Cherry Creek’s Milo Hall had a big run in the fourth quarter to help Cherry Creek win the 5A title. More photos. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)

DENVER — He wasn’t present at Sports Authority Field, but Michael Buffer would’ve fit right in. With all the hype surrounding Saturday’s 5A state title game, a rambunctious crowd at the home of the Denver Broncos was certainly ready to rumble.

And the players followed suit.

Two years removed from Valor Christian’s 9-0 win over Cherokee Trail for their first 5A title, the Eagles found themselves in another fight. And it was one that Colorado high school football fans desperately wanted.

Dave Logan’s Cherry Creek Bruins perfectly played the part of Muhammad Ali in their 25-24 win over Valor Christian, ending the Eagles’ run of 26-straight postseason wins. In fact, Saturday was the first time the Eagles had ever lost in the postseason.

“This was a special game when you consider the ebb and flow of it,” Logan said. “Valor’s a great program. They have great players and they’re very well coached so we knew this was going to be a heavyweight fight. We were going to get hit and we were going to get rocked and you have to have the ability to withstand that and gather yourself and go back out there.”

The Eagles landed the first jab with a 38-yard field goal early in the second quarter. But after a low-key first quarter, Milo Hall landed two straight hay makers in the form of a 35-yard run followed up immediately by another long burst, this one going 30 yards and for a the lone touchdown of the first half.

On those two runs, the Bruins had stung like a bee.

And just when it looked like Hall was going to land the knockout punch, he swung and missed. He fumbled on the Valor one-yard line, allowing the Eagles to regain possession and prevent the Bruins from taking a two-score lead. That hurt when two series later, Dylan McCaffrey connected with Ben Waters for a 61-yard touchdown pass, tying the game at 10-10.

And the battle raged on.

More photos. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)

“If I had stayed down I knew my team would’ve stayed down as well and I couldn’t let them see me like that,” Hall said. “I had to bounce back quick and help us win.”

But that was easier said than done. McCaffrey soon found Danny Rambo on a 15-yard pass to give the Eagles a 17-10 lead, putting the Bruins on the ropes.

But midway through the fourth quarter, it was quarterback Joe Caplis who found his opening, connecting with Joseph Parker on a 53-yard pass. That pass put the Bruins on the six-yard line where Caplis punched it into the end zone two plays for the game-tying score.

But the tie game was short-lived as Rambo landed another crushing blow, returning the ensuing kick-off back 89 yards for a touchdown, once again giving Valor a seven-point lead.

“They went down in an emotional way in the fourth, twice, by seven,” Logan said of his team. “To be able to battle back and find a way to win is a tribute and I’m really proud of those kids.”

After exchanging haymakers for three-and-a-half quarters, Logan had to dig into his back of tricks and start aiming for strategic punches, rather than knockout blows.

He deployed Hall onto the kickoff team, where he was able to return the ball close to midfield. A reverse to Parker put the Bruins inside the 30. Hall finished off the drive, dragging Eagles cornerback Quinton Holley into the end zone for the touchdown.

But through all the vicious blows endured through the game, it was the two-point conversion run by D.J. Luke — a subtle jab — that did the Eagles in for good.

“I’m sure much will be written now that we’re 26-1 in the playoffs,” Eagles coach Rod Sherman said. “It’s still about the journey. It’s about the journey whether the season ends and you’re a state champion or the season ends and you’re in second place.”

Regardless of placement, the journey of both the Cherry Creek Bruins and the Valor Christian Eagles will be remembered as one of the greatest games in state championship history. It will serve as fuel to a rivalry in still in its newborn phase. Creek will recall the battle back from two separate seven-point defects to pull out the win for their ninth state title. Valor will use it as a reminder that greatness is never sustained and they must always continue to fight.

It was a battle that high school football and a state title deserved.

A slugfest for the ages.

Pueblo East players celebrate their 3A football championship. More photos. (Mark Adams)

PUEBLO — With a chance to make history, the Pueblo East football team seized the moment.

Early in the fourth quarter, the Eagles’ defense converted a safety and then moments later running back Bryson Torres raced 80 yards for a touchdown, propelling East to a 30-14 win over Rifle Saturday in the Class 3A state championship game before 8,125 fans at Dutch Clark Stadium.

This was East’s first state football title since the school opened in 1959.

