Class 2A Football Preview-Quarterfinal Round
By: Anthony Garcia
Playoff Football is upon us. In typical Class 2A fashion we saw three upsets in the opening round of the Class 2A Playoffs. With the three upsets I wouldn’t be surprised to see at least one more in the Quarterfinals. We have four great games on tap and look forward to another great weekend of Football. Good Luck to all teams.
#1 Strasburg at #9 Wellington, Saturday 11/16 @1pm
Strasburg opened the 2024 state playoffs with a bang defeating Denver West 41 to 0. Strasburg was methodical in the game, scoring points in every quarter and getting the mercy rule going by the 4th Quarter. Defensively Strasburg played great holding Denver West to just 88 yards of total offense. Jorge Parra, Damian Garcia, and Ethan Freeman lead Strasburg in tackling with 7 apiece. Strasburg also forced 1 turnover in an INT by Ayden Dodge. Offensively Strasburg found plenty of success racking up 340 yards of total offense. QB Brody Hopwood had a solid day throwing for 126 yards and 2 TDs. RB Ayden Dodge led the rushing attack with 154 yards and 1 TD while RB Jorge Parra ran for 3 TDs in the game.
Wellington advanced into the Quarterfinals with a hard fought, physical contest against Delta. Wellington held on to defeat Delta 27 to 23 to advance. Wellington defensively played well holding a good offensive team to just 23 points while also forcing 2 INTs by Cash Altschwager. Teagen Greiman led all tacklers for Wellington with 9 tackles and 3 TFL and Tanner Gray was the #2 tackler with 8 tackles and 3 TFL. Offensively Wellington was able to establish the run and racked up 424 yards of total offense. RB Cash Altschwager had a huge day rushing for 220 yards and 2 TDs. QB Tanner Gray also was productive throwing for 45 yards, rushing for 118 yards, and 1 TD.
Series: These two teams have not meet during the MaxPreps Era.
#5 Lamar at #13 Eaton, Saturday 11/16 at 1pm
Lamar opened the 2024 State Playoffs with a 14 to 7 defensive slugfest over Alamosa. Lamar had a outstanding day defensively holding Alamosa to just 7 points while also forcing 4 turnovers in the game. Cason Pollart, Cael Buxton, and Axton Morales all had a INT and Buxton also had a fumble recovery. Diego Estrada led all tacklers for the Thuner with 16. Offensively Lamar did just enough, scoring a pair of TDs. Lamar had just 220 yards of total offense. QB Jacob Dunning had a decent day throwing for 170 yards, 2 TDs, and 2 INT. WR Cason Pollart stepped up big for Alamosa with 66 yards receiving and WR Cael Buxton had 44 yards and 2 TDs.
Eaton moved into the Quarterfinals with a 21 to 13 upset of #4 Elizabeth. Eaton took the early lead on Elizabeth 7 to 0 but Elizabeth struck back to tie things up. Eaton would take the 14 to 7 lead into halftime and neither team would get anything going in the 3rd quarter. Elizabeth got the offense going early in the 4th quarter but missed the PAT to trail Eaton 14 to 13. Eaton would then hit a long pass with around 10 minutes left and score the TD. Eaton would then lean on their defense to close things out and grab the win.
Series: These two teams have met 5 times during the MaxPreps Era. Eaton leads the series 4 to 1 with their last meeting coming in 2020 in the state championship and Eaton winning that game 28 to 21.
#2 Basalt at #10 Sterling, Saturday 11/16 @1pm
Basalt moved into the quarterfinals with a dominate showing against The Academy 42 to 14. Basalt used a big 21-point second quarter to pull away from The Academy. Offensively Basalt racked up 536 yards of total offense. RB Will Tarallo had a huge day with 186 yards and 2 TDs and RB Will Daniel also had a solid day with 159 yards and 1 TD. QB Karson Schneider had a solid day throwing for 119 yards and 2 TDs. Defensively Basalt had a solid day, forcing 5 turnovers. Taylor Hays had a pair of INTs while Dylan Ferreira had an INT and a Fumble recovery. Will Daniel led the Longhorns defense with 15 tackles in the game.
Sterling advanced into the Quarterfinals with a thrilling 33 to 31 win over Woodland Park. The difference was outscoring Woodland Park 12 to 10 in the first half. Sterling offensively had a huge day racking up 495 yards of total offense. QB Hunter Diamond had another big day passing for 260 yards, 1 passing TD, 95 yards rushing, and 3 rushing TDs. RB Ayden Gandee lead the rushing attack with 102 yards and WR Hunter Hershfeldt lead all receivers with 144 yards. Defensively Sterling gave up some yards to Woodland Park but made a key stop when it mattered. Ayden Gandee lead all tacklers with 9 while Braydon Evans and Aidan Kiser had 8 tackles apiece.
Series: These two teams have not faced each other during the MaxPreps Era.
#3 Classical Academy vs #6 Berthoud, Saturday 11/16 at 1pm
The Classical Academy made quick work in the opening round to advance to the Quarterfinals defeating Pagosa Springs 49 to 7. Offensively TCA had 369 yards of total offense. QB Andrew Brown was perfect going 8 for 8 for 161 yards and 2 TDs. RB Riley Romine led the rushing attack with 50 yards rushing and 2 TDs and WR JD Packard led all receivers with 60 yards. Defensively TCA was dominate holding Pagosa Springs to just 88 yards of total offense. TCA forced 3 INTS with Elijah Wright taking one to the house for a defensive TD. Hayden Gustafson led all Titans with 6 tackles while Alex Gould and Grant Keeton pitched in another 5.
Berthoud moved into the Quarterfinals defeating Montezuma-Cortez 42 to 12. Defensively this was a team effort that turned into 2 INTs and 3 sacks in the game. Elisha Mosher was the defensive leader with 14 tackles, 4 TFL, and 2.5 sacks. Ethan Hofmeister was also a big part of the defense with 10 tackles, 3.5 TFL and .5 sacks. Offensively Berthoud had a solid day racking up 317 yards of total offense. QB Skyler Streicher continues to play well passing for 178 yards and 4 TDs. RB Ethan Hofmeister lead all rushers with 45 yards and 1 TD and WR Jayden Michaelis lead all receivers with 82 yards and 2 TDs.
Series: These two teams have not faced each other in the MaxPrep Era.
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