A total of ten teams jumped into this week’s football rankings. They are: Montrose and Monarch (4A); Fort Morgan (3A); Eaton and D’Evelyn (2A); Holyoke and Cornerstone Christian (1A); Rangely and Soroco (8-man); and Briggsdale (6-man).
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. New voters can sign up by emailing rcasey@chsaa.org. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
Longmont 16, Vista Ridge 15, Ponderosa 11, Standley Lake 10, Brighton 9, Pueblo West 8, Grand Junction Central 3, Mesa Ridge 2, Greeley West 1, Heritage 1, Hinkley 1, Wheat Ridge 1.
Dropped out
Vista Ridge (8), Longmont (9).
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Erie (6)
2-0
104
1
W
2
Palmer Ridge (3)
1-1
90
2
W
3
Pueblo East (1)
2-0
77
3
W
4
Palisade
1-0
71
4
W
5
Holy Family
2-0
56
6
W
6
Discovery Canyon
2-0
54
9
W
7
Thomas Jefferson (1)
2-0
45
8
W
8
Durango
1-1
31
7
L
9
Mead
1-1
27
5
L
10
Fort Morgan
1-0
14
–
W
Others receiving votes:
Frederick 12, Harrison 12, Roosevelt 4, Canon City 2, George Washington 2, Lewis-Palmer 2, Pueblo Centennial 1, Skyview 1.
Dropped out
Pueblo South (10).
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Bayfield (12)
2-0
128
1
W
2
La Junta (1)
2-0
104
2
W
3
Platte Valley
2-0
84
3
W
4
Resurrection Christian
2-0
83
6
W
5
Rifle
1-0
73
7
W
6
Kent Denver
1-0
66
4
W
7
Basalt
1-0
31
8
W
8
Bennett
1-0
29
10
W
9
Eaton
1-0
26
–
W
10
D’Evelyn
1-0
22
–
W
Others receiving votes:
Faith Christian 18, Salida 13, Alamosa 12, The Classical Academy 7, Delta 6, Englewood 5, Berthoud 3, Aspen 2, Bishop Machebeuf 1, Pagosa Springs 1, University 1.
Dropped out
Faith Christian (5), The Classical Academy (9).
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Strasburg (8)
2-0
114
1
W
2
Limon (4)
1-0
108
2
W
3
Centauri
1-0
91
4
W
4
Burlington
0-1
90
3
L
5
Peyton
1-0
62
6
W
6
Wray
0-1
55
5
–
7
Crowley County
2-0
48
8
W
8
Meeker
1-1
27
9
W
9
Holyoke
2-0
17
–
W
10
Cornerstone Christian
1-0
11
–
W
Others receiving votes:
Monte Vista 10, Colorado Springs Christian 7, Buena Vista 6, Yuma 6, Paonia 5, Hotchkiss 2, Cedaredge 1.
Dropped out
Paonia (7), Monte Vista (10).
8-man
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Sedgwick County (10)
1-0
100
1
W
2
West Grand
2-0
89
2
W
3
Merino
2-0
72
7
W
4
Akron
2-0
62
8
W
5
Sargent
1-0
46
9
W
6
Holly
1-1
39
3
L
7
Caliche
1-1
35
5
L
8
Hoehne
0-1
29
4
L
9
Rangely
2-0
23
–
W
10
Soroco
2-0
12
–
W
Others receiving votes:
Fowler 9, Sanford 9, Haxtun 6, Norwood 5, Simla 3, Byers 2, Hayden 2, Mancos 2, Pikes Peak Christian 2, Custer County 1, Dayspring Christian 1, Vail Christian 1.
Dropped out
Fowler (6), Sanford (10).
6-man
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
PVS
LW
1
Stratton/Liberty (8)
1-0
89
1
W
2
Otis (2)
1-0
78
2
Bye
3
Kit Carson
1-0
75
3
W
4
Prairie
0-1
47
4
L
5
Arickaree/Woodlin
1-0
46
8
W
6
Peetz
0-1
44
5
Bye
7
Cheyenne Wells
1-0
43
7
W
8
Flagler/Hi-Plains
1-0
23
9
W
9
Fleming
0-1
17
6
L
10
Briggsdale
1-0
15
–
W
Others receiving votes:
Cotopaxi 8, La Veta 5, Idalia 3, Weldon Valley 2, Genoa-Hugo 1.
