Evergreen football improves to 4-0 on the season with dominating win over Wheat Ridge

LAKEWOOD — Conference play in the newly formed Class 3A Foothills League officially kicked off late Thursday afternoon at Trailblazer Stadium.

Evergreen made a good argument that the Cougars are a big threat for the league title with a dominating 54-0 road victory against Wheat Ridge.

“We feel like we are bullies and can get after people,” Evergreen coach Matt Van Praag said after league-opening victory. “We are excited for the challenge.”

The league features six Jeffco schools (Conifer, Evergreen, Green Mountain, Pomona, Standley Lake and Wheat Ridge), along with Kent Denver. Evergreen and Conifer both went 3-0 in non-league play, while Wheat Ridge and Standley Lake came into league play with 2-1 records.

“It is going to be a lot different this year,” Evergreen senior Grady White said of the new conference that added the likely of Pomona — defending 3A state champions — and Kent Denver. “I’m just excited to be out here.”

Evergreen hasn’t won a league titles since claiming three straight from 2013 to 2015.

“We’ve got a lot of good football teams in our division,” Van Praag said. “That is the big difference. We’ve got four or five teams in there that any year can win it. It will be one week at a time for it.”

Green Mountain (1-2 record) had a tough non-league schedule facing 4A programs out of Jeffco in Lakewood and Bear Creek. The Rams defeated Lakewood, but fell to Bear Creek last week.

Evergreen (4-0) will host Green Mountain up the hill on Thursday, Sept. 24. The Rams have won their last five meetings against the Cougars. Evergreen’s last win over Green Mountain was in 2020 during the COVID-shortened season.

“Green Mountain for a long time was the pinnacle of our conference,” Van Praag said of the Rams. “For us, that is what we wanted to model ourselves after. We have really built this thing from the ground up.”

Evergreen built a 10-0 lead on Wheat Ridge in the first quarter. A 35-yard field goal by junior Karrik Boyle got the scoring going. Senior running back Kai Kazmer scored on a 1-yard touchdown run late in the quarter to push the lead to 10-0.

Then the flood gates opened. Evergreen had four touchdowns and converted on a pair of 2-point conversions to push the lead to 40-0 over Wheat Ridge (2-2) at halftime. The game went to a running clock for the remainder of the game with just over three minutes to play in the second quarter.

White was coming off a bone bruise in his back. The senior show no ill effects from return from injury with a 45-yard receiving touchdown and 15-yard touchdown run during the Cougars’ 30-point second quarter.

“We have a lot of threats out on the field,” White said. “We run the ball well.”

Van Praag was clear on where the credit to go to for the offensive attack.

“Honestly, it’s our offensive line,” Van Praag said of the Cougars’ offense that have scored 185 points in Evergreen’s first four games. “Our offensive line makes everything go. I’ll put our offensive line up against anyone.”

Seniors Jordan Jacobson, Tanner Tinstman, Gianni Volpe and Jackson Post all added touchdowns for the Cougars, who have now outscored their opponents 185-14.

“The kids have put in so much work and they just keep working,” Van Praag said. “We are excited to get going. To be 4-0 for the first time since I’ve been here as the head coach.”

Wheat Ridge will have another tough test facing the defending 3A state champions — Pomona — next week. The Farmers will celebrate homecoming facing the Panthers at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 25, back at Trailblazer Stadium.