X marks the spot as Haxtun wins third 8-man football title in five years

PUEBLO – Zach Statz put up some stats.

The Haxtun senior scored five touchdowns and hauled in two interceptions to help the Fightin Bulldogs settle a score, and leave the CSU-Pueblo Thunderbowl with more hardware. Haxtun beat Akron 54-28 to claim the 8-man football state championship for the second year in a row and knock off the only team to beat the Bulldogs in the regular season.

It’s also the third title in five years for the Fightin Bulldogs (12-1 overall) and the 10th overall, prompting the players to throw up an X with their arms.

“When I took over the program, it felt like we were stuck on seven for a while,” coach JD Stone said. “Finally, now we get moving. It’s great to move on. We have a big arch above our field that has ‘Home of the 9-time state champs’ and we have to change it to 10. It’s pretty awesome.

The Bulldogs established a dominant run game early, getting touchdown runs from Statz and quarterback Colin Cone.

Statz eventually too over the workload, going for over 200 yards in less than three full quarters. He scored four touchdowns in that span, earning him Most Outstanding Player honors by the Colorado chapter of the National Football Foundation.

He added a fifth touchdown late in the fourth quarter and he also had two interceptions on defense.

Statz came into the game averaging 123 yards per game, but far exceeded that average, saving his best performance of the year for the most important game of the year.

“It looked like on the stat sheet that I did stuff, but we controlled the line of scrimmage so well,” Statz said. “I just found the right spot and that’s what I’m good at. The line dawgs who need to get this credit, did their part. I should make one guy miss and I did that.”

The game felt like a genuine sequel to last year’s state title game where the Bulldogs beat the Rams 46-20. It was Ryland Wolff doing most of the damage in that version of the title game, and while Statz’s style was vastly different and more physical, the effect was the same.

“I’ve been blessed in Haxtun with so many great athletes like Zach,” Stone said. “That kid watched so much film this week. He lifted so many weights this offseason. He deserves everything he gets. There isn’t a kid over there who doesn’t deserve everything they have.”

And that moment stemmed from the regular season loss to the Rams (12-1) back on Oct. 10. It was that loss that served as the wakeup call that Stone felt his team needed to achieve its ultimate goal.

“After the way we ran through last year and the start of this year, we got complacent,” Stone said. “Our preparation after that; we said it after that loss that Akron woke a sleeping giant.”

The Bulldogs outscored their opponents 272-56 the rest of the season, including Saturday’s state championship win. And even though Statz filled up the stat sheet, his focus never wavered from the team goal.

“The stat sheet is cool, but 54-28 is where my head is at right now,” he said. “And the 10, the X, that we got for our hometown. That’s what I’m happy about.”