3A FOOTBALL – WEEK 9

The week nine schedule in 3A football features a top five RPI matchup as Durango heads to Pueblo South on Friday.  That’s one of the nine games we preview as league races continue to heat up.
 

Top Five Games

Palmer Ridge (6-1) at Thomas Jefferson (5-2)
Coming off a loss to Discovery Canyon, Thomas Jefferson must upset the two-time defending state champions to stay in the Central race.  A loss drops them two games back of the Bears with just three games left.  TJ is also 11th in RPI so a win helps their playoff cause as well.  Palmer Ridge is 6th in RPI but would probably be seeded much higher since their only loss is against 4A #1 Pine Creek.
The Bears were not pushed in a 54-0 win over Littleton last week.  They led 47-0 at halftime and scored seven touchdowns on just 25 plays.  Luke McAllister also tossed three TD passes on just six completions.  TJ trailed 20-7 at halftime to Discovery Canyon last week but could not punch it over the goal line in the second half and fell 37-7.
Holy Family (3-4) at Mead (7-0)
The first of two games in the North Metro where a league leader meets a third place team.  The other finds Frederick against Denver North.  Mead and Frederick are unbeaten overall and share the top conference lead with Holy Family and Denver North one game back at 1-1.
Despite their below five hundred mark, Holy Family is 15th in RPI and would make the playoff bracket this week.  Strength of schedule is keeping them in the chase as opponents are winning 69 percent of their games.  That will only go up against the unbeaten Mavericks.
Defense though is a major concern for the Tigers as they gave up 701 yards to Frederick in last week’s 52-21 loss.  Holy Family totaled 411 yards but simply couldn’t slow down the Warrior attack.  And now they face  Mead club that has scored 10 touchdowns over the last two weeks; in the first quarter.  They led both Skyview and Northfield 35-0 at end of the one period.
Against Northfield, the Mavericks ran for 341 yards and averaged 10 yards an attempts and those numbers were 311 and 12 against Skyview last week.
The Mavericks are #1 in RPI and this game starts a tough closing stretch as they have Denver North in week 10 and then close with Frederick.  The finale could feature a battle of 9-0 teams that will have a great impact on the playoff bracket.
Denver North (5-2) at Frederick (7-0)
The offensive numbers for Frederick in last week’s win over Holy Family were a bit on the crazy side.  As mentioned, they totaled over 700 yards with 395 rushing and 306 passing.  QB Jake Green did major damage as he threw for all 306 yards and then added another 231 on the ground.  He was involved in five touchdowns and he is a definite player of the year candidate.  On the season, Green has 907 yards with 16 TD’s through the air and 1,001 and 11 scores on the ground.  He needs just 92 yards this week to reach 2,000 total for the year.
Despite the 7-0 start, Frederick is still just 10th in RPI.  The strength of schedule is only .361 but that will climb with closing games against Denver North and Mead who have a combined record of 12-2.
Comparison scores do not match up well for Denver North as they opened league play with a 44-0 loss to Holy Family.  Frederick beat the Tigers by 31.  The Vikings did recover by beating Skyview 29-18 last week where they held the Wolverines to just 23 yards rushing on 15 attempts.  Skyview though did throw for 235 yards and two scores.
Erie (4-3) at Roosevelt (3-4)
Both teams are considered on the bubble for the playoffs with the Tigers 14th in RPI and the Roughriders 18th.  Erie though has the better chance at a league title as they open the game tied with Fort Morgan at 2-0 in the North Valley.  Roosevelt is 1-1 thanks to a tough overtime loss at Fort Morgan (28-27).
Roosevelt beat Thompson Valley (48-21) last week and win this week could let them end the season on a four-game winning streak.  They close with Northridge and Niwot and will be favored in both.  The Riders ran for a season high 330 yards against Thompson Valley including 118 yards from JT Baughman and 115 from Braeden Saya.  Cooper Walton also scored twice.
Erie is over 500 for the first time since winning their season opener.  They’ve beaten Northridge 35-7 and Niwot 44-6 in league play.  Their rushing yardage has improved to 235 yards per game with Mason Veve (888) leading the way.  The Tigers also throw the ball a bit more this year than last as Gavin Mendoza has totaled 658 yards through seven games.  Last year, the Tigers totaled 691 yards for their entire 13-game schedule.
Durango (5-2) at Pueblo South (6-1)
Probably the game of the week in Class 3A as both are in the top five of RPI with South checking in at #2 and the Demons #5.  The winner also takes control of the South Central chase as each has started at 2-0.
Expect a lot of points in this one as there is offensive talent across the board on both sides.  South averages 34 points a game and Durango a whopping 41 but the Demons have scored more points than South (287-239) and allowed fewer (81-112).
A good share of the numbers for Durango have come over the past month where they’ve scored 209 points in four games.  They picked up 49 points against Pueblo Centennial last week but surpassed 50 in the other three.
QB Jordan Woolverton has been involved in 26 TD’s including 17 through the air.  He’s thrown for 1,143 yards and added 559 on the ground.  Everett Howland, with 855 yards and 8 TD’s, anchors the running game while Ben Finneseth has caught 26 passes for 504 yards and seven scores.
South counters with their own set of offensive triplets.  QB Logan Petit is 945 yards passing with 10 TD’s and 291 yards and six TD’s on the ground.  His favorite target is Jackson Dickerson with 36 catches for 589 yards and eight scores.  George Longoria is at 11-hundred yards on the ground and is averaging 157 per game.  He’s scored 10 times.
 

