EIGHT-MAN FOOTBALL PREVIEW – WEEK EIGHT
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
With two more weeks of games after this weekend, it’s not likely that any league champions are crowned this weekend, but there are a few that could be decided if the right chain of events happen. Also, several teams can put themselves in the driver’s seat this week. There are a ton of key match-ups across the state, and we’ll take a look at them. All rankings are from the Friday morning numbers in the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index.
#1 SIMLA CUBS (6-0, 1-0 BLACK FOREST) AT #21 ELBERT BULLDOGS (5-2, 2-1 BLACK FOREST) FRIDAY 7PM
Simla is the only team in the Black Forest without a league loss, and a win over Elbert would give the Cubs victories over their top two challengers. However, St. Mary’s could still factor in the race, if the Pirates beat South Park on Friday. The Cubs are coming off their bye after blanking Calhan 47-0 the week prior. Caston Cox tossed three TD passes in that win, two of them to Brent Bowker. Wyatt Stanko ran for a TD and scored again on a kick return, giving Simla its third non-offensive touchdown of the season. Elbert got five passing touchdowns and a rushing score from Logan LaFollette in a 68-14 win over St. Mary’s last week. LaFollette racked up 389 yards through the air and 103 on the ground. Ethan Tesman hauled in eight passes for 188 yards and three scores, while Eli Cornell caught four balls for 146 yards and two TD. Tesman also reached the end zone on a pick-six, while Caleb Cornell scored on a fumble recovery. Simla won the last two meetings with the Bulldogs by a combined tally of 104-26.
#2 MANCOS BLUEJAYS (5-1, 2-0 MOUNTAIN) VS #36 DOLORES BEARS (2-4, 0-1) FRIDAY 7PM
A win by Mancos puts the Bluejays on the precipice of winning the Mountain division, and they could grab that automatic berth into the postseason if Sargent beats Sanford. The Bluejays put themselves in this position by beating Dove Creek 58-14 last week. Kail Wayman ran for 227 yards and three scores and threw three more touchdowns to Kaiden Wyatt. Levi Martin added 118 yards and two rushing TD. Chris Medina had a team-high 13 tackles to go with two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries, and Cole Dainty-Guilfoyle added three sacks. Dolores suffered a fourth straight loss, 42-12, against Sargent last week. The Bears have not scored more than 12 points in a game since week two. Mancos beat the Bears 64-0 last year.
#3 HAXTUN FIGHTIN’ BULLDOGS (6-0, 2-0 PLAINS) AT #24 DAYSPRING CHRISTIAN EAGLES (1-5, 0-2 PLAINS) SATURDAY 1PM
Haxtun shares the lead in the Plains with Sedgwick County and those two won’t meet until the final weekend of the regular season. A win on Saturday keeps the Fightin’ Bulldogs on track to make that contest be for the league championship. They hammered Caliche 68-0 last week, recording their third straight shutout. Ryland Wolff ran for more than 100 yards and two touchdowns, threw for more than 100 yards with two more touchdowns, and had an interception on defense. Grant Statz picked up two more sacks, giving him eight on the season, putting him third in the classification. Dayspring Christian suffered a second straight defeat last week, falling 34-20 to Akron at home. Freshman Owen Steward completed 18 of 23 attempts for 244 yards and a TD, while Elijah Fusco ran for 148 yards. Jackson Steward (8) and Caleb Kayl (7) combined for 15 receptions. Haxtun has won three straight in the series, winning 54-12 last year.
#4 LYONS LIONS (7-0, 3-0 CENTRAL) BEAT #40 GILPIN COUNTY EAGLES (0-7, 0-3 CENTRAL) 62-0 ON THURSDAY
Lyons put up 34 first quarter points on Thursday night, with Miles Dumbauld hitting Cooper Ucker three times for scores, while also returning an interception for a TD. Malik Sigg-Brown’s second rushing touchdown of the first half put the sportsmanship clock into motion with around 10 minutes to go. Dumbauld threw one more TD before the intermission, connecting this time with Keenan Young. The win keeps Lyons tied with Front Range Christian for the lead in the Central. They play next week.