“We needed to get in the backfield and make a play,” said defensive lineman Donny Garcia, who was part of the swarm tackle in the end zone for the safety. “Luckily, he (Rifle quarterback Layton Stutsman) went back for a pass and Damon (Sabbagh) hit him and their lineman caught it deep in the end zone and then we just gang tackled him.

“This is great feeling to be the first one over here on the East Side to win a football state championship and represent Pueblo the way we did.”

East finished the season with an 11-3 record and on an eight-game winning streak. The Eagles were playing in the school’s inaugural football state championship. East’s best finish in football came in 2012 when they advanced to the Class 3A state semifinals before losing at home to Rifle 56-6.

This was East’s third athletic state championship, joining the 2012 Class 4A softball and 2014 Class 4A boys basketball title teams.

“I knew if I kept running hard one was going to break and I just had to be patient,” said Torres, who finished with 156 yards on 21 carries. “I saw some green and I just ran as hard as I could. It was so exciting to get that touchdown. This feels like a dream right now.”

More photos. (Mark Adams)

East took a 16-14 lead on the safety with 10:25 remaining in the game, right after East quarterback Danny Martin turned the ball over on downs after being stopped inside the Rifle 1-yard line.

The 6-foot-1, 270-pound Garcia was a catalyst in Torres’ run which came with 10:12 on the clock.

“I’m the center on offense and we left seven points on the field, I knew we had to step up when we got the ball back,” Garcia said. “The key for us is to always take our steps and that’s exactly what we did on that play. We took our steps and sealed them off and I actually got the nose guard and that freed up the hole for Bryson to get free.”

Rifle was playing in its fourth state championship since 2004 and has captured two state crowns outright in 2004 (Class 3A), and 1973 (Class AA) and shared the Class A title with Louisville in 1961 when the teams tied 6-6. The Bears ended the season with a 12-2 record.

The Bears have played in six state championship football games, losing in the Class A finals in 1952, 3A finals in 2005, and most recently the Class 3A finals in 2012 to Silver Creek 32-15.

“They had a great pass rush and knocked the ball loose,” said Rifle coach Damon Wells about the safety which swung the momentum in East’s favor.

Holding a 23-14 edge, Martin secured the coveted win for the Eagles as he dipped and dashed in for a 22-yard score with 8:33 remaining. Martin finished with a game-high 192 yards rushing and 87 yards passing.

“We just knew we had to keep our heads up,” Martin, a junior, said. “We had to keep pounding and pounding and win the state title. It is all about big plays and we did the job. This is incredible to win state. I can’t believe this just happened.”

The first half had plenty of fireworks, but not much scoring.

The Eagles had two great first quarter scoring opportunities end with zero points.

Matin’s pass in the left corner of the end zone on 4th-and-7 and the Bears 7-yard line fell incomplete. Moments later, East was in business again when cornerback Kevin Ribarich intercepted Rifle quarterback Stutsman’s pass.

The Eagles faltered again when Martin fumbled and the Bears recovered at their own 3-yard line.

Rifle finally ended the scoreless battle when Ty Leyba caught a pass from Stutsman over the middle and raced 37 yards in for the touchdown with 35 seconds left in the first quarter.

East finally countered and tied the game at 7-7 on Martin’s 5-yard run 7:33 until the half.

The Eagle offense moved the ball in the first half via Martin’s legs and arm. The junior had 126 yards rushing on 16 carries and 53 yards passing. Rifle had 117 yards of offensive the first two quarters paced by Blaine Vance’s 41 yards rushing on five carries.

In the third quarter, Rifle gained control on a 33-yard pass from Stutsman to Tyler Bosshardt and then on the next play Brock Clark sprinted 39 yards to give the Bears the lead at 14-7 lead 31 seconds into the third quarter.

East tied game at 14-all on a clutch 8-yard scoring reception by Bruno DeRose from Martin at 5:53 of the third quarter on 4th-down-3.

“Before the game started I knew I was going to have a big role in the passing game,” said 5-foot-11, 205-pound junior DeRose. “I came out and I was able to capitalize on a lot of things. I will remember winning this state championship forever. It’s crazy.”

More photos. (Mark Adams)

Cherry Creek’s Milo Hall celebrates the 5A championship with his teammates. More photos. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)

DENVER — Dominant prep football programs from the past and present collided Saturday at Sports Authority Field at Mile High to determine the 2014 Class 5A football champion.