Others to Watch

Evergreen (4-3) at Green Mountain (5-2)
Two very good quarterbacks match up in this one as Griffin Lauritano leads Evergreen and Trey Towndrow directs Green Mountain.  Lauritano sits at 1,664 yards passing and 252 on the ground and has led the Cougars to 129 points in blowout conference wins over George Washington and Lincoln.  Towndrow has thrown for 1,264 yards and 14 TD’s with another 608 yards and eight scores on the ground.  The Rams though lost to Conifer in league play and are one game back of the Lobos and Cougars in the Mt. Metro chase.
Discovery Canyon (6-1) at Lewis Palmer (3-4)
This one is probably more important to Lewis Palmer concerning the playoff chase.  They’ve lost three straight but are still 16th in RPI and contending for one of the last playoff berths.  A wildcard is their only hope as they’ve lost league games to Thomas Jefferson and Lutheran and still must face Palmer Ridge after meeting Discovery Canyon this week.  The Thunder have a tough closing stretch which started with a solid 37-7 win over Thomas Jefferson last week.  They face Lewis Palmer this week, then Lutheran and Palmer Ridge.

Pueblo Centennial (2-5) and Pueblo Central (5-2)
It’s the annual Bell game and it carries some playoff importance this year.  Central is coming off a lopsided loss to Durango last week (49-19) but remains 17th in RPI and very much alive for a post-season berth.  Emotion should be riding high in their camp as the seniors get their final crack at a win in the Bell game as the Wildcats have lost three in a row in the series.  Centennial is better than the 2-5 record and played well in a 19-7 loss to Pueblo East.
Fort Morgan (5-2) at Thompson Valley (3-4)
Erie and Roosevelt will draw more attention but this game has the exact same scenario.  The Mustangs are 2-0 and share first place with Erie while the Eagles are 1-1 in the conference and sit in a third place tie with Roosevelt.  Should the Riders and Eagles pull off upsets, all four teams will be 2-1 in league play entering the final two weeks of the season.
The Mustangs are 9th in RPI and in position to earn a first round game at home this year.  They followed up the exciting overtime win over Roosevelt two weeks ago by pounding Northridge 49-14 last week.  They led 21-0 after one and 42-0 at halftime and limited the Grizzlies to 97 yards passing and 77 rushing.
Thompson Valley opened North Valley play with a 41-0 shutout over Niwot but lost to Roosevelt 48-21 last week.  They control their own leaue championship hopes as they also meet Erie next week.  Wins in the next two put them in great shape for the conference crown.