjamin Franklin on Sept. 6, 2024, Pusch Ridge has won 20 of its last 21 games, including 24-13 over Benjamin Franklin in the state semifinals last year.
No. 24 Safford (2-7) at No. 16 Sabino (3-6)
Location: 5000 N. Bowes Road
Notable: The 3A awards automatic bids to region winners, but the only possible bid stealer who could take Sabino’s spot is No. 15 El Mirage Dysart (if it drops down). However, the Demons close out the season against No. 8 Mohave Valley River Valley, the highest-ranked team in their region, 3A West, and so they probably would stay above Sabino with the win anyway.

