EIGHT-MAN FOOTBALL REPORT – OPENING ROUND
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
All eight opening round games in the eight-man bracket take place on Saturday, and the winners will advance to next week’s quarterfinals. Both of last year’s finalists, Haxtun and Akron, are in the field and on opposite ends of the bracket, but there are plenty of challengers looking to prevent a rematch this year.
All games are listed in bracket order.
#1 AKRON (9-0) VS #16 CROWLEY COUNTY (6-3) 1PM
Last week… Akron finished up an unbeaten regular season by beating Merino 54-14. Kolten Randel completed nine of 11 passes for 177 yards and two scores, and also added a rushing touchdown for the Rams. Mason Porteus and Jakzon Livesay each had a receiving TD, and Livesay tacked on one rushing. It was Jace Curtis powering the running attack, racking up 112 yards and three touchdowns on just nine carries. Livesay led the defense with 13 tackles, and Curtis added nine. Randel tallied a pick and fumble recovery, while Trent Kautz also had an interception. Crowley County locked up the championship in the Six-County with a 52-38 win over Fowler. The victory, the sixth in a row for the Chargers, got them the final spot in the playoff field. Derreck Buford completed all ten of his passes for 227 yards and two scores, one apiece to Tritt Buhr and Caylieb Ditchen. Buford also contributed a rushing TD and one on a kick return. Levi Gibson continued his strong freshman season by running for 197 yards and three touchdowns. Cooper Salzbrenner led the defense with 18 tackles, and he was followed by Donaven Bell with 13. Bell added two sacks and a fumble recovery.
Series history… Akron leads 1-0 in the MaxPreps era, with that victory coming in 2020.
#8 WEST GRAND (8-1) VS #9 MANCOS (6-3) 1PM
Last week… West Grand won its eighth straight, beating Hayden 48-32 in the Northwest division. Landon Lockhart had a big game on the ground for the Mustangs, racing for 233 yards and three touchdowns, while Blake Terryberry added two rushing touchdowns and one passing. Sanjay Geffers was on the receiving end of the scoring strike. Ruben Hatcher stacked up a game-high 18 tackles, and John Butler added 14. Mancos used a 48-6 win over Sargent to not only end a two-game slide, but also to enter the postseason on a high note. Michael Resner ran for 128 yards and a TD, and also threw a pair of touchdowns, both to Traycer White, while Jonah Ritter had 126 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. Levi Gardner and James Potts had nine tackles apiece to lead the Bluejay defense. White chipped in an interception.
Series history… This is the first meeting between the two programs in the MaxPreps era.
#4 SANFORD (8-1) VS #13 LAS ANIMAS (7-2) 1PM
Last week… Sanford notched its sixth win in a row, as the Mustangs downed Dove Creek 54-14. Trason Gartrell featured prominently in the ground attack, racking up 178 yards and five touchdowns, while also tossing a TD to Rylan Mortensen. He was aided in the backfield by JD Faucette, who finished with 146 yards and two scores. Mortensen tied for game-high honors with a dozen tackles. Colton Reynolds and Colter Canty had six apiece. Las Animas wrapped up the regular season with a 62-0 rout of Swink, sending the Trojans into the postseason with back-to-back victories. Orion Martinez ran for 218 yards and one of the team’s four touchdowns on the ground. Logan Servaes, Josiah Martinez, and Josiah Avila each added one. Sam Deatherage caught one from Dustin Clark. The Trojans scored three touchdowns on defense, with Gio Chavez and Cyler Jagers each having a pick-six, and Bryce Dupree getting a scoop-and-score. Jerome Ethridge added an interception, and J. Martinez had a fumble recovery.
Series history… The two programs have not played an eight-man game against each other.
#5 DAYSPRING CHRISTIAN (6-3) VS #12 BYERS (7-2) 1PM
Last week… The Eagles finished the regular season with two straight losses, as they dropped the finale to Haxtun in week nine, 30-6. Hawkins Flanagan hooked up with Max Krehbiel for the lone DCA touchdown. Those two connected twice for 101 yards, including an 80-yard completion. Elijah Martin racked up 31 tackles, 20 of them solo. Flanagan added 18. Four others had at least 10. Byers, the champion of the Black Forest, bounced back from a week nine loss to Calhan, to close out with a win by defeating St. Mary’s 56-14. The Bulldogs trailed 14-8 after one, but threw a shutout the rest of the way. James Maes tossed six scoring passes, three to Benjamin McPherson, two to Caleb Eastwood, and one to Gabe Price. McPherson added close to 100 yards on the ground, and Parker Ebert had a rushing TD. Millio Guerue, George Wyatt Earl, and McPherson all had an interception, and Eastwood scored on a kick return.
