Class 1A State Championship Breakdown
#2 Strasburg at #1 Meeker Saturday 1:00pm
Strasburg keeps their title chance alive with a huge 49 to 28 victory over #3 Paonia. Strasburg once again dominated on the offensive side of the ball and defensively did just enough to slow down Paonia. Strasburg defensively forced 2 turnovers which also helped in deciding the game. Strasburg on offense once again dominated. Strasburg was able to run the ball at will which is what decided this game. If Paonia could have slowed down Strasburg rushing attack if could have made this game closer but they couldn’t. Strasburg ran for 293 yards on 34 attempts for 8.6 yards per carry and 4 touchdowns. Passing the ball Strasburg only threw 6 times for 73 yards 2 touchdowns and 0 INT’s. They won the turnover battle 2 to 1 but I don’t think that played into it as much as Paonia not stopping the run. Strasburg once again showed that they are very tough to stop and you must be able to match their athleticism. Strasburg I think will be facing the most athletic team they have played this year. Both sides of the ball will be tested but I think their offense will finally meet a defense that can slow them down a bit. Strasburg will need their defense to be ready as well.
Meeker was in a dogfight with the highest scoring team in 1A. Meeker was trailing entering the fourth quarter 20 to 24 and needed a big fourth quarter. Meeker got the fourth quarter they needed scoring 14 unanswered points and keeping their title chances alive. Meeker defensively held Bennett to just 24 points and is only 1 of 3 teams to keep them under 30 points all year. Meeker struggled stopping Bennett rushing attack but did enough to keep them out of the end zone. Bennett ran for 398 yards and 3 touchdowns but failed to score a few times in the red zone. Bennett also had 1 INT but the turnover battle was not the difference in the game. Meeker offense was the difference in this game. Meeker on offense was explosive and out gained Bennett. Meeker had 449 total yards of offense. Bennett has only been outgained once all year and that was by Strasburg. Meeker had a decent day running the ball rushing for 123 yards and 2 touchdowns. What made the difference in the game was Meeker passing attack. Logan Hughes had his best game throwing the ball of the season. Hughes went 17 of 32 for 326 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 0 INT’s with a QBR of 120.1. That single game by Hughes may have been one of the most impressive outings in the lower classifications. Meeker might need their offense to produce big numbers again this week both passing and running the ball. Meeker will also need to be able to stop the run better or could be in for a long game. Meeker must stop the run for them to be successful this week.
This is the game we have all been waiting for in the 1A ranks. No team in the state of Colorado has been able to slow down Strasburg offense. They only team to slightly slow it down was Cedaredge but they couldn’t do anything on offense. Meeker has used its athleticism and toughness in the tight games to pull them out and exceed most people expectation this year including mine. Both these teams have played tough schedules as well and it shows in their common opponents. Both teams played Bennett, Highland, Grand Valley, Cedaredge, and Paonia. Both teams are undefeated so they both went 5-0 against these opponents. Strasburg has proven to be one of the most complete teams this year. If they cannot stop you on defense which is rare they will just outscore you. They have proven that this year with their 55 to 44 victory over Bennett. Meeker also has been a very complete team. They have proven that their defense can win games with their 12 to 7 victory over Paonia or their offense can win games with their 42 to 14 victory over Cedaredge or 34 to 24 victory over Bennett. Strasburg will face I think their toughest and most athletic test yet. Meeker team speed makes up for their lack of size and also makes their defense one of the toughest. Strasburg will need their offense to run the ball effective again and also need their defense to be on point. Meeker showed last week that you cannot just stack the box and expect to win. Their offense attack is normally balanced but have shown that if they need to run they can run or if they need to pass they will pass very well. Strasburg will probably need to score over 30 points to win this game. Meeker will need their defense to stop then run and force Strasburg to pass. If Meeker can hold Strasburg to under 200 yards rushing and make them thrown I think they can win. Meeker also must run the ball a little more effective I don’t think they expect Hughes to thrown a near perfect game again. Meeker will also probably need over 30 points to win this game. I think these two teams are evenly matched and expect a very tight game. Strasburg is the slight favorite in this game. I am not going with the favorite though. I am going with Meeker to pull the upset here by 10 points. I think Meeker has the athleticism to slow down Strasburg just enough to win. I also think Meeker has the better defense and one or two stops will be all they need to win this game.
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