The first four matchups on our 3A Football preview could easily be mistaken for state quarterfinals coming up in November. All eight teams involved are expecting deep playoff runs in 2019 and each has thoughts of reaching the state championship. It makes for an interesting weekend of football.
Top Five
Palmer Ridge (1-0) at Pueblo East (1-1)
All these two teams have done is combine to win the last five state championships in Class 3A. Pueblo East captured three consecutive crowns from 2014-16 and Palmer Ridge has lifted the championship trophies the past two years; including a win over the Eagles in the finals last Fall. Quarterbacks Ty Evans (Palmer Ridge) and Luc Andrada (Pueblo East) were both three-year starters that ended their careers last year and their successors are the keys to each teams success this year.
So far so good as both Luke McAlister of the Bears and Jack Helzer of the Eagles are off to excellent starts. McAlister completed nine of 12 passes for 184 yards and two scores in his first start which resulted in an easy win over Canon City last week. Helzer struggled a bit in his opener with four interceptions in a loss to Roosevelt but rebounded with 140 yards and a touchdown in last week’s exciting win over Longmont.
Others have contributed offensively for both clubs. Palmer Ridge wide receiver Anthony Roberson caught three balls against Canon City totaling 118 yards and two scores. Raef Ruel added 56 yards and three touchdowns on just seven attempts. The defense also intercepted three Canon City passes. Noah Rivera collected 105 yards rushing for Pueblo East and Marvin London caught 10 passes. Defensively, the Eagles have some concerns as they’ve given up 871 yards through two games.
Green Mountain (2-0) at Palisade (1-0)
Probably the main question in this one is the health of Palisade QB Cam Tucker. The senior ran for 211 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries in last week’s win over Durango but he left the game very late with an ankle injury and his status for this week is still up in the air. Gabe Harrison came on in relief and finished the game winning drive by scoring a the final touchdown in the Bulldogs 25-18 victory. The Bulldogs ran the ball 62 times and finished with 416 yards and a repeat effort is the goal this week as they hope to keep an explosive Green Mountain offense on the sideline.
Three familiar names led the Rams to their 42-14 win over Harrison last week. QB Trey Towndrow threw for 259 yards and five touchdowns with three of them going to Trey Corkin who finished with five catches for 173 yards. Quinn Meinert had just eight carries but still managed 109 yards rushing. The Rams trailed 7-0 after one quarter then exploded for 21 second quarter points on their way to the season opening win.
Both teams have some defensive concerns going in. Palisade gave up 203 yards rushing and nearly nine yards per carry against Durango and also surrendered 147 yards passing. Green Mountain faced 49 rushing attempts from Harrison and allowed 172 yards plus another 114 through the air.
Pueblo South (2-0) at Discovery Canyon (2-0)
Discovery Canyon’s defense has been stout the first couple of weeks but they face a very potent Pueblo South offense in a third attractive matchup in the division. Roosevelt picked up 239 yards rushing and 175 passing in an opening win over Pueblo East but the Thunder limited the Riders to just 63 yards on the ground and 52 through the air. South meantime put up 49 points against Holy Family in their opener and another 28 in a decisive win over Erie last week. George Longoria and Logan Petit are the main threats. Longoria has 350 yards rushing on the season and has gained at least 170 in each contest thus far. He’s also scored four touchdowns. Petit ran for 97 yards and threw for 95 against Erie last week.
Erie (1-1) at Frederick (1-0)
Separated by just ten miles, this is one of the better rivalries in the state as the clubs find a way to meet every year regardless of conference and class. Erie has won the last five in the series including three consecutive shutouts from 2014-16. They collected a 43-16 win a year ago. Frederick last experienced a victory in 2013 (21-7).
The Warriors have had two weeks to prep for this one following a 42-28 win over Kennedy in week one. QB Jake Green ran for 155 yards and three TD’s and added two more scores and another 176 in the passing game. His rushing yardage numbers were better than all of last season (139) and his three scores were just one shy of his total from 2018. Dominik Schleif added 69 yards rushing.
Erie has split their first two games; outscoring Evergreen 42-33 in the opener before falling to Pueblo South 28-10 last week. The Tigers lost several key players to graduation last year and continues to sort out player roles in the early going.
Lutheran (1-0) at Fort Morgan (1-0)
Lutheran won just three games last year and Fort Morgan was eliminated in the opening round of the playoffs so this game wasn’t on our radar at the start of the season. That changed following Lutheran’s upset of 2A #1 Platte Valley last week. That was likely the biggest upset in week two across any classification and made the Lions a playoff threat again this year. Fort Morgan started slow in their opener; trailing Brush 6-0 at halftime but then outscored the ‘Diggers 20-0 in the second half. The Mustangs defense held Brush to just 85 yards rushing on 34 attempts and only 61 yards in the air.
Others to Watch
Cheyenne Mountain (1-0) at Sand Creek (1-0)
It’s been awhile since either of these clubs have been mentioned in a game to watch but we’re hoping wins by each mark the start of turnaround for both programs. Sand Creek’s win over Pueblo Centennial (42-27) was just their third victory in the past five years. The Scorpions were winless last year and also went 0-10 in 2015. In between were two 1-9 campaigns so the win was much needed. Cheyenne Mountain, which has had just one winning season since 2012, opened the new season with a wild 41-40 win over Coronado on Labor Day. Caden Bellew led the Indians with 252 yards and three touchdowns. Freshman Dominic Seaton caught five passes including a touchdown. Brad Helton also caught two touchdown passes including an 87-yarder. Sand Creek’s Greg Garnet ran for 209 yards and three touchdowns and the Scorpions were also sparked by a strong defense. Almorian Germany scored on an interception return and Coby Bailey ran back a fumble recovery for a second defensive score.
Conifer (1-0) at Summit (1-1)
This is the first 3A opponent for both schools. Conifer opened with a win over 2A Woodland Park (35-8) last week while Summit has split a pair of games against 2A rivals. They beat Salida 50-28 in week one and fell to Moffat County 41-8 last week. Conifer intercepted three passes against Woodland Park but also gave up 139 yards rushing and 109 passing. Summit’s defense allowed 367 yards and four TD’s passing to Salida and then 302 yards and four scores on the ground to Moffat County.
Moffat County (1-0) at Steamboat Springs (1-1)
The Bulldogs (2A) and Sailors (3A) are in different classes these days but this is the game marked on the schedule by both clubs. They play each year and the winner gains bragging rights across Northwest Colorado. Those rights have been in the Moffat County for the past four years as they’ve beaten the Sailors by a combined 80 points. Steamboat Springs last won in 2014 (28-14). As mentioned, the Bulldogs were very good on the ground in their win over Summit (302 yards). Kevin Hernandez paced the team with 170 yards and three touchdowns. Donnie Quick and Joseph Campagna both picked up eight tackles to lead the defense. Steamboat Springs played in the 2009 state championship game but their opening win over Manual was just their 23rd overall since that appearance.
