Home teams won every first-round game of the Class 3A football playoffs and they did so with ease as the average margin of victory was 24 points. Only two of the eight opening round games were decided by single digits but closer matchups are expected in the state quarterfinals on tap this weekend.
The Mead defense allowed just seven points in an opening playoff win over Evergreen and now they look to slow down Palisade QB Cam Tucker and the Bulldogs running game this week. PHOTO PROVIDED BY MELISSA BENNETT
#9 Mead Mavericks (8-3) at #1 Palisade Bulldogs (10-1)
Even though both clubs ran for over 440 yards in first round wins last week, the passing game may be the difference in determining which team advances to the state semifinals. Because of those gaudy numbers from last week, we expect both defenses to focus on the run and maybe crowd the line of scrimmage a bit more than usual. If that happens, big plays in the passing game could be available and which ever team takes advantage could end up on top.
But don’t expect either team to abandon the run completely as the ground game has gotten both teams to the state quarterfinals. Palisade QB Cam Tucker finished with 224 yards and averaged eight yards a carry in a 34-7 win over Fort Morgan last week. He also scored five touchdowns. Jason Bruce, with 114 yards, was also effective. Overall, the Bulldogs totaled 479 yards rushing and attempted just two passes. They scored 21 second quarter points to turn a 3-0 lead into a 24-0 halftime advantage.
Mead had a similar effort in blowing past Evergreen 56-7. The Mavericks combined for 442 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground. Ryan Bullock picked up 138 yards and three touchdowns; Nathan Bailey 115 yards and a score and Jake Wachter 84 yards and two touchdowns. The Mavericks averaged 7.6 yards per carry and threw just one pass the entire game. The rushing effort allowed Mead to easily avenge a one-point regular season loss to the Cougars. The Mavericks scored two touchdowns in every quarter.
The clubs have a touch of playoff history as Mead outscored Palisade 44-40 in the state quarterfinals two years ago. That win pushed the Mavericks into the semifinals for the first time since re-establishing their program. A win this Saturday gets them back there for a second time in three years. Palisade is in the quarterfinals for the fifth straight year and a win gets them to the Final Four for a second straight year. A win could also set up a rematch with Palmer Ridge if the Bears also get by Harrison. Palmer Ridge beat Palisade 28-14 in the semifinals last season.
#5 Harrison Panthers (11-0) at #4 Palmer Ridge Bears (9-2)
History was made by Harrison last week as the Panthers 34-28 win over Holy Family was the first playoff win in school history. There’s little time to celebrate as the Panthers must now eliminate the defending state champions to keep their perfect season alive. Palmer Ridge picked up an eighth straight win in blowing past Pueblo South 41-7. It was their second win over the Colts this year as they also beat the defending 4A state champions 45-14 in regular season play.
Harrison led Holy Family 20-3 at halftime and withstood a second half rally that saw the Tigers score 18 third quarter points. The Panthers were stout against the run as they limited the Tigers to 94 yards overall. Holy Family did throw for 184 yards but completed just eight of 20 passes against the Panthers defense.
Offensively, the Panthers displayed their big play ability as Orlando Westbrook-Sanchez combined for 312 yards of offense with four touchdowns. The QB ran for 151 yards and threw for 161. Aumiere Shedrick also picked up 206 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Those two could need similar efforts this week for the Panthers to advance.
The Palmer Ridge defense produced 5.5 sacks against Pueblo South including two from Colton Dill. Dill also recovered a fumble and Kaden Dudley had two interceptions. The defensive unit does not get as much attention as the Bears high-powered offense but the group has allowed just 42 points during the current eight-game winning streak.
Offensively, the Bears were very balanced in beating Pueblo South. Ty Evans threw for 199 yards and four touchdowns and the running game generated 215 yards.  Two of the touchdown passes went to Charles Deeds while Dudley and Anthony Roberson caught one apiece. Raef Ruel, with 140 yards, was again the main threat in the running game.
