Considered strong state championship contenders at the start of the season, Roosevelt and Durango have each lived up those expectations by winning seven straight games and reach the 3A final. They collide on Saturday afternoon with the Riders seeking their first ever football crown and the Demons their second and first since 1954.
Should the Demons grab the win, it would be their first outright state championship. They tied Lamar 7-7 to share the 1954 crown and have come up short in their three other title game appearances. Roosevelt is 0-2 in state championship battles; falling to Pueblo East in 2015 (57-31) and Eaton in 2000 (21-7). This is the first playoff meeting between the two clubs.
Roosevelt has spent much of the season ranked #1 but barely survived a first-round playoff date with Fort Morgan; edging the Mustangs 17-16 on a field goal with two seconds left. Playing much looser last week, the Riders picked up a 49-19 decision on Pueblo South; outscoring the Colts 21-0 in a decisive second half.
The running game pushed the Riders into the championship game as it churned out a season high 306 yards with seven touchdowns against Pueblo South. It was their second game over 300 on the season with the first coming against Battle Mountain (303). On the season, the Riders average 7.4 yards per carry and slightly surpassed that (7.8) a week ago.
Roosevelt’s Keegan Sterkel gained a season best 203 yards in last week’s semifinal win over Pueblo South. He helped the Riders generate a 2020 high of 306 yards rushing. PHOTO BY LANCE WENDT.
Keegan Sterkel nearly doubled his season high of 115 yards by gaining 203 in the semifinal. He also scored three touchdowns while carrying a ball a season most 22 times. Cooper Walton picked up 65 yards and reached the end zone three times. Together on the season, Sterkel (652) and Walton (308) are nearing the 1,000-yard level.
QB Brig Hartson moved past 1,000 yards for the season against Pueblo South; completing 9 of 12 attempts for 107 yards. His top target was Keaton Kaiser who caught five passes. He now has a team-high 35 receptions for 347 yards on the season. With eight touchdowns and nearly 21 yards per catch, Tucker Peterson has been the big play threat for the Riders all season but has been limited to four catches for 27 yards in the postseason. Jaden Herrera has five catches in two playoff games. He caught an important pass on the game winning drive against Fort Morgan and added four more receptions last weekend.
Durango’s offense is also explosive. They’ve outscored opponents 283-82 on the season including double digit playoff wins over Lutheran (47-6) and Holy Family (34-14). They average 276 yards per game on the ground and another 147 through the air.
Ben Finneseth is finishing his career on a high level. The senior ran for 154 yards in the win over Holy Family and that served as a nice follow-up to Lutheran where he totaled 204 yards on offense and four touchdowns. Gage Mestas has six receptions over the past two weeks; getting 72 yards and a score in both playoff wins. Nate Messier is the top rusher on the season (517 yards) but has managed just 98 over the last two weeks.
Directing the offense and distributing the ball is senior QB Jordan Woolverton. He’s also found time to generate 237 yards passing and 240 yards on the ground in postseason play. He’s been involved in six touchdowns overall. On the season, the senior sits at 865 yards passing and 409 on the ground with a combined 18 scores. That’s in six games as he had to sit out the Canon City contest along with Finneseth.
Durango celebrates last week’s semifinal win over Holy Family which pushed them into the state championship game for the first time since 1988. They seek their first title since 1954. PHOTO BY SHAUN STANLEY – See all photos for Durango football at https://shaunstanleyphotography.pixieset.com/dhsfootball2020
Defensively, the teams stack up evenly it appears. Both are filled with big play defenders. Durango has forced 16 turnovers and Roosevelt 14. Woolverton tops Durango with four interceptions while Chase Robertson and Zachary Haber each have three. Luke Wesley has also chipped in two. Roosevelt has eight fumble recoveries and six interceptions. Brock Saya is the only Rider with more than one interception (2) while Anthony Munoz has scooped up three fumbles with one returned for a score. Jaden Casaneuva has two.
Walton leads Roosevelt with 55 tackles including 13 for loss. Logan Pool has 50 stops and Clayton Robinson 44 with 14 occurring behind the line of scrimmage. Munoz has 10 tackles for loss and 37 stops for the season. Robinson (5.5) and Munoz (3) have also combined for 8.5 sacks.
For Durango, Thomas Barnes (51) is the tackles leader followed by Kyler Reimers (47), Ford Pitts (41) and Cole Matava (38). Reimers and Pitts each have four sacks and will look to pressure Hartson on Saturday.
Another even set of statistics can be found in the kicking game. Roosevelt’s Brecken Sawyer is perfect this season; converting on all 37 extra point attempts and both field goal tries. His longest effort was 32 yards and he booted the game winner against Fort Morgan in the state quarterfinals. Durango’s Sam Carozza is 32 of 34 on PAT’s and is 2 of 3 on field goals with a long of 37.
The 3A championship game is the middle contest of a tripleheader set for Saturday. Kickoff is slated for 2:00pm as they will follow the 1A title and precede the 5A finale. Local radio coverage will be available in both Southwest and Northern Colorado. The NFHS Network will also provide a live video stream.
Below the season breakdowns for each team is a NEXT UP Video segment on each program. Marty Cesario spoke with Brig Hartson of Roosevelt last week and will add a Durango segment this week.
ROOSEVELT ROUGHRIDERS (7-0)
Coach: Lane Wasinger
Outscored Opponents: 271-65
All-time playoff record: 18-28
Regular season
W: Frederick 45-10
W: Mead 21-20 (OT)
W: Thompson Valley 42-0
W: Battle Mountain 48-0
W: Northridge 49-0
Playoffs
W: Fort Morgan 17-16
W: Pueblo South 49-19
State Championship History (0-2)
2015: Lost to Pueblo East 57-31
2000: Lost to Eaton 21-7
DURANGO DEMONS (7-0)
Coach: David Vogt
Outscored opponents: 283-82
All time playoff record: 20-36-1
Regular Season
W: Mitchell 64-0
W: Pueblo County 49-21
W: Evergreen 17-8
W: Pueblo East 45-20
W: Canon City 27-13
Playoffs
W: Lutheran 47-6
W: Holy Family 34-14
State Championship History (0-3-1)
1988: Lost to Grand Junction 23-13
1954: Tied Lamar 7-7
1946: Lost to Lakewood 12-6
1934: Lost to Brighton 13-0
NEXT UP Video Interview with Brig Hartson of Roosevelt
