EIGHT-MAN FOOTBALL REPORT – WEEK TEN
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
The final weekend of the regular season is here and there is a lot to be determined. Three leagues are still up for grabs, with each guaranteeing its champion a spot in the 16-team playoff bracket. All rankings are from the CHSAA numbers released earlier in the week.
THURSDAY
#16 CENTER (8-0) VS #19 HOEHNE (4-4)
The title in the Big 6 Southern will go to the winner of this contest, and it will likely be the only postseason bid for the league. Center remained unbeaten with a 28-22 win over Sierra Grande last week. The Vikings led 28-14 going into the fourth and held on for the victory. Jaiden Martinez ran for 128 yards and a touchdown, and also caught a 19-yard TD from Devan Garcia, who added 90 rushing yards and a touchdown. Martinez secured a fumble recovery on defense, as did Javier Quintana. Hoehne righted the ship after starting 0-4, posting its fourth straight win last week, as the Farmers beat County Line (Sargent/Sangre de Cristo) 36-20. Brody Silvey piled up 284 yards and three TD on the ground, and Marcus Dasko added an 18-yard scoring pass to Bracyn Seeders for the Farmers. Seeders and Alec Baca had 12 tackles apiece for the defense, and Antonio Cantoria tacked on a fumble recovery for a TD. This is the first contest between Center and Hoehne in eight-man. The programs last played in 2005.
FRIDAY
#1 MCCLAVE (8-0) AT AT SPRINGFIELD (2-6)
With wins over #8 Fowler and #11 Las Animas already in the bank, McClave has the Arkansas Valley title locked up. The Cardinals scored 44 first quarter points in a 60-2 victory over Rocky Ford. Drew Howe, Josh Arellano, and Cash Phares scored two rushing touchdowns apiece, and Howe threw one to Phares. Izaiah Mata and Remington Graves had seven tackles each, and Ryan Steinbrunn added a pick-six. Springfield came up just short of collecting its second league victory, falling 28-26 at Holly last week. Coltin Woodhouse racked up 207 yards and four touchdowns on 36 carries, and Landon Spires added 92 yards. Darren Anderson recorded 10 tackles, and Kagen Schroder tallied nine. McClave has won six straight match-ups with Springfield, squaring the series at 10 wins each since 2004.
#2 SIMLA (8-0) VS MONUMENT ACADEMY (0-8)
Simla has already secured the Black Forest title, but can complete a perfect regular season with a win this week. The Cubs got 316 yards and four touchdown passes from Evan Guy in last week’s 44-14 victory at #14 Crowley County. Tatum Kochera caught seven passes for 148 yards and three scores, and Keygon Frihauf pulled in eight for 119 yards and one TD. Ethan Kissam ran for 124 yards and a touchdown. Dacin Watts registered five sacks, while Kissam and Ty Stanko added two apiece. With last week’s 68-0 loss to Calhan, Monument Academy has been outscored 528-24 in its first year as a program.
#3 WEST GRAND (8-0) AT RANGELY (3-5)
West Grand has the Western Slope title sewn up, and the Mustangs are coming off their bye. Two weeks ago, the Mustangs beat Soroco 58-8, with Landon Lockhart throwing 173 yards and four touchdowns, and also running for 109 yards and two more scores. Walker Howell caught two TD passes, and Sanjay Geffers and Ruben Hatcher had one apiece. Howell also showed off his hands on defense with an interception. Rangely suffered its third straight loss, falling to #12 Vail Christian 56-26 last week. West Grand has won four in a row against the Panthers, and is 14-4 in the series since 2004.
#4 SEDGWICK COUNTY (6-1) VS #9 AKRON (6-2)
Both of these teams know that they’ll be in the bracket, but the winner will be the Plains champion, and locks up a first round home game. Sedgwick County rode a strong running attack to a 48-6 win over Merino last week, with Owen Harris rushing for 121 yards and three scores, and Wyatt Mason (68 yards) and Leighton Glende (60 yards) combining for 128 yards. Both had a TD, Glende added a TD pass to Noah Harens. Mason also had an interception. Akron ran for just short of 400 yards in its 64-26 victory over Clear Creek. Jefferson Hunt accounted for 247 yards and two touchdowns, while Jax Kusel recorded 78 with three TD. Kusel added 223 yards and four touchdowns through the air. Hunt caught two for 100 yards, with both going for scores. Trent Kautz and Mason McCoy each caught one TD. Hunt (14) and Kautz (11) combined for 25 tackles. Akron’s won the last five match-ups with SedgCo, but it’s the Cougars who hold a 9-8 edge in the series.
#5 NORWOOD (7-1) AT #13 SANFORD (4-4)
Norwood can claim the Mountain championship with a win this week, and also lock up a first round home game in the process. The Mavericks got their second consecutive one score victory last week, as they held on for a 22-19 win over #17 Dolores. Keegan Tackett ran for two touchdowns, and Austin Garvey caught a TD from Jackson McCabe in the victory. Colton Kepley paced the defense with 13 tackles, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries. Jace Bonacquista added an interception. A win by Sanford this week could create a three-way tie atop the league, including #7 Mancos. The Mustangs are back in league play after stepping out last week and taking a 46-8 loss to Fowler. Sanford has won six in a row in the series with Norwood, with the last win by the Mavs coming in 2017.