Almost 250 mile separate West Grand High School and Caliche. For the West Grand Mustangs, it was 250 miles well traveled.
The No. 2 team in the 8-man polls hit the road Friday and came away with a 38-20 win over No. 5 Caliche in a game that could prove to be West Grand’s best win of the year.
“We had great senior leadership and a great week of practice,” coach Chris Brown told the Colorado Preps Scoreboard Show. “We played well and were without one of our better linebackers and receivers, but they rose to the occasion.”
Brown noted that the Mustangs (2-0 overall) had been bit by the injury bug, but had overcome some depleted players to come away with a win over a very tough Caliche team.
The offense was powered by quarterback Luis Dominguez. The senior did enough for his coach to sing his praises to anyone within earshot.
“He played fantastic,” Brown said. “They did everything they could to take him out of the game and it didn’t work.”
The Mustangs return home next week for a showdown against South Park. The Burros will come into the game at 1-1 after grabbing a 30-15 win over Del Norte.
Radio highlights from the game:
[divider]
1A: (4) Centauri 38, (6) Paonia 0
(Paul Angelico/CHSAANow.com)
No. 4 Centauri took to the road and pitched a shutout over Paonia.
Chris Quintana got the scoring effort started with a rushing touchdown in the first quarter. But the strength behind the Falcons’ win was the swarming defense.
“They did a great job,” coach Kyle Forster told the Scoreboard Show. “A few weeks ago I said the defense was going to be our key this year.”
Centauri is in for a battle next week when it heads to Pagosa Springs.
[divider]
3A: (1) Erie 35, (10) Pueblo South 14
(Gabriel Christus/Denver Broncos)
Noah Roper was briefly knocked out of the game from an injury, but responded by coming back and running for over 100 yards in the first half.
A stretch of losses dating back to Oct. 13, 2016 came to an end for the Palmer Terrors. And in turn, it was the first win in 12 tries for coach Tom Reber.
The Terrors were down 12-0 at the half and rallied in the final two quarters to come away with an emotional win at Gerry Barry Stadium.
[divider]
5A: (10) Mullen 35, Doherty 28 (3 OT)
It took three overtimes, but No. 10 Mullen defended its home field in a thrilling win over Doherty.
The Spartans had a chance to tie the game in the second overtime, but a fumble at the goal line ended any chance for Doherty to walk away with its first win of the year.
[divider]
6-man: (8) Arickaree/Woodlin 26, (7) Fleming 20
In a low-scoring matchup between two top-10 6-man teams, it was Arickaree/Woodlin who started the season off with a win.
The Broncos host Kit Carson next week.
[divider]
Notables
2A No. 2 La Junta battled from behind to beat Pagosa Springs 24-14.
5A No. 6 Grandview edged Highlands Ranch 28-21 to improve to 2-0 on the year.
Clint Buderus got his first win as the coach at Pueblo West as the Cyclones beat Pueblo County in the Pigskin Classic 20-0.
Pine Creek endured eight lightning delays and came away with a 45-23 win over Rio Rancho (N.M.).
In 4A, No. 4 Windsor beat No. 8 Vista Ridge 21-0.
4A No. 10 Skyline handled 3A No. 5 Mead 41-21.
In 1A, No. 6 Resurrection Christian beat No. 5 Faith Christian 28-7.
Sedgwick County pushed its winning streak to a state-best 24-games by beating No. 4 Hoehne in 8-man.
Another top-10 matchup in 8-man: No. 8 Akron beat No. 3 Holly 8-6.
And another one in 8-man: No. 9 Sargent beat No. 6 Fowler 46-28.
This week’s radio lineup included coverage of Loveland’s win over Broomfield, Rifle getting a big win over Eagle Valley and Eaton’s 37-25 win over Sterling. Audio courtesy of The Team 1340 and KFKA 1310.
Voted upon by coaches and media members around the state. New voters can sign up by emailing rcasey@chsaa.org. These rankings have no bearing on postseason seeding.
The 2017 all-state football teams are presented by CHSAANow.com, ColoradoPreps.com and MaxPreps.
These teams were created following a lengthy process which included nominations from leagues, and then a vote of head coaches across the state.
Players were placed onto the first-team, second-team and honorable mention based upon the number of votes they received. In 5A-1A, spots were reserved for linemen and one kicker/punter, while 8-man reserved spots for linemen.
CHSAA does not determine who makes or doesn’t make the team; they are created entirely from the results of the coaches’ vote.