Series history… Dayspring Christian leads 4-1. All of the previous meetings were in the regular season.
#3 MCCLA VE (9-0) VS #14 ELBERT (6-3)
Previous meeting… These two hooked up in week one and put on a show. McClave eked out a 46-38 win at home, with Drew Howe running for 147 yards and two scores, and Ryan Steinbrunn adding 100 yards. Cope Meston had a pair of rushing scores, as the Cardinals picked up the win without the services of Mason Barr. Tuff Kelley helped out by catching a TD from Howe. Meston led the defense with 13 tackles, and Jr. Mungaray added 12. Steinbrunn picked off two passes and returned a kick for a touchdown, while Kelley added an interception. Ethan Tesman threw for 192 yards and two scores to lead the Bulldogs. He also tallied 120 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. Eli Cornell and Sam Cornell had a receiving TD apiece. E. Cornell caught six passes, while S. Cornell and Cole Nay each caught five. Hunter Neville lead the Elbert defense with 13 tackles, and Kaleb Morano followed with 12.
Series history… With the win earlier this season, McClave owns a 3-1 advantage in the MaxPreps era. All four meetings were in the regular season.
#6 NORWOOD (7-2) VS #11 SIMLA (6-3) 1PM
Last week… Norwood won its fourth straight, all in Mountain division play, to finish second in the league. The Mavericks outscored Dolores 46-25 to get the victory. Brycen Rummel threw for 232 yards and four touchdowns, two to Cole Bray, and one apiece to Daniel Zunich and Porter Black. Bray also had a rushing touchdown, as did Owen Tackett, who finished with more than 120 yards on the ground. Bray and Keegan Tackett led the defense with 11 and nine tackles, respectively. Simla finished the regular season with three consecutive wins, as the Bear Cubs took out South Park 64-0. They scored five times on the ground, with Ethan Kissam taking two to paydirt, while Hayden Pfost, Ayden Lally, and Bodie Glover each scored once. Simla’s defense also got on the board three times, getting pick-sixes from Tatum Kochera and Conner Maranville, and a scoop-and-score from Logan Rayfield.
Series history… Simla leads 1-0, with the only other meeting during the MaxPreps era coming in the 2014 postseason.
#7 SEDGWICK COUNTY (4-4) VS #10 CLEAR CREEK (9-0) 2PM
Last week… The fourth place finisher in the Plains, Sedgwick County lost its final two regular season games, the latter to Haxtun 52-8. The Cougars trailed 30-0 after one and 46-8 at the half. Owen Harrishad the lone touchdown for SedgCo, racing for an 80-yard TD. Clear Creek completed its unbeaten regular season by rolling Front Range Christian 61-14. Jacob Young ran for 161 yards and two scores, and added 138 yards and two more touchdowns through the air. Donovan Miller and Merrell Harvey each caught a touchdown pass, and Skyler Clark added 100 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Nathan Guerrero had a team-high 15 tackles for the Golddiggers, and Harvey added 11. Young tacked on three sacks and a 50-yard scoop-and-score, while Miller notched two interceptions, one of which went to the house.
Series history… This is the first meeting between the two programs.
#2 HAXTUN (8-1) VS #15 PLATEAU V ALLEY (7-2) 1PM
Last week… Zach Statz rumbled for 145 yards and three touchdowns in Haxtun’s 52-8 win over Sedgwick County. Grant Firme and Colin Cone added a rushing TD apiece, and Cone hit Chase Goddard for a 45-yard scoring strike. Goddard also reached the end zone with a recovered fumble. Seth Seger also had a fumble recovery, while Cone picked off a pass to help the Fightin’ Bulldog defense. Plateau Valley won its final three games of the regular season, capping off the slate with a 63-0 blanking of Soroco. Colter Ralston completed six passes, with five ending up in the end zone. Maliq Bogan caught two, while Hunter White, Kooper Jenkins, London Mitchell, and Riley Junge each had one TD reception. White also had one of the three rushing touchdowns by the Cowboys, with Avery Smith and Gabriel Gutierrez-Gleason each having one of the other two. Austin Grundy had a team-leading 11 tackles, while Jenkins added nine. Ralston had two sacks and a fumble recovery, and Jenkins and Junge also recovered a fumble apiece.
Series history… Haxtun leads 1-0 in the MaxPreps era, with that meeting coming back in 2007
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