Cherry Creek conquered 1980s and 1990s winning eight titles (1982, 1983, 1986, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1995 and 1996) in the largest classification. Valor Christian burst onto the championship stage in 2009 and have staked claim to five straight football titles entering Saturday’s showdown with Creek.

In the end, a 24-yard touchdown run by Cherry Creek’s dynamic running back Milo Hall and 2-point conversion run by DJ Luke with 5:09 left in the fourth quarter was the game-deciding moment.

“It’s a great accomplishment,” Hall said after the Bruins took a 25-24 victory to etch a ninth state football title into their deep resume.

“We’re going to be remembered at that school forever. I’m really proud we brought back that tradition of winning.”

Luke bulled his way into the end zone on the 2-point conversion to send the Bruins’ fans into frenzy.

“I was a little bit surprised, but he just gave it to me and I knew I could do it,” Luke said of Creek going for the 2-point conversion and the lead instead of the tie. “I just wanted to help my team win. It’s the greatest feeling ever.”

Cherry Creek’s Milo Hall (5) celebrates after scoring a touchdown. More photos. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)

Hall, who battled a wrist injury for the majority of the game, had his facemask grabbed on his fourth-quarter touchdown run. The penalty moved the ball inside the 2-yardline for the extra point. Creek coach Dave Logan, who coached his fourth different

program to another 5A state title, admitted the 2-point try was a risk.

“Half the distance to the goal and we had been getting the running game going a little bit,” said Logan, who coached Arvada West (1997), Chatfield (2001) and Mullen (2004, 2008, 2009 and 2010) to state championships. “It was a gamble and the kids made it work.”

Hall, who finished with 214 yards rushing on 28 carries, wasn’t even on the field for the 2-point conversion.

“We had to dig deep,” said Hall, who admitted he watched the eventual-game winning conversion on the video screen. “DJ is a tremendous running back. He is just as good as me.”

Valor coach Rod Sherman wasn’t shocked Creek for the lead instead of kicking the extra point.

“I think the way they had been running the ball it made sense,” Sherman said. “I thought it was a good call.”

Creek had to respond after Valor senior Danny Rambo had a 89-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to give the five-time state champion Eagles a 24-17 lead with 5:38 left in the fourth quarter.

A solid kickoff return from Hall was followed up by a 31-run by senior Joseph Parker. Hall scored on the next play.

“They made a couple more plays then we did, but there is nothing for us to hang our heads about here,” Sherman said after the Eagles’ first postseason loss in the program’s history.

Valor was 26-0 in the playoffs over six seasons going into the game. The Eagles had leads of 17-10 and 24-17 in the fourth quarter only to see the Bruins respond.

“That’s a great high school football game,” Sherman said. “If you are scared to lose a football game you probably shouldn’t be playing sports. My hat goes off to Creek.”

Valor was forced to punt with just under five minutes to play trailing by a point. Creek managed one first down before punting the ball back to the Eagles with less than 10 seconds left.

Creek sophomore Jonathan Van Diest snagged a backward pass on the final play to end the game.

“It means everything. We’ve worked so hard for it. It’s been since 1996 when I was born actually,” Creek senior captain Michael Morean said. “It feels awesome to bring it back. A year ago nobody thought we could win it.”

Hall was held in check for the majority of the first half, but broke loose for back-to-back carries of 30 and 35 yards midway through the second quarter. Hall’s carry of 35 yards with 6:26 left before halftime went for the lone touchdown of the opening half.

Hall had just 33 yards on his first 10 carries before his monster runs that gave Creek a 7-3 lead. The Bruins’ extended their lead to 10-3 in the final seconds before halftime on a 38-yard field goal by senior Henry Lyon.

Valor tied the game at 10-10 on a 61-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Dylan McCaffery to junior Ben Waters late in the third quarter. McCaffery gave the Eagles’ their first lead on a 15-yard pass to Rambo with 10:15 left in the fourth quarter.

“A good offense like Valor is going to get some yards and even get some touchdowns, but you have to keep bring it,” Morean said.

McCaffery finished 16-for-30 passing for 233 yards and two touchdowns. He was also Valor’s leading rusher with 29 yards on the ground. The Eagles were held to just 47 yards rushing while Creek put up 368 yards on the ground.