The 2017-18 preseason boys basketball rankings are here. No. 1 teams to start the season include: Rock Canyon (5A), Golden (4A), Sterling (3A), Sedgwick County (2A) and Holly (1A).
Sterling and Holly are defending champions, while Sedgwick County finished runner-up last season.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. During the regular season, they are released each Monday.
Evergreen 19, Mead 16, Mesa Ridge 16, D’Evelyn 13, Thompson Valley 12, Sierra 7, Air Academy 4, Northridge 3, Sand Creek 3, Windsor 3, Mountain View 2, Palmer Ridge 2, Ponderosa 2, Fort Morgan 1, Vista PEAK 1.
Class 3A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Sterling (10)
0-0
109
2
Faith Christian
0-0
92
3
Kent Denver (1)
0-0
58
4
Resurrection Christian
0-0
48
5
DSST-Stapleton
0-0
35
6
Colorado Springs Christian
0-0
34
7
Alamosa
0-0
31
8
Lutheran
0-0
27
9
Bayfield
0-0
25
10
Strasburg
0-0
22
Others receiving votes:
Coal Ridge 20, Manitou Springs 20, Manual 15, DSST-Green Valley Ranch 13, Basalt 7, Buena Vista 7, Grand Valley 7, La Junta 7, The Academy 6, Colorado Academy 6, Platte Valley 5, The Vanguard 5, Roaring Fork 4, Arrupe Jesuit 1, Machebeuf 1.
Class 2A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Sedgwick County (5)
0-0
94
2
Holyoke (4)
0-0
84
3
Del Norte (1)
0-0
61
4
Highland
0-0
46
5
Paonia
0-0
43
6
Fowler
0-0
33
7
Sanford
0-0
31
8
Akron
0-0
30
9
Crowley County
0-0
27
10
Ignacio
0-0
24
Others receiving votes:
Yuma 20, Peyton 10, Burlington 6, Meeker 6, Merino 6, Vail Christian 6, Byers 5, Dawson 5, Limon 4, Haxtun 3, Hotchkiss 3, Evangelical Christian 2, Calhan 1.
Class 1A
RK
TEAM
W-L
PTS
1
Holly (5)
0-0
69
2
Cheyenne Wells
0-0
61
3
Fleming (1)
0-0
51
4
Creede
0-0
46
5
Front Range Baptist (1)
0-0
40
6
Peetz (1)
0-0
36
7
Kit Carson
0-0
31
8
Longmont Christian
0-0
29
9
Sierra Grande
0-0
18
10
South Baca
0-0
15
Others receiving votes:
Heritage Christian 8, Ouray 8, Cheraw 7, Stratton/Liberty 4, Sangre de Cristo 4, Flagler 3, Shining Mountain 3, Walsh 3, DeBeque 2, Cornerstone Christian 1, Weldon Valley 1.
A week after beating sixth-ranked Silver Creek, Erie football has another top-10 feather in its cap.
On Friday night, the Tigers, now ranked No. 3 in Class 3A, beat No. 4 Berthoud 33-7.
“Playing in the Tri-Valley (League), it doesn’t get any easier,” coach Chad Cooper told the Colorado Preps Scoreboard Show after the game. “I told our kids to enjoy this one tonight, but tomorrow morning we’re back to work and getting ready for Holy Family.
“It’s kind of similar to a playoff run where you can’t let down,” Cooper continued. “It’ll be good to kind of prepare us for the playoffs. You can’t have any let downs in the playoffs. It’ll be a great test for us.”
Erie’s Jacob Mansdorfer hit Alex Mathis with a touchdown pass just before the end of the first half to push the Tigers’ lead to 20-7.
Noah Roper rushed for two second-half touchdowns, and also recovered two fumbles on defense. He returned one of those for a touchdown. Roper had 165 yards rushing.
“Noah, obviously, is a talented kid. He kind of does it all for us,” Cooper said. “He runs extremely hard and is able to grind on people, too, with the style that we have on offense.”
[divider]
6-man: (5) Prairie 44, (1) Peetz 41
Prairie got the go-ahead score with 11.8 seconds remaining to secure the upset of previously unbeaten Peetz.
“It was just a dive to the right to Trenton Holzworth, one of our seniors, and he was able to power through a couple of kids and was able to get the ball in,” coach Justin Kerns told the Scoreboard Show of the winning score.
Prairie is now 6-0 this season.
“The players here are excited, the kids are excited,” Kerns said.
