Class 1A Football Week 2 Top Ten Breakdown
#1 Limon (0-0)
Limon did not play in week 1 and instead prepared for their first game of the season. Limon opens their season against 2A Lamar at home. Lamar is improving but I think are still a year away from being a power in 2A. Limon is coming off a semifinal appearance last year and are looking to advance one more round to compete for a State Championship. Limon is returning plenty of talent with QB Cannan Bennett (960 passing yard & 568 rushing yards) and RB Hauk Hubbard (1322 rushing yards) returning. Limon also has most of their defense returning from last year with 8 of their 11 top tacklers coming back. This will be a good test for both Limon and Lamar. Next week Limon plays Crowley County and that begins a stretch of tough games.
#2 Burlington (0-0)
Burlington had a bye in week 1 and had an extra week to prepare for their first game. Burlington opens the season against #4 Strasburg and this will be the game of the week in Class 1A. Burlington will not have the game experience that Strasburg has but will be well rested and prepared for the game. Burlington is returning plenty of talent from last year’s Quarterfinal appearance. Burlington returns QB Braden Witzel (1047 passing yards & 299 rushing yards) and RB Kaden Meurisse (939 rushing yards). Burlington is going to be dangerous on offense but defensively will have some holes to fill with 6 of their 11 top tacklers graduating. Burlington will need some players to really step up in game #1 to stop a very effective Strasburg team. We will learn quite a bit about both teams after this game.
#3 Centauri (0-0)
Centauri also did not play in week #1. Centauri will open their season on the road against Paonia. Centauri will be hoping to erase the taste in their mouth after coming up just short in the state championship. Centauri offensively should be tough with their core of their offensive line coming back and their leading rusher Taj Cornum (761 rushing yards). Centauri biggest hole offensively will be at QB were they lost their starter from a year ago. Centauri could be turning the reigns over to junior Eric Maez. Centauri defensively should still be a power with 6 of their 11 top tacklers returning and both their leading tacklers Bennie Chacon (130 tackles) and Adam Chacon (100 tackles). Paonia may not be ranked in my poll to open the season but they are ranked in the CHSAANow.com poll and should be a good test for both teams. This is another game that shows how good both Centauri and Paonia will be.
#4 Strasburg (1-0)
Strasburg opened their title defense against 2A University. Strasburg was able to capture the 35-13 victory over University and move to 1-0 on the season. Strasburg has not posted any stats on the game but were able to get valuable game experience to the new faces. Strasburg next opponent is #2 Burlington and this game will be a very good game. I am very excited to see how this game turns out and give us a better look at this Strasburg team.
#5 Yuma (0-0)
Yuma like a lot of teams in the Top 10 did not play a game in week 1. Yuma is the team I think will take a big leap this year and should improve on their 3-6 record last year. Yuma loses just 3 seniors from last year’s team and were contributors mainly on defense. Yuma offensively should be explosive with QB Chase McCreath (1028 rushing yards) and RB Cayden Lynch coming back. Yuma will have to come together as a team though if they truly want to take the next step. Yuma opens their season on the road at Pine Bluffs WY. They play their first Colorado opponent next week against #9 Cornerstone Christian. Yuma will be tested every week.
#6 Wray (0-1)
Wray opened their season last week and opened in an explosive way blasting Highland 41-8. Wray though had to forfeit the game after self-reporting an incident of playing an ineligible player. Wray though showed just how good they are going to be this season. Wray defensively held Highland to just 137 yards of total offense. Wray was led on defense by Emmanuel Huerta (8 tackles) and Cade Hillman (8 tackles). Highland is a solid team and will have to bounce back from this lose. Wray offensively had a solid day from RB Cade Hillman 129 yards rushing and 2 TDs and QB Tyler Collins 83 yards passing and 1 TD. Wray had 5 total rushing touchdowns and their offense will be tough to stop if they can get other running backs to contribute. Wray will be heavily favored in their game next week against Sheridan and will be looking for their first official win.
#7 Crowley County (1-0)
Crowley County opened their 2018 campaign against 2A Ridge View Academy. Crowley County was able to quickly jump out to a 18-0 lead after the first quarter and then expand it to 34 to 6 going into half time. Crowley County was able to cruise to the 40 to 6 victory and move to 1-0. Crowley County offensively was led by QB Adam Schulz (102 yards passing) and RB Tyler Schwartz (135 yards rushing). Crowley County had some holes to fill offensively and it looks like Crowley County may have found some answers. Defensively Crowley County forced 2 turnovers and had 3 sacks in the game. Zach Auchterlonie (10 tackles) and Jaden Harris (9 tackles) led Crowley County in tackles. Crowley County schedules get a big tougher this week against 1-0 Rye. The big challenge for Crowley County will come 9/8 against Limon. Rye will be a good test for Crowley County and see if they can keep the momentum up this week.
#8 Peyton (0-0)
Peyton did not play in week 1 and had an extra week to prepare for Florence. Florence drops from Class 2A down to 1A and picked up their first win as a 1A program beating Rocky Ford 20-6. Florence now will meet up against a power in 1A. Peyton is looking to advance to the playoffs once again but will have some holes on their offensive line to fill and will need to replace their leading rusher. Peyton though will be returning their QB Trevor Walker (690 yards passing) and their #2 and #3 rushers. Peyton defensively will be returning 6 of their 11 top tacklers including their top tackler Nate Mclarty (113 tackles). Peyton offense will be tested by Florence defense and should be a good measuring stick for both teams.
#9 Cornerstone Christian (0-0)
Cornerstone Christian also did not play in week 1 and play Prospect Ridge to open the season. Cornerstone Christian loses 10 seniors from last year’s team and the biggest thing will be getting their team to really mesh this season. Cornerstone Christian reached the playoffs last year and are hoping to be more competitive in the playoffs this year. Cornerstone Christian will have their leader on offense coming back in QB Zach Dube (726 yards passing). Cornerstone Christian will need someone to step up at RB with both their #1 and #2 RB graduating. Defensively Cornerstone Christian loses 6 of their 11 top tacklers and will need someone to step up and lead the defense. Prospect Ridge did open their season with a 12-0 win over Sheridan, but Cornerstone Christian will be the favorite in this game.
#10 Meeker (0-1)
Meeker opened their season against Aspen in week 1. Aspen was able to hold on late and beat Meeker 38 to 26. I thought Aspen may be a bit down this year but after looking more into the game I think Aspen will be a much tougher out than previously thought. Meeker was just not able defensively to slow down the Aspen passing attack. An early season loss is not a bad thing though and could be good motivation for this young Meeker team. Meeker defensively was led by James Amick (9 tackles) and Andy Kracht (8 tackles). Meeker offensively seemed to struggle running the ball and had 134 yards rushing. I am sure this is something Meeker will look to fix this week. The biggest surprise for me was sophomore QB Ryan Phelan in his first ever varsity start. Ryan Phelan threw for 303 yards, 2 TDs, and 0 INTs. He may be a player to really keep your eye on and if he keeps performing like that the offense will all come around. Meeker had a lot of new faces in their first game but game experience will only help this team. The next game for Meeker will be against 2A Coal Ridge. Coal Ridge will be another tough game for Meeker and it will be interesting if they can bounce back.
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