When Pinnacle coach Dana Zupke sat in his office this week, conjuring up a game plan to attack Chaparral on Friday night, even he might not have been able to imagine a start quite like the one his Pioneers produced.

By the time Jacobie Rucker spun out of a pile and lunged across the goal line to score his second touchdown, Pinnacle already led, 13-0. And yet, just 3:50 of game time had elapsed. Only 10 plays had been run.

On the first play from scrimmage, Pinnacle picked up 23 yards. On the fourth, they got 24. On the fifth, Rucker scored. On the eighth, they forced a three-and-out. On the ninth, they blocked a punt. And on the 10th Rucker scored again.

Ten plays, two touchdowns, 13 points. For Pinnacle, it was all the impetus needed to set the course for a 27-21 win that moved them to 5-1.

Here are four takeaways from the win:

Robinson — the No. 1 recruit in Arizona in 2023 — didn’t remake his personal highlight reel Friday night. But in Pinnacle’s explosive first half, the tight end showed all the tools that have coaches from powerhouses across the country salivating.

He used his speed to get to the edge on a swing pass and a jet sweep. He used his blocking to spring Myles Libman on a screen and set up the first touchdown. He used his route-running to get open and set up the third touchdown. And he used his physicality to make his corner like a point guard boxing out a center on a touchdown that was brought back for penalties elsewhere.

“He's incredible,” quarterback Wyatt Horton said. “… Best receiving corps in the state.”

Robinson’s biggest play, though, came with under two minutes left in the fourth quarter. After Chaparral trimmed the deficit to six on a double pass touchdown bomb from Gavin Mesa to Plas Johnson, Robinson calmly secured the ensuing onside kick, squashing the Firebirds’ comeback attempt.

“I always want to be put in the position to make a play,” Robinson said. “I believe in myself, I believe in my abilities and when the game comes on the line, I trust every single one of my teammates but obviously, a little selfishly, you would love to have the ball come your way.”

As good as Robinson is, he’s not the only reason Pinnacle is averaging nearly 35 points a game. For one, the Pioneers have a strong offensive line led by USC commit Elijah Paige at left tackle. But they also have an impressive corps of skill position players.

Rucker ran for two scores Friday and now has six on the year. Libman is explosive and precludes defenses from blanketing Robinson. Coleson Arends is a weapon in the receiving game.

The cog at the center of it all, though, is a kid who wasn’t even supposed to be here. Pinnacle’s preseason plan was for Holton — a sophomore — to be its JV quarterback. But when junior Ethan Wall went down with a back injury, Holton won the job, keeping it even after Wall returned.

“Wyatt's been incredible,” Robinson said. “The things he's able to do, the leader he is, he stepped up within a week. Within a week, he learned he was the starting quarterback and he took that role and just flew with it. He hasn't looked back since. I'm really happy to have him at the helm.”

On Friday, Holton displayed all the tenets that have Pinnacle coaches and players gushing. He was accurate, smart and athletic, repeatedly extending plays and scoring a quarterback keeper that ended up being the winning touchdown.

Five weeks ago, Pinnacle went to Liberty and got punched in the mouth, losing, 49-7. The Lions might be the best team in the state, but Zupke saw the loss as an opportunity to evaluate his team’s weaknesses. Since then, the Pioneers are much improved on defense.

That was most evident on a huge fourth quarter play, when three players swarmed to stonewall Chaparral quarterback Miles Vandenheuvel at the line of scrimmage on fourth-and-2 from the Pioneers’ 3-yard line.

“Experience is not just being smarter on the field, but having the confidence that we're gonna make this play,” Zupke said. “They're not just gonna lay down and let the team walk in the end zone. I think that kind of experience is really valuable.”

The Firebirds’ comeback attempt fell short, dropping them to 3-4. But after trailing 20-0 early and 27-7 at halftime, this was the second time in four weeks that they’ve nearly erased a three-touchdown deficit against a potential Open Division opponent.

This might not be their year, but they’re a young team with all the pieces to be contenders soon. And when they are, games like Friday’s will be critical experience to look back upon.

“We're always gonna feel like offensively, we have a chance to score,” Chaparral coach Brent Barnes said. “We have weapons, we have guys. We're just sometimes not executing cleanly and that's causing some punts.”

Theo Mackie covers Arizona high school sports and the Arizona Diamondbacks. He can be reached by email at theo.mackie@gannett.com and on Twitter @theo_mackie.