EIGHT-MAN FOOTBALL PREVIEW – WEEK THREE
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
As week three of the regular season rolls around, there is no shortage of quality match-ups across the landscape. League play is still largely two weeks off, but that doesn’t mean that this week’s slate of games isn’t equally important. Five pairings will have unbeaten squads facing off, including two that have both teams inside the top-10 of this week’s MileHigh Prep Report Media Poll.
#1 SIMLA CUBS (2-0) VS #8 SANFORD MUSTANGS (1-0) SATURDAY 1PM
Simla erupted for 32 first quarter points in last week’s 47-0 win over Fowler, with Caston Cox completing 8 of 10 passes in the contest for 112 yards and pair of touchdowns. TJ Eurich ran for two scores and caught a third, and the Cubs’ defense lived up to its end of the bargain, recording six sacks and three takeaways. Sanford opened its schedule with a 52-8 victory over Swink. Simla won last year’s contest 29-8 on the road, with Cox throwing for more than 200 yards and running for triple digits, too. The Mustangs sacked him five times and picked off a pass.
#2 HAXTUN FIGHTIN’ BULLDOGS (1-0) VS #6 HOLLY WILDCATS (1-0) SATURDAY 2PM
Haxtun made the 1200-mile round trip to Concordia (MO) worth every second, as the Fightin’ Bulldogs opened the season with a 74-14 drubbing of St. Paul Lutheran last Saturday. Ryland Wolff ran for 235 yards and four scores, and hit six of seven passes for 106 yards and three more touchdowns. Kailin Kelley led the defense with 13 tackles, and Grant Staatz registered two sacks. That unit held the Saints to 98 rushing yards, 62 on one play. Holly had last week off after beginning the season with a 19-6 win over Dayspring Christian. Andre Salgado threw for 114 yards and ran for 117 in that victory. Rueben Maldonado added 103 yards on the ground. Haxtun has won three of the last five meetings between the programs, including wins of 46-26 in the 2021 semifinals, and 54-8 in last year’s regular season.
#3 DOVE CREEK BULLDOGS (2-0) VS MELROSE (NM) BUFFALOES (2-1) THURSDAY 6PM
Dove Creek’s offense clicked right along last week, as the Bulldogs topped 50 points for the second straight time this season. They had 48 on the board in the first half of the 56-20 win at Plateau Valley. Colten Fury was an efficient 5-7 throwing the ball, while Gage Buffington powered the ground attack with 178 yards and three TD. Taber DeJane added 113 rushing yards. Melrose bounced back from a 58-28 loss to Mancos to blank Magdalena (NM) 54-0 last week. Buffington ran for 96 yards and three scores in last year’s 64-34 win over the Buffaloes.
#4 MANCOS BLUEJAYS (2-0) VS MERINO RAMS (1-1) SATURDAY 1PM IN FAIRPLAY
For the first time this season, Mancos will play an in-state opponent after blasting Melrose (NM) and Monticello (UT) in back to back weeks. Levi Martin and Kail Wayman combined for 318 yards and six touchdowns on just 12 carries in last week’s 64-20 victory. Wayman also added 113 yards and two passing TD. Merino saw McClave engineer a go-ahead TD drive in the fourth quarter last week, and the Rams had their chance to tie it back up end with an interception as they fell 16-8 in a defensive slugfest. Mancos has a 4-1 mark against the Rams, with the Bluejays winning all four regular season clashes, the last two by scores of 49-8 and 46-6. Merino’s lone win in the series came during the 2018 postseason.
#5 LYONS LIONS (2-0) VS VAIL CHRISTIAN SAINTS (1-0) FRIDAY 7PM
Lyons posted its second straight shutout to begin the season, 46-0 at Las Animas, with the defense and special teams each contributing a touchdown in the contest. Miles Dumbauld scored on a pick-six to go along with two rushing TD, and Finn Oetting housed a punt return. Malik Sigg-Brown also had a pair of scores on the ground for the Lions. The Saints had their bye last week, and will be fresh after putting a 46-0 shutout on the board over Dolores Huerta Prep in week one. Asher Morris had 258 yards from scrimmage in that contest, with a pair of touchdown tosses. Vail Christian won the first meeting in the series, 50-20 two years ago, and Lyons evened things with a 30-8 victory last year.
#7 BYERS BULLDOGS (2-0) AT DAYSPRING CHRISTIAN EAGLES (0-1) SATURDAY 1PM
Chase Long connected on 11 of 15 passes for 270 yards and four touchdowns and Kaleb Willoughby added 123 yards and two scores in the rushing game as Byers ran past Crowley County 42-8 last week. Long hooked up seven times with AJ Engle for 225 yards and three touchdowns, helping the Bulldogs to a rare 2-0 start. Dayspring Christian had its bye last week, and the Eagles will look to earn their initial win of the season at home after their 19-6 loss to Holly in week one. They ran for close to 200 yards in that loss, but the offense was stung by five interceptions.
#9 MCCLAVE CARDINALS (2-0) BYE WEEK
The Cardinals ride a two-game winning streak into their bye, following the late game heroics last week. They will return to action next Saturday at Vail Christian.
#10 AKRON RAMS (1-1) VS FOWLER GRIZZLIES (0-2) FRIDAY 7PM
Ryan McCaffrey threw touchdown passes to Wesley Couch and Brandon Hellyer, and added another score on the ground in Akron’s 43-8 win at St. Mary’s last weekend. Anderson Filla piled up 142 yards and three touchdowns on just six carries, as the Rams improved to 1-1 on the year. Jakzon Livesay recorded three of the team’s six sacks. Fowler was held to just 59 yards of offense in the 47-0 loss to Simla. Harrison Proctor led the Grizzlies with 14 tackles and a forced fumble, while Dominic Armijo had the fumble recovery. Akron won five straight in the series before Fowler put together a three-game winning streak. The Rams have won the last two by a combined tally of 91-8.
BELLEVIEW CHRISTIAN BRUINS (2-0) VS WEST GRAND MUSTANGS (2-0) FRIDAY 4PM
The weekend’s biggest game outside of the top-ten has Belleview Christian hosting West Grand. The Bruins got off to a 13-0 first quarter lead last week, but trailed South Park 16-13 at the half. They scored in the fourth to grab the 21-16 victory. Collin Polson threw for 182 yards and two touchdowns, including a 99-yarder to Jagga Sandhu, who finished with two grabs for 151 yards and two TD. A third quarter touchdown by West Grand proved to be the difference in a 30-22 victory over Calhan last week. The teams were knotted at 14 at the half, and each team scored once in the fourth, but the Bulldogs were unable to match that third quarter strike. Blake Terryberry threw for 176 yards and two scores, and added 143 yards and two on the ground. The Mustangs had 551 yards of offense in last year’s 50-0 win over the Bruins.
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