More photos. (Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com)

PUEBLO — Pueblo East won the first football championship in school history with a 30-14 win over Rifle on Saturday.

Links

• Live scoreboard
• Playoff brackets: 5A | 4A | 3A
• Full schedule & scoreboard | @ColoHSFootball
• Live game schedule

The live event will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Friday.
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DENVER — Pine Creek beat Longmont 45-6 to win the Class 4A football championship at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on Saturday.

Pine Creek repeated as the 4A football champion Saturday. More photos. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)

DENVER — Four years ago, after Pine Creek lost the Class 4A football state championship game 66-10 to perennial powerhouse Valor Christian, Eagles head coach Todd Miller wasn’t sure his squad would ever get another shot at the state title.

Those worries seem silly in retrospect.

Saturday at Sports Authority Field at Mile High, the Eagles took another step towards establishing a dynasty of their own, beating the Longmont Trojans 45-20 to wrap up an undefeated season and a second-straight 4A state championship. It is the first time a Colorado Springs-area school has won back-to-back titles.

“This year we had a target on our back and I kind of understand what Valor and some of the other schools are going through,” said Miller in the midst of a raucous postgame celebration. “It takes a toll on you personally, it takes a toll on these kids. But you still chase it, because this is unbelievable.”

The outcome was never in doubt, as the Eagles dominated on both sides of the football right from the start. Only penalties — the Eagles had six for 81 yards in the first half — held them back. Even then, mistakes could only slow Pine Creek, not stop them.

Pine Creek’s Josh Odom (21) finds open space during the 4A championship game. More photos. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)

After a missed field goal to start the game, Pine Creek’s JoJo Domann connected from 32 yards out on the Eagles second possession. Having officially gotten on the board, the Eagles picked up steam and started piling it on.

Led by quarterback Tommy Lazzaro and running back Josh Odom, the Eagles looked unstoppable as the first half unfolded. Lazzaro found pay-dirt from eight yards out to cap a four-play, 62-yard drive as time expired in the first quarter. In the second frame, it was Odom who shouldered the load, eventually finding the end-zone to make the score 17-0 Pine Creek just a few minutes into the second quarter.

Odom spent the game adding to his already impressive resume. The senior running back finished with 152 yards rushing at halftime and 284 for the day.

“Coach Miller just tells me, it doesn’t matter if you get ten or thirty carries,” said Odom, who averaged 14.2 yards per-carry. “Just as long as you put your head down and help the team be successful.”

Meanwhile, the Trojans were struggling to get anything going against an active Eagles defense. The Eagles shortened the field against Longmont quarterback Clint Sigg Jr., who had to settle for short out routes that the Eagles could swarm to.

The Eagles intercepted Sigg twice in the first half, and though neither directly led to Pine Creek scores, losing the field position battle meant tough going as the Trojans tried to find a break. Trying to simply run out the clock to end the half, the Trojans put the ball on the ground, and all-purpose threat JoJo Domann picked up the ball and returned it 19-yards for another Pine Creek touchdown.

Domann finished the game with 64 yards and one touchdown receiving to go along with his defensive exploits.

“We swarmed the ball. That’s our mentality,” said Domann, when asked what his team did well on defense. “Always get to the ball, get to the pile. Make plays and tackle well, and that’s what we did.”

“The boy’s a baller. He gets to go both ways and he does a great job at it,” Odom said of his teammate. “He’s definitely a high-level elite athlete.”

The second half opened in the same manner as the first – with a dominate Eagles defense frustrating the Trojans into turnovers, and Odom and company capitalizing. A six play, 79-yard drive by the Eagles ended with Odom’s second touchdown of the day. On Longmont’s next possession, junior defensive back Travis Meachum intercepted Sigg and took the ball to the house. Domann’s extra point made it 45-0 in favor of Pine Creek.

From there, Longmont was able to put some points on the board. Junior Conlan Berger scored two rushing touchdowns in the final frame and finished with 80 yards.

Sigg, in his final game for the Trojans, broke into the endzone as time wound down to make the final score 45-20.

Still, with the game already out of reach, a loud Pine Creek crowd spent the majority of the fourth quarter urging the Eagles to bring back the championship trophy.

