Pine Creek is the No. 1 seed in Class 4A. Falcon also made the field. (Photo: District 49)
AURORA — Pine Creek and Discovery Canyon were selected as the top seeds when the Class 4A and 3A playoff football brackets were announced on Sunday morning.
Both teams went unbeaten at 10-0 during the regular season, and were atop the final Wild Card points standings for their respective classifications.
Pine Creek is the defending 4A champion. The Eagles are riding a 21-game winning streak, the largest of any 11-man team. Their last loss came to 5A Columbine on Sept. 12 of last season. Pine Creek hasn’t lost to a 4A team since dropping a game to Ponderosa in Oct. 2012 — a span of 23 games.
The Eagles went wire-to-wire as the No. 1 team in CHSAANow.com’s rankings during the regular season. They own wins over five teams which made the playoff field.
Other top seeds, and those hosting first-round games, include: No. 2 Fort Collins, No. 3 Montrose, No. 4 Denver South, No. 5 Pueblo South, No. 6 Dakota Ridge, No. 7 Longmont and No. 8 Windsor.
Montrose was the runner-up in last year’s 4A title game. The Indians (9-1) have yet to lose to a 4A team this season, with the lone loss coming to 5A Lakewood.
Discovery Canyon, meanwhile, has been No. 1 in the CHSAANow.com poll and the Wild Card points for a few weeks now. The Thunder have a number of key wins, including on the road at Holy Family and over Pueblo East. They also beat Rampart, a 4A playoff team.
On Friday, Discovery Canyon held off an upset attempt by beating Canon City in overtime.
Other first-round hosts in 3A are No. 2 Evergreen, No. 3 Roosevelt, No. 4 Pueblo East, No. 5 Lutheran, No. 6 Rifle, No. 7 Holy Family and No. 8 Conifer.
One thing’s for sure: There will be a new champion in 3A. Coronado, which won last year’s title, moved up to 4A (and made the playoffs). Likewise, last year’s runner-up Silver Creek also moved up.
Longmont is ranked No. 8 in 4A this week. (Kai Casey/CHSAANow.com)
Longmont and Windsor have joined CHSAANow.com’s Class 4A football rankings this week.
The Trojans beat then-No. 7 Greeley West 23-14 last week. They are ranked No. 8 in the 4A poll.
Windsor, meanwhile, handled Thompson Valley 50-7. The Wizards are No. 9.
Pine Creek remained in the No. 1 spot, has it has since the preseason. In fact, the top six teams all stayed put — including No. 2 Montrose, No. 3 Fort Collins, No. 4 Denver South, No. 5 Pueblo South and No. 6 Vista Ridge.
Dakota Ridge moved up to No. 7, while Greeley West fell to No. 10
Canon City was the lone newcomer in the 3A poll, which continued to be led by Discovery Canyon.
It’s the final week of the regular season in 4A and 3A, meaning these will also be the final rankings of the season. Classes 5A, 2A, 1A, 8-man and 6-man all released playoff brackets on Sunday.
The rankings, voted upon by coaches and select media members, are the official polls of the Association. Polls are released each Monday.
It’s not as though Grandview was flying under the radar. The Wolves, after all, were ranked No. 3 in this week’s Class 5A CHSAANow.com poll — and have been ranked since the preseason.
But Friday’s 24-6 win over No. 6 Cherry Creek was an announcement, of sorts: We’re to be reckoned with.
Grandview led 17-6 at the half and added a late score off a blocked punt that was recovered by Keifer Glau. Quarterback Cody Summers had a game, throwing for a score and rushing for another.
If they weren’t already, the Wolves, now 7-0, are a legitimate threat for the Class 5A title. They play Overland next week. Win that, and the season finale with Valor Christian could be for the No. 1 overall seed in the playoffs.
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3A: (6) Roosevelt 34, (3) Holy Family 26
In a back-and-forth game which featured six ties or lead changes, Roosevelt pulled away in the fourth quarter to win.
Christian Majszak had four touchdowns to lead Roosevelt.
“It’s that time of year again,” coach Noland Eastin told ColoradoPreps.com’s Scoreboard Show. “We better start strapping our chinstraps on a little tighter, because that was a heck of a battle out there, and it could have went either way.
“It was back-and-forth,” he added. “It was just one of those epic battles. … The dust was flying around, kids were hanging in there. Their kids were battling. It was jsut a fun night of football. It was a good throw-back night.”
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3A: Palisade 18, (3) Rifle 10
It’s a big upset that also does wonders for Palisade’s playoffs hopes. The Bulldogs improved to 5-2.