[divider]
2A: (3) Platte Valley 42, (6) Sterling 21
Tied at 21 at halftime, Platte Valley reeled of 21 unanswered points in the second half to secure a big win and move to 6-0 this season.
“It was one heck of a game up here for homecoming week, that’s for sure,” coach Troy Hoffman told the Scoreboard Show.
Hoffman praised his team’s effort on defense, which forced four turnovers.
“The kids created some opportunities and some turnovers,” Hoffman said. “We just needed to do that, play a little more aggressive in the second half, and when you get four turnovers, a lot of times good things happen for you, and it sure did for us tonight.
Senior Zach Waite had four touchdowns, including runs of 55 and 50 yards, and Ernseto Rios and Trevon Wehrman also score the the Mustangs.
Platte Valley had more than 400 yards of total offense.
[divider]
2A: (5) The Classical Academy 27, (8) Salida 19
TCA rallied from down 13-7 late in the second quarter to get an important top-10 win.
Jenson Hall had two rushing touchdowns for the Titans, and Cade Bethany accounted for two total touchdowns.
Brayden Luft added a receiving touchdowns.
[divider]
Notables
(Sedgwick County/NFHS Network)
8-man No. 1 Sedgwick County cruised to an easy win over No. 3 Haxtun, 44-0.
Centauri is 6-0 in 1A after beating Monte Vista 27-2. The Falcons, No. 4, got another big night out of their defense. “That’s been our strength this year,” coach Kyle Forster told the Scoreboard Show. “Our defense has done a great job when we needed them to.”
In 2A, Basalt got a big rivalry win over No. 10 Aspen, 48-22. Noah Williams had six touchdowns for the Longhorns. “Just a big, strong, very, very gifted athlete,” coach Carl Frerichs told the Scoreboard Show of Williams.
5A No. 4 Regis Jesuit beat Legacy 32-7. “I think this puts us in the driver’s seat” for the conference title, Raiders coach Danny Filleman told the Scoreboard Show.
Caliche snapped a two-game losing streak and knocked off No. 8 Dayspring Christian in 8-man, 18-13.
8-man No. 10 Gilpin County is 5-1 following a 48-0 win over Soroco.
6-man No. 8 La Veta cruised to a 52-19 win over Sierra Grande in an afternoon contest.
Platte Canyon moved to 5-0 this season following a forfeit by Front Range Christian. The Huskies are ranked No. 7 in 1A.
No. 6 Merino got a narrow win over Akron in 8-man, 28-26.
Paonia, No. 6 in 1A, is 5-1 after beating Hotchkiss 28-21.
Deer Trail picked up its first win of the season when Cheraw forfeit Friday’s 6-man game due to lack of players. It snaps a 13-game losing streak for Deer Trail.
Denver North beat Vista PEAK 15-13 in 3A, and is now 6-0 this season.
Wray is now 3-3 following a 40-8 win over Wiggins in 1A. Cade Hillman had 227 yards and two touchdowns, while Manny Heurta added three scores.
3A No. 9 Harrison is 6-0 after a 46-0 win over Sierra.
Springfield upset No. 2 Holly in overtime, 32-26, in 8-man.
An impressive win for Northglenn over ThunderRidge in 5A. Northglenn is now 5-1.
Ralston Valley football picked up a huge win on Friday night, knocking off top-ranked Pine Creek and ending the Eagles’ state-best 15-game winning streak.
The Mustangs grabbed a 17-7 lead at halftime thanks to a field goal as time expired. They then held on in the second half, including one last stop with a minute left to seal the win.
Ralston Valley, a Class 5A program, is now 2-3 this season following an 0-3 start. Pine Creek, which plays in 4A, drops to 4-1.
Blake Stenstrom threw two touchdown passes, Joshia Davis rushed for 118 and a score and caught a TD pass, and the Eagles got yet another big win in their non-conference slate.
Valor Christian is now 5-0.
“We feel like playing great teams helps us refine what we need to do,” Valor Christian coach Rod Sherman told the Colorado Preps Scoreboard Show. “We’re not scared to lose. This is the first time in five, six, seven years that we’ve actually been undefeated out of our non-conference. If you’re not scared to lose, then these games are really good, because it helps you grow.”
Sherman pointed to his team’s ability to run the football, and stop Cherry Creek from doing the same, as one of the differences in the game.