For seniors of both squads, it was their final moment in uniform. And though it didn’t end the way Longmont head coach Doug Johnson wanted, he had only one message to his team.

“I love them. I’m super proud of our kids. We caught the best team on a day when we didn’t play very well,” said Johnson. “We knew we had to play well to be out there with them, but we just didn’t have our best today. I’m super proud of our guys, and super proud of our season.”

For the seniors of Pine Creek, a second straight championship was exactly the sort of legacy they wanted to leave behind.

“For this program, we’ve got some good guys leaving but we definitely have some good young guys coming up,” said Odom. “I’m eager to watch these guys play next year.”

Pine Creek has won its last 25 games.

“I’m going to miss them. They gave it their all,” said Domann of Pine Creek’s seniors. “We owe it to them to get back here next year, but I’m so grateful for all of them. This is for them.”

And as for next year, is it took early to start thinking about a three-peat?

“That’s on our mind,” said Domann. “But I’m going to celebrate this one first.”

(Kevin Keyser/KeyserImages.com)

DENVER — Cherry Creek beat Valor Christian, 25-24, for the 5A football championship at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on Saturday.

Cherry Creek and Valor Christian met earlier this season. (Ray Chen/ArrayPhoto.com)

DENVER — It could be very easy to see how the chess match between Dave Logan and Rod Sherman has already begun. With each question that was directed at both of them, Logan slyly slid the microphone to his opponent’s side of the table, letting the Valor coach be the first to share his thoughts with the gallery of players, administrators and media.

Logan’s Bruins ended an impressive 28-game in-state winning streak for the Eagles with a 33-17 win over Valor back on Oct. 17. When the two teams take the field again on Saturday, there is much more at stake than a winning streak.

They’ll be playing for gold and the right to walk away as champions.

Cherry Creek coach Dave Logan. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)

Each team will have something to prove in Saturday’s 5A state championship game. Cherry Creek hopes to show that under Logan, their team is no joke and the win over Valor was no fluke. The Eagles hope to prove that it was.

“Valor is an extremely talented team, and I do chuckle from time to time when I hear people talk about how they’re not nearly as good as they were last year,” Logan said. “That comes from people who don’t go to games or don’t view tape or — with all due respect — just don’t know football.”

And if there’s any fair judge, it would be Logan. He is searching for his seventh state title as a head. He won one with Arvada West (1997), one with Chatfield (2001) and four with Mullen (2004, 2008-10). It also helps that the Eagles have never lost a postseason game, standing 26-0 all-time.

But the Bruins have shown that they have the talent, not just to hang with Valor, but to beat them. To do it again, they’ll have to rely on their playmakers, starting with running back Milo Hall. The senior back was the Centennial League’s best runner this year, tallying 2,086 rushing yards and finding the end zone 27 times.

“(With Hall) it’s a very different run game than we saw last week with Grandview,” Sherman said. “You have to make your tackles. If you miss tackles (he) can get it to the house every single time. He’s rushed fro close to 200 yards a game during the playoffs.”

Hall’s 194 yards against Valor was a key component in the Bruins walking away the winners. When Valor trailed late and their defense was having a hard time bottling up Cherry Creek’s running game, they found themselves with an out-of-sync offense and more importantly, little time left on the clock.

Such was the burden of playing against the Bruins. But the Eagles are not without their own weapons. Eric Lee Jr. has been called by Logan as the best athlete in the state. Lee has committed to the University of Nebraska to play as a defensive back, but while suiting up for Valor, he has proven to be a dangerous weapon with the ball in his hands.

Valor Christian’s Eric Lee Jr. makes an interception in the 5A semifinals. (Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)

Lee Jr. ranks second on the team in receiving yards, but has become one of quarterback Dylan McCaffrey’s favorite targets when looking for a big strike.

“I feel like we have a lot of good chemistry,” Lee Jr. said. “It’s something that’s been improving throughout the whole season.”

Saturday will be the last chance for those two to improve on that chemistry. Both teams are shooting for a win and to walk away as champions, but Sherman was quick to point out that in the grand scheme of things, it’s about the journey far more than it’s about winning.

That attitude has trickled down his players. Rather than looking at this game as a chance for revenge, they simply look at it as important football game.