The team teams were knotted at 10 at the break, and again after three quarters before Caleb Clarkson scored the winning touchdown on a 9-yard run with 1:45 to play. According to the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, Palisade had actually stopped Rifle on fourth-and-2 at their own 38 prior to the winning drive.
“The only way you’re going to compete against Rifle is you have to match their discipline and toughness, and that’s what we’re built on,” Palisade coach Joe Ramunno told the paper.
Easton Wood also had a touchdown pass to John Goff for Palisade, while Ty Leyba had a 56-yard touchdown run for Rifle.
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5A: (1) Valor Christian 17, Cherokee Trail 7
The top-ranked Eagles grinded out a win against yet another tough Centennial League foe.
Quarterback Dylan McCaffrey threw for a touchdown and rushed for another.
Brian Dawkins Jr. and Eric Lee Jr. both had interceptions at key moments.
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3A: (7) Delta 39, (10) Glenwood Springs 10
Delta scored the game’s final 29 points in the top-10 showdown.
Tristan Brown and Damon Jensen each had two touchdowns for Delta, running in place of a cramped Jonny Ponce, according to the Daily Sentinel.
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2A: Sterling 21, (9) Eaton 14
The Tigers pulled off the upset after scoring the game’s final 14 points.
“We kind of came in at the half and had to make some quick adjustments to some of the things they took advantage of,” Sterling coach Rob Busmente told the Scoreboard Show. “We regrouped well at halftime and came out and made some of those adjustments, and we were able to go out and perform.”
Sterling plays at No. 1 Brush next week.
“This is the Patriot League,” Busmenete said. “There’s never a week off. There’s always a tough game waiting for you on Friday.”
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2A: La Junta 21, (5) Florence 20
La Junta stopped No. 5 Florence’s two-point conversion attempt with 20 seconds to play to preserve the win in 2A.
“It was a great stop for us,” coach Clint Buderus told the Scoreboard Show. “The kids came through in the clutch and found a way to win.”
La Junta has won three games in a row after starting 1-3.
“We’re young. We’ve got 10 or 11 sophomores playing for us,” Buderus said. “We just had to get them some experience … and just had to get them rolling, get some confidence. This is a big win for us, it’s just a, ‘We can do it.’”
Chukwuma Obinnah, pictured during a game against ThunderRidge earlier this season. (Tim Visser/TimVisserPhotography.com)
Grandview’s Chukwuma Obinnah had a four-yard touchdown in overtime to lift the Wolves to a 34-27 overtime win against Eaglecrest on Friday night.
Obinnah finished with 261 yards and five touchdowns on 39 carries.
The night nearly belonged to Eaglecrest, which played the Wolves incredibly tight. The game was tied 7-7 at the half and Grandview led 14-13 after three quarters. The Wolves looked to have the game all but locked up when Obinnah made it 27-19 with 1:20 to play on his fourth touchdown.
But Eaglecrest wouldn’t go quietly. Though a 65-yard touchdown pass at the start of the drive was called back on a penalty, Eaglecrest marched down to Grandview’s 14-yard-line with 12.1 seconds remaining. Then, the Raptors scored as time expired and converted a two-point conversion to tie the game at 27.
That led to overtime, and Obinnah’s winning score.
Grandview, ranked No. 3 in 5A, is now 5-0 to start the season.
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3A: D’Evelyn 34, Lewis-Palmer 33
It seems we can’t go a week this season without updating the state record book in some fashion. Once again Friday, it was the single-game passing mark under assault.
D’Evelyn quarterback Owen Burke threw for 535 yards and five touchdowns. That is now No. 5 all-time, and is the third time this season a quarterback has cracked the top-10. Holy Family quarterback Chris Helbig threw for 491 on Sept. 5, and Air Academy’s Adam Brown broke the state record last week by throwing for 589 yards.
Meanwhile, Burke’s main target, Cameron Brown, had 316 receiving yards and caught all five scores. Both figures are tied for third-best in state history.
Lewis-Palmer running back Charley Young, meanwhile, rushed for 331 yards and four touchdowns on 32 carries in the loss.
When the night ended, the two teams had combined for 1,111 yards of total offense, which is now the eighth-most in state history.
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3A: (5) Rifle 36, (3) Delta 19
Rifle jumped all over Delta early, leading 10-0 after the first quarter, and then cruised to the win.
In fact, by the time Rifle led 16-0 midway through the second quarter, Delta didn’t yet have a first down, according to the Glenwood Springs Post-Independent.