#6 HAYDEN (7-1) AT #18 PLATEAU VALLEY (4-4)
Hayden is looking to secure second place in the Western Slope behind West Grand, and can do so with a victory this week. The Tigers would also guarantee themselves a first round home game. They took care of business last week with a 51-6 win over Soroco, as Peyton Johnson ran for 147 yards and three touchdowns, and passed for 108 yards and two more scores. Jarrett Davis and Carson Campbell had a TD reception apiece, and Noah Weber added two rushing touchdowns. Rodney Ramos DeJesus led the defense with eight tackles. Plateau Valley rolled past Lake County 48-12 last week, with Rhett Junge firing a pair of touchdown passes to Aiden Azcarraga. Milo Bruce also had a TD pass to Michael Rodriguez. Junge and Austin Grundy both recorded a fumble recovery, and Grundy blocked a punt. Hayden won last year’s meeting, and has won four of the last five to take a narrow 7-6 advantage in the series.
#8 FOWLER (6-2) AT #11 LAS ANIMAS (6-1)
Sole possession of second place in the Ark Valley behind McClave is at stake in this one. Fowler got 186 yards and three TD passes, plus 144 yards and two touchdown runs from Hilario Alvarez in its 46-8 win at Sanford last week. Bronson Damgaard ran for more than 100 yards with two touchdowns, and Bryce Froman had more than 100 receiving yards, with two scores of his own. Taten Phillips racked up 17 tackles and two forced fumbles, while Froman added two forced and two recovered. Las Animas hasn’t played in almost three full weeks, with the last action by the Trojans coming against Springfield in week seven. They won that 50-28. Fowler has won all seven previous meetings with Las Animas in the MaxPreps era, but none have been since 2021.
#10 STRATTON (5-3) VS MERINO (3-5)
Stratton ended a two-game slide with a 44-20 win over Haxtun last week, but it didn’t start pretty. Haxtun returned the opening kick for a touchdowns, and led 6-0 into the second, before the Eagles got going and reeled off 44 straight points. Nolan Notter ran for 114 yards and three touchdowns, while Corbin Notter and Judson Isenbart both added 73 yards. Isenbart had a touchdown, and Gavin Ruhs added one on the ground and one through the air on a pass from C. Notter. N. Notter and Kiptyn Dempsey recorded an interception apiece. Merino’s lone touchdown in its 48-6 loss to Sedgwick County came on a pass from Bouxe Alva to Jordan Rose. Alva finished with 74 yards passing, all to Rose. Rose led the Rams on defense with a dozen tackles, while Alva, Korbon Trout, and Zane Stumpf had five apiece. This is the first time Merino and Stratton have played since 2011.
#12 VAIL CHRISTIAN (6-2) AT LAKE COUNTY (0-7)
Rayman Romanin accounted for well over 400 yards of offense for Vail Christian in last week’s 56-26 win over Rangley. He threw for 334 yards and four scores, and ran for 98 yards and another TD. Finn Hooper ran for one and caught one, and had more than 100 yards receiving. Jack O’Shaughnessy and Jaxon Hansen both finished with 126 receiving yards. Aidan O’Shaughnessy tacked on a pair of interceptions. Aaron Diaz Hernandez ran for one score and threw another to Arian Tapia for Lake County in its 48-12 loss to Plateau Valley. It was the first time this season that the Panthers scored two touchdowns in a game. Vail Christian has won all four previous contests with Lake County, the last two in shutouts.
#14 CROWLEY COUNTY (5-3) AT ST. MARY’S (1-7)
Crowley County saw its hopes of winning the Black Forest dashed with last week’s 44-14 loss to Simla. However, the Chargers can help relive the sting with a win that would secure a postseason spot this weekend. St. Mary’s put up a strong fight against Elbert last week, eventually falling by a 46-32 final. Reggie Harmon threw for 288 yards and three touchdowns, and also ran for 80 yards and two more scores. Hayden Cuccinelli hauled in four passes for 130 yards and two TD, while Landon Borg (6/73/1) and Braydan Kermes (5/83) were the other top targets. Harmon also stacked up 22 tackles and intercepted a pass. Borg recorded 17 tackles. This is the first time Crowley County and St. Mary’s will meet since MaxPreps began tracking football in 2004.
SATURDAY
#15 FRONT RANGE CHRISTIAN (6-2) VS GILPIN COUNTY (3-5)
Front Range Christian wins the Central championship, thanks to a win over Estes Park two weeks ago. That gave the Falcons the tiebreaker against their closest challenger in the league standings. They followed that up with a dominant 77-8 victory over South Park last week. Front Range Christian ran the ball 14 times for an even 400 yards and eight touchdowns. Rex Krause went for 169 yards and three TD, and Jake Carlson added 157 and four scores. Carlson also caught a 62-yard TD from Lawson Edwards. Edwards scored on a fumble return, and Krause returned a pick for another TD. Gilpin County turned the ball over seven times in last week’s 59-34 loss to Estes Park. The Eagles also forced six turnovers, all fumbles. Neko Cope recovered two, and returned one for a score. Jack Fisher also had a return for a touchdown on one, and Taurean Paxton forced three and recovered one. Gilpin County also got a special teams score, as Ryan Marr returned a punt for a touchdown. Front Range Christian holds a slim 3-2 lead in the series, but Gilpin County has won each of the last two years.
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