Week Two Class 1A Breakdown
To start of the 1A regular season we had a great matchup on paper between the former #1 Burlington and #2 Strasburg. Both teams returned a ton of talent and this looked to be a great matchup. The hype didn’t live up to the expectations. Strasburg cruised by Burlington 48 to 14 and that win set the tone for the season. Some of the Non-Top Ten games from last week were: Cedaredge over Monte Vista 23 to 10, Ellicott over Wray 29 to 24, Grand valley over Vail Christian 46 to 6, Rye over Centauri 17 to 14, Trinidad over Raton NM 27 to 0, Colorado Springs Christian over Wiggins 44 to 18, Peyton over Byers 65 to 0, Holyoke over Bridgeport NE 28 to 18, Meeker over Coal Ridge 30 to 14.
We have a new #1 team this week. #1 Strasburg takes over at the top. Like previously stated they slammed Burlington 48 to 14. No offensive stats were input for Strasburg but the Defense was amazing. They held Burlington to 43 yards rushing and 128 yards passing. If Strasburg defense plays like that the rest of the season they will be mighty tough to beat. This week Strasburg faces off against their rival #4 Bennett. #4 Bennett opened up their 1A campaign with a huge game. They faced off against Cornerstone Christian and they won 78 to 12. Bennett on offense only threw 2 passes for 8 yards but when you rush for 424 yards you don’t need to pass. They had two ball carriers break 100 yards and together ran for 219 yards on 9 carries and 6 touchdowns. Offensively that is a very solid game for Bennett. On defense Bennett forced 1 turnover and had 5 sacks. Strasburg will not have any easy game against Bennett. Last year Bennett beat Strasburg in the final game of the season and Strasburg is looking to get revenge for that loss. This game is going to be decided by the offensive and defensive lines and who can control the clock. I think Strasburg will hold on to the win but it will be a fight.
#2 Paonia slides up 1 slot after hammering Center 49 to 7. Paonia used a 23 point second quarter to get a 29 to 0 halftime lead. Paonia used a balance attack this week throwing for 174 yards and rushing for 182 yards. On defense they allowed one touchdown in the third quarter and forced 3 turnover and had 6 sacks. It was a great opening game for Paonia as now they travel to Rye. Rye opened up their season with a tight game against Centauri grabbing the win 17 to 14. Rye did all their damage in the first half of the game. Centauri made it close with a touchdown and two point conversion in the fourth but didn’t have enough time to win the game. On offense Rye ran for 156 yards and threw for 105 yards. QB Kevin Bailey accounted for most of the passing and rushing yards. On defense Rye gave up 221 yards passing but held Centauri to only 62 yards rushing. Rye will need their defense to stop the run again if it wants any chance at an upset. Paonia will need to stick to their rushing attack and keep control of the clock to win. I have Paonia winning big here.
#3 Limon started their 2016 campaign off with a tight matchup against Rocky Ford. Limon got a 21 to 6 victory. Limon used a 14 point first quarter to grab a nice lead and their defense stepped up only allowing 6 points in the fourth quarter. Limon stuck to their guns and ran for 319 yards led by Senior Braden Kappel who ran for 158 yards and a touchdown. Limon only threw the ball 8 times for 53 yards a touchdown and an INT. On defense Limon limited Rocky Ford to 25 yards rushing and 90 yards passing. That is a great game by any standards on defense. The touchdown that Rocky Ford scored was on special teams. This week Limon faces off against their old league rival #5 Crowley County. This is the game of the week in 1A. Crowley County was in a fight last week against John Mall. At Halftime Crowley County was winning 7 to 6 and it stayed that way until the fourth quarter when they scored twice and finished with a 20 to 6 win. That is Crowley County second victory of the season. On offense Crowley County ran for 211 yards and two touchdowns they only threw for 60 yards. On defense Crowley County gave up 132 yards passing and 119 yards rushing. Stopping John Mall on the ground was the key for Crowley holding their main running back to only 64 yards. Limon will have their hands full this week against Crowley County and will need to pound the ball to win this game. Crowley County will need to do what they did last week and limit Limon’s main running back. I have Limon winning by two touchdown here.