#5 SEDGWICK COUNTY COUGARS (4-2, 2-0 PLAINS) AT #10 AKRON RAMS (4-2, 1-1 PLAINS) FRIDAY 7PM
Sedgwick County finds itself tied atop the Plains division with Haxtun and most likely needing to add to its two-game winning streak to keep pace with the Fightin’ Bulldogs. The Cougars got out to a 16-6 halftime lead over Merino last week and pushed their advantage to 32-6 early in the fourth before things got interesting. Merino scored twice in the final minute to get to within 38-28, but could not recover a second onside kick and the Cougars walked away with that 10-point victory. Akron got a monster effort from Anderson Filla in its win over Dayspring Christian last week, as the junior ran for 259 yards and three scores, caught a TD pass, and intercepted another pass. Brandon Hellyer added a touchdown on the ground for the Rams. Wesley Couch led the defense with 17 tackles, while Jakzon Livesay and Caleb Poss combined for three sacks, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries. Akron broke a nine-game losing streak against the Cougars with a 38-0 victory last year, with Filla running for 188 yards and three touchdowns.
#6 DOVE CREEK BULLDOGS (5-2, 1-1 MOUNTAIN) BYE WEEK
The bye week for Dove Creek came at a good time, as the Bulldogs look to bounce back from last week’s loss to Mancos. Colten Fury ran for 77 yards and two touchdowns, accounting for both scores for the Bulldogs in the defeat. He and Aiden Chadd both forced a fumble, but the Bluejays were able to recover both. The defense struggled with the running game of Mancos, giving up 352 yards. The Bulldogs will return to action next Thursday at Dolores.
#7 WEST GRAND MUSTANGS (6-0, 2-0 NORTHWEST) VS #27 HAYDEN TIGERS (2-4, 1-2 NORTHWEST) FRIDAY 7PM
West Grand enters the weekend one game behind Vail Christian in the Northwest division, with both teams unbeaten in league play. They will meet next week, with the league title likely on the line. The Mustangs kept pace by beating Rangely 36-6 last week. Evan Crandall ran for 124 yards and a TD, and also tallied a game-high 18 tackles. Blake Terryberry registered two rushing scores, one receiving, and one passing. Jackson Steinle added 15 tackles, as well as a receiving TD. After starting the season 2-0, Hayden has dropped its last four games. The Tigers fell 58-30 last week at Vail Christian. The Saints blew things open with a 36-8 second quarter. Cam Campbell ran for 105 yards and three touchdowns, and Grady Frentress added a receiving TD. West Grand won a second straight in the series last year, beating the Tigers 54-24. Joe Probst had two touchdowns for the Mustangs in that win, one on a reception and the other on a kick return.
#8 SANFORD MUSTANGS (4-2, 0-1 MOUNTAIN) AT #20 SARGENT FARMERS (4-2, 2-1 MOUNTAIN) FRIDAY 6PM
Sanford still has the bulk of its league schedule to play, but a loss to Sargent makes the Mustangs rely on an at large berth into the postseason. The Mustangs bounced back from their two-point loss to Dove Creek by thumping Norwood 52-14 in a non-league tilt last week. A week after having to forfeit to Mancos, Sargent got back on track with a 42-12 victory at Dolores last week. The Farmers have not won consecutive games since starting the season 2-0. Sanford has won four straight over Sargent, outscoring the Farmers 227-0 in that stretch.
#9 BYERS BULLDOGS (5-1, 1-1 CENTRAL) VS #31 BELLEVIEW CHRISTIAN BRUINS (3-3, 1-1 CENTRAL) FRIDAY 7PM
So much rides on the line for the two teams in this contest. Byers needs a win and would need to beat Justice next week and Front Range Christian in the regular season finale, plus a Front Range Christian win over Lyons, to create a three-way tie for the Central title. A similar story is in play for the Bruins, who would need to win all three of their remaining games, including the finale against Lyons, and get a Lyons win over Front Range Christian next week to create their own three-way tie for the league title. Byers drilled Gilpin County 62-0 last week, with Chase Long going 5-5 for 179 yards and three scores, all to AJ Engle. Kaleb Willoughby ran for 114 yards and two TD. Belleview Christian fell 59-18 to Front Range Christian last week, sending the Bruins to their third loss in the last four outings. Collin Polson threw for 209 yards and two touchdowns, with Jagga Sandhu hauling in eight balls for 188 yard and both scores. The running game never got going, as the Bruins were held to 33 yards on 17 carries. Long, Engle, and Willoughby combined to lead Byers to a 52-0 win last year over Belleview Christian in the first meeting between the programs.
#11 MCCLAVE CARDINALS (4-2, 2-0 ARK VALLEY) VS #17 HOLLY WILDCATS (4-2, 2-0 ARK VALLEY) FRIDAY 7PM
While the winner of this contest won’t officially claim the Ark Valley title this weekend, they will need just one more victory to earn that crown. For Holly, a win might be the only way into the postseason, as they will most likely need to climb up to at least 15th in the Seeding Index to gain an at large berth, if they are not the league champion. Mason Barr caught one of Ethan Bronniman’s four TD passes and had a punt return for a score in McClave’s 59-0 win over Las Animas last week. Barr also picked off a pair of passes, giving him a classification leading six interceptions on the season. Devin Eaton threw for two scores and ran for two more, while Andre Salgado rushed for 110 yards and two TD in Holly’s 46-12 victory over Springfield. Dylan Tamayo piled up 15 tackles. Last year’s 44-26 win for the Wildcats was their seventh straight over McClave. Salgado was responsible for five TD passes in that victory.