Rifle running back Brock Clark had three total touchdowns.
“We had to fight for everything we got, so I’m extremely proud that, if we have to do that we were still able to score 36 points,” Rifle coach Damon Wells told the Post-Independent.
“Fantastic atmosphere,” Platte Valley coach Troy Hoffman Colorado Preps’ Scoreboard Show. “Football’s crazy. Anytime you’re playing such a big game, a rivalry game like this, and then also a league opener, it just added to the atmosphere and I’m very, very happy to come out on top tonight.”
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4A: (8) Greeley West 31, Greeley Central 14
The Spartans are now 5-0 after going 1-9 last season.
“Really, it started in December, just working in the offseason and changing our offense a little bit,” Greeley West coach Jason Renouf told the Scoreboard Show. “We really hit the weight room hard, and our kids have really bought into what we’re selling to them. It’s been great to be a part of.”
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6-man: (4) Peetz 42, (3) Fleming 28
Peetz jumped out to a 28-0 lead at halftime and cruised from there.
“I think we sent a message to everyone else in the conference that we’re to reckon with,” coach Scott Sorensen told the Scoreboard Show. “I know Pawnee’s got a really strong team; we still have Weldon Valley on our schedule, too. If we’re going to finish this out, we have to stay focused and play good football.”
The Bruins cruised out to a 17-0 lead midway through the second quarter and never looked back.
Henry Lyon kicked three field goals — 48, 23 and 20 yards — Milo Hall had a 2-yard rushing touchdown, and Joseph Parker caught a 12-yard score.
Cherry Creek improved to 3-2 this season. Cherokee Trail is also now 3-2.
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8-man: (4) Akron 20, (5) Merino 12
The Rams won a physical top-10 game on Friday. Akron is now 5-0.
“I knew going into the season that we were going to be young, but I knew were going to go have some talent,” Akron coach Jerome Weers told the Scoreboard Show. “I think to some extent, they’ve even exceeded at times my expectations. … They can play real well when they want to, and they play well as a group, and I couldn’t be prouder of them.”
Columbine’s Jake Lowry threw four touchdowns in his team’s 56-35 win over Mullen. Yes, that’s correct. Surprisingly, though, that’s not a school record for the traditional rush-happy offense. That belongs to former Rebel great Danny Spond, who threw five against Thomas Jefferson in 2009. Still, Lowry’s performance even had former Columbine great and current Denver Broncos player Ryan Miller weighing in.
Adams City beat Aurora Central 24-21 and is now 4-1 for the first time since 2005, when the team actually started 4-0. The move to 4A has really helped the program. For perspective on the turnaround: Adams City won four total games from 2006-2013, going 4-76 over that span. One of those wins was a forfeit.
Air Academy had itself another wildly offensive game, and once again, the Kadets fell short. A week after losing 68-62 to Sand Creek, they lost 76-41 to Canon City. Canon City’s Trenton Stringari rushed for 255 yards and five touchdowns, according to the Canon City Daily Record. A week after breaking the state’s passing record, Air Academy quarterback Adam Brown threw for 352 yards and two touchdowns. Teammate Jalen Etsep had two kickoff returns for a score: 97 and 96 yards. Canon City’s Dacian Sullivan also had a kickoff return for a score (87 yards), part of a three touchdown night.
Mountain Vista moved to 5-0 with a 21-17 win over rival ThunderRidge. It is the first time in school history the Golden Eagles have won that game in nine tries. Vista quarterback Brock Rubley threw for 327 yards and two touchdowns, while Matt Yockey had 18 tackles and two sacks.
There were two instances where cross-town rivals played for the first time Friday: Longmont beat Silver Creek 42-21, while Chaparral beat Legend 33-30.
More rivalries: Heritage beat Arapahoe 23-14 for the Milk Can, while Harrison beat Sierra 25-9. It is Sierra’s first loss.
Green Mountain led Wheat Ridge 14-7 and 20-14 in the fourth quarter, but the Farmers rallied to take a 29-20 win.
In a game we previewed this week, No. 9 Berthoud moved to 5-0 with a 17-7 win over Erie in 3A.
Fountain-Fort Carson edged Douglas County 21-20 in overtime. FFC totally turned things around at halftime, when the Trojans were being shutout and had just one first down. Later, they rallied from down 13-7 with seven minutes to play.
Rangely topped Hayden in overtime, 20-14. Hayden made a goal-line stop to even get to overtime, but Rangely prevailed.