“With a team like Creek, they’re so talented and they do such a great job coaching, if you let them be balanced, you’re in trouble,” he said. “And ultimately we ran the ball really well and we stopped the run.”
[divider]
1A: Aspen 34, Coal Ridge 28
Aspen entered 4-0, and Coal Ridge was 3-1, so their matchup on Friday was a good one. Ultimately, the Skiers won 34-28 to improved to 5-0.
Aspen won just two games last season, and hadn’t won five games in a season since 2013. It’s Aspen’s best start since opening 7-0 in 2010.
“We challenged (the kids) to understand what it takes to be successful,” Aspen coach Karson Pike told the Scoreboard Show about the team’s turnaround. “They did a good job this summer and this spring. … That’s really where we grew up.”
[divider]
2A: (5) La Junta 21, (3) The Classical Academy 11
The Tigers picked up a big top-five win a week after dropping another top-five matchup.
“It was a big win for us to get back on the winning track,” La Junta coach Clint Buderus told the Scoreboard Show. “The kids played good. It was huge for us.”
La Junta, the defending 2A champion, had its 16-game winning streak snapped last Saturday in a loss to now No. 1 Kent Denver. So this win was a big bounce-back following that game.
“We played better tonight,” Buderus said.
[divider]
1A: (1) Bennett 76, (10) Clear Creek 36
The top-ranked Tigers handed Clear Creek its first loss this season.
Bennett rushed for more than 600 yards in the game, including 515 in the first half.
Bennett, which reached the semifinals last season, is now 5-0 this season. Clear Creek is 4-1.
[divider]
8-man (3) Haxtun 29, (8) Dayspring Christian 21
A fourth-quarter touchdown lifted Haxtun to the win and a 5-0 start this season.
The team teams were knotted at 21 going into the final frame, and at 6-6 at halftime, before Haxtun pulled away.
Dayspring Christian is now 3-2.
[divider]
Notables:
More photos. (Jeff Tucker/jefferywtucker.zenfolio.com)
With Pine Creek losing, the longest winning streak in the state now belongs to Valor and Sedgwick County. Both have won 15 games in a row.
Sedgwick County, ranked No. 1 in 8-man, beat Akron 48-24 in a matchup of the past two state title games in that classification. “I thought our offensive line did a great job digging in in the second half and getting us some big yards,” coach Chris Michel told the Scoreboard Show.
4A No. 9 Pueblo South beat 3A Pueblo East 34-19 in the annual Cannon game. East, the three-time defending 3A champs, has opened the year 0-5. “There is just so much that goes into this, I don’t think people truly understand how things are in Pueblo, especially the rivalries, but I’m just proud of our kids tonight,” South coach Ryan Goddard told the Scoreboard Show. South is 4-1.
In 3A, No. 3 Palmer Ridge cruised to a 43-0 win over No. 10 Canon City. Quarterback Ty Evans threw four touchdown passes and rushed for another. “When we give Ty time, he does a really good job going through his progression, and he’s a competitor,” coach Tom Pulford told the Scoreboard Show.
2A No. 1 Kent Denver shut out Elizabeth 35-0, giving coach Scott Yates his 320th career win. 8-man No. 4 West Grand shut out Hayden 50-0, giving coach Chris Brown his 320th win. Both men lead the state in career wins.
Brighton came back from down 21 to beat Fort Collins 28-21.
Skyview is 5-0 for the first time in program history following its 48-21 win over Lincoln.
La Veta upset 6-man No. 8 Cotopaxi 71-38.
Mountain Valley got three touchdowns each from Salvador Vigil and Drew Martinez in a 60-13 win over Aguilar.
Ta’yon Burton returned a kickoff for a score as Manual beat Front Range Christian 27-0.
Pretty big win for Fountain-Fort Carson in 5A: 35-26 over Doherty.
Mead looks ready for the No. 1 spot in 3A. The Longhorns, currently No. 2 handled Fort Morgan 51-14. Current No. 1 Holy Family lost on Thursday.
Ikaika Gonzalez-Bentosino rushed for 266 yards and two scores as Englewood beat Sheridan 58-0 in 2A.
Vista Ridge beat Discovery Canyon 35-21 in a 4A/3A matchup behind big rushing days from Jeffrey Crittendon (218 yards, two TDs) and Jaylen Thomas (183, 1). Thomas also had two passing TDs.
Travis Cunningham rushed for two scores and Austin Coalson passed for two as Eaton beat University 33-6 in a 2A game.
