MESA – The community the feeds Eastmark High School, which includes parts of Queen Creek and Mesa, is among the fastest growing in Arizona, and that population boom has fueled a rapid rise for the school’s football program.
In 2022, just three years after the school opened, the Firebirds won a Division 3A state championship. A year later, the program advanced to 4A.
However, the quick advance has come with growing pains – in part because the success has led to turnover.
Already the school is on its third coach since opening and its third athletic director in four years.
Coach Jason Lyons, now in his second season at Eastmark, is trying to establish continuity while maintaining the winning culture his predecessors put in place.
Lyons is no stranger to winning, or population booms.
In his time at Highland High School in Gilbert, where much of the East Valley’s growth was centered before spreading to Queen Creek, Lyons helped the rise in the Hawks’ football program as defensive coordinator for Highland coach Brock Farell. With Lyons running the defense, Highland won back-to-back state championships. He took over the reins at Eastmark in 2024.
Now with his own shot run a program, Lyons is using those past experiences with Hightand to replicate the culture he wants for the FIrebirds, who are looking to continue to make their mark in the Arizona football landscape.
“It’s the leadership and continuity in building forward and following a plan that needs to be in place.” Lyons said of his priorities. “Our participatory growth rates have grown close to 20% year over year in the last two years since I’ve been over here.”
Eastmark opened its doors in the Queen Creek Unified School district in 2019. The school is only one of three high schools in one of Arizona’s fastest growing school districts alongside the lone previous Queen Creek High School which opened in 1967, and following Eastmark, Crismon High School which opened in 2022.
The town of Queen Creek is experiencing rapid growth, with high numbers of new families moving into the area. According to the 2023 U.S. Census, the population has more than doubled in the past 10 years, and over the past five years has seen 8,000 building permit applications for single family homes, which translates into a large influx of student and the opening of two additional high schools in just the last decade.
Samantha Davis, president of the Queen Creek School Board, said that the biggest issue is managing the rapid influx of families and keeping up with the demand.
“The biggest change has been the rapid population growth.” Davis said. “It’s brought more families and students to the area, and we’re excited to expand our offerings to meet those needs.”
Eastmark is unusual as a school that includes grades 7 through 12, not 9-12 like most schools in the state. It helps create continuity. This year’s senior class is the first group of students who entered the school as seventh graders.
One of these students is Anthony Milhiero, a senior offensive lineman for the Firebirds.
“There’s a lot of new kids here that want to play football – especially in the lower grades like freshmen and sophomores – and a ton of new kids transferring in here.” Milhiero said. “(Lyons) pushes a lot of hard work, but he also pushes a lot of life after football and trying to be a good person.”
With an expected growth of 21.8% by 2030, that will bump the population from 89,000 currently to 108,000 in just the next five years. Davis says that she is honored to see the growth under her leadership since taking over in 2019. And while the growth in some people’s eyes may call for more schools, she said the district is concentrating on the present.
“Right now, we’re focused on making sure our current schools can accommodate the growth, as we constantly monitor enrollment trends and will adjust as needed.” Davis said. “I’m honored to play a role in helping guide that growth and support for the future of our schools and students.”
As for the Firebirds football team, it’s having an excellent season of its own. After going 5-5 in Lyons’ first season, the team is now 5-3 through with its eyes on a playoff spot – and possibly more.
But to achieve this, Lyons knows it will take more than executing Xs and Os. He is trying to build a culture of teamwork, camaraderie and love.
“It’s based on love.” Lyons said. “We got to be tough, we got to show up, and we have to be accountable for each other, and love each other when we screw up. If you do those things you’ll fix problems and you’ll take them away before they become issues.”
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