#6 Burlington got blitzed in week one losing 48 to 14 to #1 Strasburg. Burlington will have to quickly rebound and figure out their problems from week 1. They were limited on the ground to only 43 yards. Burlington cannot win games if they cannot rush for over 150 yards which will be the key to stopping this team. Passing wise they threw for 128 yards a touchdown and 0 INTS. This will be a big factor for Burlington going forward. This week they face St. Mary’s. St. Mary’s lost in week 1 getting blanked by Manitou Springs 43 to 0. At halftime St. Mary’s was down 36 to 0. St. Mary’s must quickly rebound this week and also figure out their offense. They ran 27 times for 25 yards which must be fixed. Passing wise they threw for 45 yards and 1 INT. If St. Mary’s wants any chance they must stop the run and that is something they didn’t do last week giving up 426 yards on 27 carries. I have Burlington winning this game easily and hopefully getting their offensive kinks figured out.
#7 Buena Vista escaped against Alamosa. Buena Vista was trailing at halftime 21 to 8 and scored once in the third quarter and once in the fourth to secure the game. On offense Buena Vista struggled a bit rushing for 152 yards 1 touchdown and passing for 82 yards and 1 touchdown. Their rushing attack was led by Toby Camp who ran for 94 yards. Defense and Special Teams is what won the game for Buena Vista. They forced 3 INTs, 1 fumble and blocked 2 punts in their huge comeback. This week Buena Vista faces off against their rival Salida. Salida grabbed their first win of the season last week 35 to 21 against Pagosa Springs. Salida now moves to 1-1 on the year and are hoping to pull an upset this weekend. Buena Vista will need their defense to power the way until their offense can work out the kinks. I have Buena Vista winning by two touchdown this week.
#8 Platte Canyon grabbed a nice victory against Sheridan. Platte Canyon jumped out to a 32 to 0 halftime lead and finished with 47 points. Platte Canyon attempted one pass for one yard but their offense is led by their rushing attack. Platte Canyon ran for 303 yards on 40 attempts and 10 touchdowns. They were led by senior Bradly Wright who ran for 158 yards on 12 attempts. Their defense forced 3 turnovers and of course had the shutout. This week they face Wiggins. Wiggins fell last week losing to Colorado Springs Christian 44 to 18. They have no offensive stats. On defense Wiggins was torched thru the air giving up 309 yards passing and 5 touchdowns to Senior Justin Engesser. Colorado Springs Christian only ran for 83 yards but their offense is passing oriented. Wiggins will have to figure out their offense this week if they plan to pull the upset. Platte Canyon must run the ball effectively again this week to grab the W. I have Platte Canyon winning big this week.
#9 Hotchkiss opened up their 2016 season by blowing past Dolores 40 to 8. Hotchkiss ran wild rushing for 282 yards on 29 attempts and 6 touchdowns. They only threw the ball 6 times for 55 yards. On defense they had a very solid game holding Dolores to only 65 yards rushing and 109 yards passing. This week Hotchkiss faces off against Coal Ridge. Coal Ridge opened their season with a 30 to 14 loss to Meeker. Meeker jumped out to a 22 to 7 halftime lead. Coal Ridge was balanced on offense throwing for 157 yards 2 touchdown but had 2 INTs. They ran the ball for 162 yards and 0 touchdowns. On defense Coal Ridge had a hard time stopping Meeker. They gave up 224 yards rushing and 192 yards passing. If Coal Ridge plans to win they must step up defensively. Hotchkiss will need to keep running the ball like they did and this will be a key game for them to measure up against their league rival Meeker. I have Hotchkiss winning by three touchdowns.
We have a new team joining the rankings in #10 Meeker. We just talked about their win last week against Coal Ridge and how efficient their offense was. That is two very solid games for Meeker and now they face off against Holyoke. Holyoke played out of state last week beating Bridgeport NE 28 to 18. They used a 14 point third quarter to help secure the victory. Hotchkiss relied heavily on the rushing attack. They ran for 220 yards on 35 carries and 2 touchdowns. They threw 11 times for 30 yards but had 2 touchdowns. On defense Holyoke held Bridgeport to 0 yards passing but where hammered on the ground giving up 371 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns. The difference in the game was turnovers. Holyoke forced 4 fumbles and recovered two and also had 2 INTs. If it was not for the turnovers they might have lost last week. If Holyoke plans to upset Meeker they will have to stop the run. They cannot allow over 300 yards this week and expect to win. For Meeker to win they need to limit turnovers and pound the ball on the ground. I have Meeker winning by 3 touchdowns.
Non-Top Ten Key Games
Ellicott at Monte Vista Cedaredge at Aspen
Peyton at Highland Gunnison at Olathe
Rocky Ford at Center Centauri at Pagosa
Trinidad at John Mall Wray at Goodland KS
MileHigh Prep Report 