The defending champs have won five straight playoff games but this will be their first-ever meeting with Harrison in the post-season.
Opposing defenses tend to focus on Green Mountain QB Trey Towndrow but RB Quinn Meinert has rushed for 1,096 yards this season and enters the quarterfinals with four consecutive 100-yard efforts. PHOTO PROVIDED BY LANCE WENDT
#6 Green Mountain Rams (9-2) at #3 Erie Tigers (11-0)
Since football is such a team concept, we rarely say a battle of individuals could determine the outcome but that could be the case here. Erie’s Noah Roper and Green Mountain’s Trey Towndrow are responsible for most of their team’s offense so if one has a bigger game than the other, that team should move on to the Final Four.
Roper has rushed for 2,093 yards with 35 touchdowns this season and the rest of the Tigers offense has produced 755 yards rushing and 668 passing. Last week, Roper picked up 247 yards and three touchdowns as the offense churned out a total of 384 in their win over Durango (40-0).
Towndrow threw for 96 yards and ran for 91 in last week’s 34-14 win over Thomas Jefferson. On the season, the QB has combined for over 2,300 yards of offense with 21 total touchdowns. Quinn Meinert, with 1,096 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns, provides plenty of help but Towndrow is the first option in most cases.
Both defenses also had big days in round one as each forced four turnovers. Ryan Burdi was responsible for two Green Mountain takeaways as he recovered a fumble and intercepted a pass. He also led the Rams with 13 tackles. Jamontay Taylor added 10 tackles as the Rams held TJ to their second lowest point total of the season.
Nathan Hackney led Erie with eight tackles and Roper added seven. Ian Vera added five stops and a fumble recovery. Kaleb Fuhrmann, Josh Bradford and Nik Schemecke all recorded interceptions.
Playoff wise, the two clubs have not met previously. Green Mountain last week scored their first playoff win since 2004 and only their second since landing the 1999 state championship. A win this weekend gets the Rams to the semifinals for the first time since that title season. Erie has won four of their last five playoff games and a victory pushes them to a second consecutive state semifinal and sixth in school history.
#7 Discovery Canyon Thunder (9-2) at #2 Pueblo East Eagles (9-2)
It’s been a very unusual series between the two Southern rivals as the team that wins the regular season battle almost always falls short in the post-season. Discovery Canyon has beaten Pueblo East in six of the last seven regular season meetings but the Eagles have won all four playoff matchups. The only year where one team won both the regular season and post-season meetings came in 2015 when Pueblo East won 47-36 in October and then 28-10 in the state quarterfinals. Pueblo East also won post-season games in 2016, 2014 and 2013 after losing regular season battles to the Thunder. Discovery Canyon has six playoff trips in school history and four of the runs have ended with losses to East.
With all that history in mind, Pueblo East seems to be the favorite as they lost to Discovery Canyon 52-24 earlier this year. The Thunder ran for 449 yards and seven touchdowns in the win. Marshall Pike led the way with 176 yards and two scores. Zach Anderson also threw for 96 yards while hitting on six of seven attempts. Pueblo East QB Luc Andrada threw for 231 yards and two scores but the Eagles were not in the game most of the way.
Pueblo East had an easier time in the opening round as they knocked off Lewis Palmer 35-21. Discovery Canyon meantime went double-overtime before downing Frederick 34-31.
East received a huge effort from Kain Medrano last week. He caught three touchdown passes and finished the day with nine catches for 146 yards. He also paced the defense with 15 tackles. Andrada threw for 251 yards and four scores overall. Patrick Gonzales ran for 103 yards and Brandon Hall added 11 tackles on defense. The Eagles also produced four sacks and an interception.
Discovery Canyon was outgained on the ground by Frederick 321-194 but won the passing battle as Anderson connected on six of ten attempts for 105 yards and a touchdown. The Warriors managed just 22 yards passing. Pike had another big day on the ground with 131 yards and three touchdowns. Ryan Monteleone caught the lone scoring pass and finished with three catches for 68 yards.