“We’re just trying to win another championship and just have to play another great team in the process of that,” Lee Jr. said. “We got to play Grandview again and we didn’t give them our best game (in a regular season loss). What we learned from the Grandview and Creek losses is how to fight in the second half. We’re ready to show Creek we’ve improved a lot since the last time they saw us.”

Longmont coach Doug Johnson, left, and Pine Creek’s Todd Miller. (Jack Eberhard/JacksActionShots.com)

DENVER — For defending Class 4A football champion Pine Creek, the path back to Saturday’s title game was paved with an undefeated record (13-0) and plenty of blowout victories.

Longmont (10-3), the team Pine Creek will face at 11 a.m. Saturday at Sports Authority Field at Mile High, had a few hiccups along the way.

But both head coaches recognize how special it is to make it this far, and are encouraging their players to soak it all in.

“It’s never old. I think even now, being able to have those experiences in the past, it’s even more enjoyable because you realize what it takes to get here,” said Pine Creek head coach Todd Miller Tuesday. “Four years ago, when we lost this game, I didn’t know if we could ever get back. We’ve been blessed by the hard work of these guys.”

“I get teary-eyed thinking about it,” said Longmont head coach Doug Johnson. “We had our backs pinned up against the corner, and we had to fight our way out. Our players are so loyal. They’re tougher than nails and I’m so proud of them.”

Longmont head coach Doug Johnson talks to his team after the semifinals. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)

For Longmont (10-3), it’s their first title appearance since 1991, and it comes after an amazing comeback in the regular season. The Trojans started the year 1-3, and had to fight through injuries and plenty of adversity on their way to the playoffs.

“We literally patched things up as we went through the season waiting for guys to get back from injury,” said Johnson. “As we got the pieces in place we got better and better and better.”

Longmont was able to recover from their sluggish start thanks in large part to the play of quarterback Clint Sigg, who’s thrown for 11 touchdowns and run for another four.

“He’s such a loyal kid,” said Johnson of his senior quarterback. “We got him hit so many times throwing the ball early, dropped passes, ran wrong routes, and he never wavered in his belief. People say he’s been playing well as off late. He just had to wait for us kind of catch up with him in some phases.”

Despite the Trojans turnaround, Longmont has a tough task ahead of them against a ball-hawking Eagles defense that has picked off 17 passes and recovered another 11 fumbles. Sigg believes his team — which turned the ball over twice in their 21-14 victory of Broomfield in the semifinals last week — will have play perfect football Saturday to hang with Pine Creek.

“They have great athletes all around. A great secondary, a big physical defensive line,” said Sigg. “We just have to execute really well. We can’t give them any freebies.”

While this is the Trojans first championship appearance is over 20 years, defending champion Pine Creek is appearing in the title game for the third time in four years. The Eagles boast a versatile attack headed by quarterback Tommy Lazzaro, who’s thrown for 1,438 yards and 13 touchdowns on the season.

“Tommy gives us that (flexibility). The ability to throw and run it, this year he’s become a much better runner and competitor,” said Miller. “We’ve relied on that.”

Pine Creek is in its third championship game in four seasons. (Mark Adams)

The Eagles were able to do so many different things because, Miller says, their players are all capable of playing multiple positions, on both sides of the ball.

“We were able to develop six or seven lineman who can come in and play tight end. That allows to smash-mouth it a little bit,” said Miller. “We’ve been able to develop some younger guys that have come up and played wide receiver for us so we can go four wide.”

Miller highlighted senior running back Josh Odom as an example of his team’s selflessness and ability to adapt. Odom’s rushed for 1955 yards this season, his first as the team’s full-time halfback.

“Josh being versatile, being unselfish and playing defense last year, being a great linebacker for us,” Miller said. “We needed him to tote the rock for us this year, and him buying into that. Knowing that guys are going to stuff the box on us to stop him and our O-line has opened stuff up for us on the edge and throwing the ball.”

The last time these two teams faced each other in such a high-stakes matchup was the 2009 quarterfinals, which Longmont won 42-41. Since then, Pine Creek has established themselves as the team to beat in 4A, and Odom is looking forward to extending the Eagles recent string of success.

“I’m not sure it’s a legacy like Valor with their five state championships,” said Odom. “But if we keep going with what we’re doing with a great program and great kids, we can do something great.”

Kickoff is scheduled for 11 am at Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium.