1A FOOTBALL – WEEK 10

Schedule makers got it exactly right in 1A football this year as we enter the final week of the season with six conference championships still undecided.  Three of those six will be determined this week by games featuring league unbeatens going to head-to-head.  A fourth game is an elimination game for the conference title as only the winner gets into the bracket.
In the remaining two undecided conferences, league leaders Centauri and Strasburg can wrap up championships with wins.  Losses by either though likely leaves three teams sharing the top spot with tiebreakers needed to determine automatic qualifiers.
Rocky Ford is the only conference champion crowned thus far as the Meloneers wrapped up the Santa Fe title by beating Trinidad last week.  They close against John Mall. Crowley County sits second in the Santa Fe and #16 in RPI but may not get into the bracket.   It’s a good bet that only the top 15 teams in RPI get into the bracket since the Foothills champion will get an automatic bid as a league champion and neither contender is inside the top 16.
 

Top Six Games

Platte Canyon (4-4) at Manual (3-5)
Both teams have been outscored by opponents on the season but the winner still gets into the playoff bracket as the Foothills league champion.  It’s the only way in for both clubs as neither is in the RPI Top 16.  Platte Canyon is #23 and Manual #31 as the game gets started.
Platte Canyon will try to shorten the game with their running game.  They’ve attempted just 21 passes for the entire season.  The Huskies average 213 yards per game on the game and have produced 11 touchdowns.  Brandon Patterson leads the group with 731 yards and five touchdowns.  Allen Hardey has four touchdowns with 333 yards.  Those two and the rest of the Huskies are well rested as they’re coming off a forfeit from Lake County.
Manual handled Clear Creek 58-18 last week and that win kept them in the league championship picture.  An equally important win came two weeks ago against Jefferson in double overtime (26-20).  They too prefer the run the football (178 yards per game) as Lajayzhin Miles has produced 879 yards and eight touchdowns.  Their defense has forced 18 turnovers evenly split between interceptions and fumble recoveries.
Limon (7-1) at Holyoke (8-0)
Both the Dragons and Badgers are 4-0 in the North Central so the winner is the champion with the loser falling to second.  An added benefit as they also sit 1-2 in RPI standings this week so the winner could end up with the top overall seed.  Holyoke will almost assuredly get there with a win while Limon may have to settle for second behind Strasburg since they lost to the Indians earlier this season.
Both teams have worked through a rugged conference schedule with excellent results.  Limon has outscored Wiggins, Wray, Yuma and Burlington by a combined 126 points with Holyoke’s overall margin of victory at 112 points.
Limon is coming off a solid 40-9 win over Wray last week and again relied heavily on standout junior Kory Tacha.  He rushed for 215 yards marking the second straight game above 200 yards as he tallied 245 against Burlington.  Tacha also went over the 1,000 yard for the season.  Overall the Badgers ran for 371 yards in the win pushing their game average to 272.  They have 31 touchdowns on the ground with 13 coming from Jeremiah Leeper who is second to Tacha with 590 yards.
Holyoke gets excellent production in the passing game through sophomore QB Miles Sprague.  He’s over 13-hundred yards for the season with 10 touchdowns.  He’s basically been the starter since day one of his high school career.  Top targets include Luis Chafino (23 receptions – 4 TD’s) and Seth Watson (20 receptions – 5 TD’s).  The running game is led by Blake Mosenteen with 598 yards and nine scores.
Last year’s game finished up with Limon on top 19-13 and another tight game is expected on Friday.  The Badgers ran for 265 yards including 87 from Tacha and 72 from Leeper.  Sprague threw for 124 yards and a TD but the Dragons managed just 54 yards on 26 rushing attempts for the game.

Colorado Springs Christian (7-1) at Florence (7-1)
The winner between the Lions and Huskies lands the Tri Peaks championship and the outcome is also important to the top of the playoff bracket with the Huskies #5 in RPI and the Lions #6.
Florence enters the game off a 28-20 loss to Centauri last week; their first blemish on their record.  The Huskies ran the football well; generating 212 yards but the defense gave up a key touchdown right before half that put them down 21-7.  The lead was cut to one in the third quarter but the Falcons put the game away with a fourth quarter score.
The game features three of the best running backs in the state.  Owen Busetti has 1,286 yrds and 21 touchdowns for Florence.  Peyton Brones (938 yards) and Joe Dunn (640) are an effective 1-2 punch for the Lions who have combined for 18 touchdowns on just 141 attempts.
The Lions do have the advantage in the passing game as Caleb Stockton has thrown 13 touchdown passes.  Florence has attempted just 39 passes the entire season.
The clubs met twice last year with Colorado Springs Christian taking both the regular season finale (31-0) and the second round playoff game (13-10).  In game one, the Lions ran for 299 yards with Dunn (128) and Brones (117) both over 100 yards.  Busetti was limited to just 11 yards and the Huskies overall managed just 84 on 37 attempts. In the playoff win, the Lions gained just 99 yards rushing but Stockton threw for 196 yards.  Florence was much better on the ground; finishing with 160 yards.
Hotchkiss (7-1) at Meeker (7-1)
Another matchup of league unbeatens squaring off for the conference championship as this one decides the Western Slope crown.  It’s also the very rare regular season matchup as Meeker has a win over Hotchkiss already this season; beating them 28-7 in a non-conference season opening contest.
In that game, Ryan Phelan threw for 289 yards and three touchdowns for the Cowboys and the running game also produced 105 yards.  Hotchkiss picked up 175 yards rushing including 95 from Jace Peebles but the Bulldogs also tossed three interceptions.  Kelton Turner had two of the picks for the Cowboys.  The Cowboys defense also earned 10 tackles from Jeremy Woodward and nine from Colby Clatterbaugh.  Hotchkiss had a trio of players with 10 stops; Tracyer Hall, Adam Smith and Ethan Owens.
Hotchkiss has won seven straight since the Meeker game.  Peebles enters the final week with 1,334 yards and 12 TD’s.  Smith continues to lead the defense with 105 stops including 18 for loss.  Overall the Bulldogs have 13 sacks and 12 interceptions and probably need a few more of each to upset Meeker this week.
Phelan went over 2,000 yards for the season in last week’s win over Olathe.  Cole Rogers (650 yards) and Jacob Shelton (350) each have 32 catches on the season and have combined for 12 touchdowns.  Woodward leads both the running game (718 yards) and defense (60 tackles).  The Cowboys have forced 16 turnovers including 10 fumble recoveries which may come in handy against the Bulldogs.
Meeker is #4 in RPI and should be at home in round one regardless of how they end up this week.  Hotchkiss is #8 on the bubble to host a first round game.
Ignacio (3-5) at Centauri (7-1)
The Falcons are heavily favored to win the contest but must do so to officially wrap up the Southern Peaks championship.  Ignacio stayed alive for the crown with their 35-0 win over Dolores last week.  They create a likely three-way tie with Monte Vista if they can find a way to upset the Falcons.  Ignacio is only #34 in RPI and must win the crown to get into the bracket.  Centauri is #7 in RPI but will watch the Florence-CSCS game closely as that outcome will impact where they are seeded.
The Falcons have the seeding advantage over Florence since they beat the Huskies last week and if Florence topples CSCS, then Centauri could also move ahead of them in the bracket.  In last week’s win, Mason Claunch had another big day as he ran for 99 yards and two scores.  Eric Maez threw for 116 yards with a touchdown pass to Baron Holman.

Flatirons Academy (6-2) at Strasburg (8-0)
Strasburg has never lost a league game in the North and a win over the Bison gives them 20 straight in conference play dating back to the 2016 season when they joined Class 1A.  The Indians are #3 in RPI but remain in play for the top overall playoff seed based on their road win at Limon in mid-season.  They should get to the top of the bracket if Limon beats Holyoke but a Dragons win may leave Strasburg at number two.
Flatirons Academy is #13 in RPI and right now in the bracket.  Their strength of schedule will get a boost regardless of outcome but they’re still not completely comfortable with their playoff status.  They do have a win over likely playoff member Yuma but also dropped contests to Wray and Highland.
The loss to Highland leaves them tied with the Huskies in second place.  A win over Strasburg leaves all three teams in first place but a loss again drops the Bison to third.  They’ve lost three straight to the Indians with last year’s 28-0 shutout serving as the narrowest margin of victory.
Trystan Graff tops Strasburg in rushing (905 yards) and receptions (15).  He’s been involved in 15 TD’s.  Collin Russell has 747 yards and 10 TD’s in the passing game.  Both have been healthy the entire season for Strasburg which wasn’t the case a year ago.
 

Others to Watch

Wray (5-3) at Yuma (5-3)
It’s the annual Harvest Cup on the Eastern Plains and for the first time in several years, the game is very important to the playoff hopes of both teams.  Wray is #9 in RPI and Yuma is #12 so we believe both teams are safely in the playoffs.  Yuma hasn’t been there since 2013.  Wray seeks a third consecutive trip.  The winner also ends up third in the North Central behind Limon and Holyoke.
Buena Vista (5-3) at Monte Vista (3-5)
The Demons are #11 in RPI and we believe safely into the 16-team field but a win this week gives them momentum for a first round playoff game likely away from home.  Monte Vista has battled consistency issues the entire season and is 24th in RPI.