Palmer beat Sand Creek 35-28 in overtime to win on homecoming. Sand Creek tied the game with a touchdown in the final moments to force overtime.
Platte Canyon, No. 10 in 1A, beat Front Range Christian 29-0 to move to 4-1. “We preach that we’re going to try to improve every week,” Platte Canyon coach Mike Schmidt told the Scoreboard Show. “We’re young still, we’ve only got five seniors, so we feel like we’ve still got a long way to go, and a lot of improving to do.”
On its debut week in the 5A top-10, No. 10 Rocky Mountain beat Horizon 31-20.
In 3A, No. 8 Lamar beat No. 9 St. Mary’s 25-10.
Glenwood Springs upset 3A No. 10 Palisade, 17-10. It was sealed by a hard count which drew Palisade offside.
Fort Collins and Longmont line up presnap during Thursday night’s game. (Brock Laue/CHSAANow.com)
FORT COLLINS — In a wild turnover and flag filled frenzy, the No. 5 ranked Fort Collins football team kept their composure enough to secure a 13-7 home win over Longmont on Thursday night at French Field. The Lambkins improved to 4-0 with the victory.
“The biggest thing is, our guys never lost their cool,” Fort Collins coach Eric Rice said. “They never lost their poise, even when things weren’t going great, especially on offense. That’s composure that you want to see your kids have and the kids showed that tonight. They did enough to win the game.”
And win the game defensively.
Dressed in their black and silver uniforms, the Fort Collins defense was a ball-hawking black hole most of the night. In the first quarter, Longmont — who entered the game with nine turnovers in their first three contests — fumbled in Fort Collins territory after a failed fourth down conversion by the Lambkins. Kicker Christian Cominada converted the turnover into points with a chip shot field goal to give Fort Collins a 3-0 lead.
After getting the ball back, Brandon Storebo, an imposing 6-foot-5 and 220-pound tight end and a University of South Dakota commit, took a screen pass 36 yards for a touchdown. The big target gave Fort Collins a 10-0 lead after the first quarter. The Lambkins were seemingly in command of the game.
But the Trojans (1-3), showed fight with a gutsy 33-yard pass from a pressured Clint Sigg to Ethan Gabrielle to the Fort Collins 16-yard line. Sigg punched in a two yard touchdown with 1:25 left in the opening half to cut the Fort Collins lead to 10-7 at halftime.
The visitors had momentum and the ball to open the third just as the Fort Collins offense stalled with a mere five yards of total offense in the quarter. Looking to take advantage, Longmont threatened with several drives. In the end, a rash of turnovers washed away their hopes as the Trojans had three costly fumbles. Sigg, who was heavily pressured all night, threw two interceptions and only completed four of his 18 of his passes for 93 yards.
Another Cominada field goal gave Fort Collins a 13-7 lead with two minutes left in the game, but an electric 68-yard kickoff return by Longmont’s Elijah Sullivan provided the Trojans hope at the opposing 29-yard line. Fort Collins clinched the game on a Kielar Harpham interception with 1:01 to play.
Kielar Harpham is all smiles after his fourth quarter interception sealed the win for Fort Collins Thursday night. (Brock Laue/CHSAANow.com)
“It felt great,” Harpham said of the pick.” I caught the ball and was thinking, I gotta go, I gotta go, I got the ball, but then I realized, hey there’s not much time on the clock, so I have to get down. My teammates were saying, get down, get down.”
We were doing well as long as we were doing our assignments,” he said of his team’s stingy defense. “When we didn’t do our assignments, that’s when they were breaking big plays. Once we started doing our assignments and they threw, that’s when we had a chance at getting the ball.”
The Lambkins — coming off a gritty 13-12 road win at ranked Windsor — have yet to give up more than 12 points in a game this fall. They are holding opponents to nine points per contest.
“We’ve been pretty good on defense most of the year,” Rice said. “Our kids are kind of accustomed to holding teams to low scoring games and they have the confidence that they can do that, but we also caught some breaks. We have some things to work on, which is good. Even though we are playing well, there’s still areas for improvement and that’s what you want to see.”
As the Lambkins prepare to travel to Loveland for their next contest, they remain a focused, hungry unit.
“I’ve got some guys in there actually crying because they didn’t play well, so that’s a good sign too, because they’re not happy with their performance,” Rice added. “At the end of the day, you take a win however you can get it. If there was a way to win by a half point, we would take it. We’re a little disappointed we didn’t play better, especially on offense, but it always feels good to be 4-0.”