#12 CALHAN BULLDOGS (5-2, 2-1 BLACK FOREST) BYE WEEK
Calhan’s bye week comes after the Bulldogs drilled South Park 60-0 last Saturday. They allowed a total of 162 yards in the game, with 56 coming on one play. The Bulldog defense also picked off three passes and recovered a pair of fumbles in the victory. Calhan will wrap up its regular season next Friday against St. Mary’s.
#13 VAIL CHRISTIAN SAINTS (5-2, 3-0 NORTHWEST) BEAT #39 SOROCO RAMS (1-6, 0-3 NORTHWEST) 67-14 ON THURSDAY
The Saints rolled early on Thursday night, putting up 36 first quarter points, and had the running clock started early in the second after Owen Koontz hit Will Neumann for a 59-yard touchdown. They led 52-0 at the half and cruised to the 67-14 victory to remain unbeaten in Northwest division play. Vail Christian hosts West Grand next Friday with the league title up for grabs.
#14 MERINO RAMS (2-4, 1-1 PLAINS) VS #23 CALICHE BUFFS (1-5, 0-2 PLAINS) FRIDAY 7:30PM
Merino is hanging onto one of the final at large spots for the postseason bracket after last week’s 38-28 loss to Sedgwick County. Caliche is coming off back-to-back blowout losses to Sedgwick County and Haxtun in which the Buffs were outscored 114-0. The Rams have won four consecutive against Caliche and seven of the last eight in the series.
#15 FRONT RANGE CHRISTIAN FALCONS (6-1, 3-0 CENTRAL) BEAT #36 JUSTICE PHOENIX (1-6, 0-3 CENTRAL) 79-26 ON THURSDAY
Front Range Christian stayed unbeaten in the Central with Thursday’s 79-26 win over Justice. The Falcons have outscored their first three league opponents by a tally of 204-50. They will take a six-game winning streak into next Friday’s possible league championship game against Lyons.
#16 HOEHNE FARMERS (3-3, 1-1 SIX COUNTY) AT #22 FOWLER GRIZZLIES (2-4, 2-0 SIX COUNTY) SATURDAY 1PM
Hoehne could create a possible three-way tie for the Six County title with a win this week and the next two, plus a Fowler victory over Walsenburg next week. That may be the only way into the postseason for the Farmers. Fowler is not close to earning an at large berth, but the Grizzlies could “steal” one of those spots away from whomever finishes in the 16th spot in the Seeding Index at the end of the season by winning the league title. Hoehne dug a 28-0 first quarter hole last week against Walsenburg and fell 64-36. Jake Magninat ran for two scores, despite having negative yardage on the ground, and also threw another TD pass in the loss. Levon Bachicha caught a TD and topped the century mark in the ground attack, going for 128 yards. He also had a 74-yard kick return for a score. Gage Gottbehuet was 6-6 passing for 150 yards and three scores as Fowler rolled past Custer County 47-0 last week. Cael True ran for one TD and caught another, while Brock True had a receiving TD and an interception. Fowler has won three straight meetings with the Farmers, but Hoehne has dominated the series, winning 13 of the last 17.
#18 WALSENBURG PANTHERS (4-2, 2-0 SIX COUNTY) VS #35 DOLORES HUERTA PREP SCORPIONS (1-5, 0-2) SATURDAY 1PM
Walsenburg will likely need to win the Six County crown to get into the postseason, with the Panthers sitting two spots out of the top-16 of the Seeding Index. A win on Saturday sets up a potential division title contest next Friday against Fowler. Elton Chavez threw for five touchdowns and ran for another, while Giovanni Aldretti (4) and Nino Cisneros (2) combined for six TD catches in last week’s 64-36 victory over Hoehne. Chavez added a pick-six, and Adrian Vallejos had a pick-six and a scoop and score. Dolores Huerta Prep has lost three straight games, with the most recent being a 62-22 defeat by Crowley County. The Scorpions gave up 462 yards of offense and lost a pair of fumbles in that loss, and their special teams allowed a punt return for a touchdown. Walsenburg won last year’s meeting by a 38-22 count, with Chavez having a hand in four touchdowns.
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