Bayfield is used to traveling to play big games. Regular-season games don’t get much bigger than this week’s.
Riding a three-game winning streak inside the Class 2A Intermountain League, the defending Class 2A state champion Bayfield High School football team is set for a showdown with Delta that will capture the attention of teams across Colorado.
Though both teams still have another game to play after this week, a league championship is largely at stake at 7 p.m. Friday in Delta. The Wolverines and Panthers have identical 5-2 overall records and 3-0 league records going into the contest.
“We certainly don’t need any motivation,” BHS head coach Gary Heide said. “We stand to gain a lot, and that’s always intriguing for us. It’s a game we want to go capture and take advantage of. It’s a great opportunity for us to take a big step forward in the rankings and RPI.”
The Colorado High School Activities Association is using a Ratings Percentage Index to evaluate all teams before the playoffs this year. It uses strength of schedule and strength of opponents’ schedules to rank teams. Delta is currently ninth in the 2A RPI, while Bayfield is 11th. But, in the CHSAANow.com rankings, Delta stands at No. 5 with Bayfield coming in at No. 7. Every team is 2A is looking up at No. 1 La Junta (7-0), which fell to Bayfield in the semifinals last year but returned much of its roster.
Before any team can look toward the postseason, winning league is top priority. To do that, Bayfield must stop the state’s leading rusher, regardless of classification, in Delta’s Damon Jensen.
BHS has seen film of Delta and talked to Durango’s coaches about matchups. The Panthers rely on Jensen, a Class 2A Player of the Year candidate who has 1,5000 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns this year. He’s run for more than 100 yards in all seven games this season. Something will have to give, as Bayfiedl’s defensive starters haven’t allowed more than 50 yards of total offense in a game the last three weeks.
Since losing 21-20 to Durango the opening week of the season, the Panthers of Delta have been an offensive force outside of a 41-17 loss to Class 3A Palisade. Delta has already played Alamosa, another team in league contention, and came away with a 28-6 home win. It waxed Pagosa Springs 42-0 and is coming off a 42-6 win at Montezuma-Cortez.
Bayfield has done much of the same since a 14-6 overtime loss at Durango. The Wolverines have beat Gunnison, Montezuma-Cortez and Pagosa Springs by a combined score of 122-10 with a defense that can travel and win anywhere, and the Wolverines are well-versed with big road games after winning a state championship at Platte Valley last season.
“Our goal is always to be able to play real good football on the road,” Heide said. “We’re used to traveling for league, and we’ve played a lot of great teams on the Front Range. We know we have to travel a lot, and our belief is that it doesn’t bother us.”
BHS has found balance on offense with senior quarterback Josh Westbrook finding a groove, especially with wide receiver Brian Mashak. Sophomore running back David Hawkins, who has a team-high 11 touchdowns, hasn’t had to shoulder the load as he did early in the season, either, as Carl Heide, Hunter Killough, Keyon Prior, Jesse Westbrook and Josh Westbrook have all run the ball effectively.
Senior running back Tristan Brown also has nine rushing touchdowns and averages 6.3 yards-per-carry for Delta, and quarterback Kole Roberts has four rushing touchdowns to seven passing scores this year. He’s also been intercepted eight times while passing for 1,040 yards.
“They’re a big, strong team with no weaknesses,” coach Heide said. “It’s to be expected of any top-five team.”
With a win Friday, Bayfield can call itself a top-five team Monday.
No. 14 Durango (4-3) at Pueblo Central (0-7)
What: Class 3A South Central League football
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
Where: Dutch Clark Stadium, Pueblo
Listen Live: KKDG 99.7 FM
Twitter: @The7thFreezer
More Info: Every win the rest of the season is imperative if the Durango Demons hope to make the Class 3A playoffs.
Coming off a blowout home win against winless Sierra, the Demons face another winless team this week at the Pueblo Central Wildcats. Wins against winless teams won’t help Durango’s RPI much, and the Demons currently sit 15th in the Class 3A RPI standings.
Peyton Woolverton and company have had the offense rolling the last six quarters and will look to keep building momentum this week before returning home to face Pueblo County (4-3, 1-1 South Central) next week. Pueblo East (6-1, 2-0) is in firm control of the league after escaping Durango with a win two weeks ago, and the Demons are also currently looking up at Harrison (5-2, 2-0) in the league standings, with Harrison hosting Durango the final week of the regular season.
The Demons need to keep winning big, and Saturday provides another golden opportunity to do just that against a team that has used three different quarterbacks this year and doesn’t have a player with more than 170 total rushing yards this season. The Wildcats have scored only 60 points all season while allowing 258.
Ignacio (3-4) at John Mall (2-5)
What: 1A Southern Peaks League Football
When: 7 p.m. Friday
Where: John Mall High, Walsenburg
Listen Live: KSUT 91.3 FM
Twitter: @jlivi2
More Info: The John Mall Panthers of Walsenburg saved their homecoming day for the second to last game of the season. They may regret that, as an Ignacio Bobcats team that has already spoiled one team’s homecoming visits.
The Bobcats went into Montezuma-Cortez and waxed those Panthers 37-12 on their homecoming but fell 25-7 at Pagosa Springs on the Pirates’ homecoming night. Both of those games came against 2A opponents, and now the Bobcats are punching at their own weight against John Mall.
Coming off a 20-0 home loss to Centauri, the Bobcats are eager to get back to .500 this season.
In the midst of a resurgent season, Ignacio has found strength in its defense and passing game, and head coach Alfonso “Ponch” Garcia knows his team has fared better against common opponents this year than John Mall. Both teams are 1-2 in the league.
Stopping running back Evan Gonzales, who has 700 rushing yards and four touchdowns, will be the focus of the IHS defense. On the other side, quarterback Zach Weinreich will look to get the offense fired back up while targeting a litany of outside weapons the Bobcats boast.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
If you go
Who:
Bayfield at Delta
What:
2A Intermountain League football
When:
7 p.m. Friday
Where:
Delta High School
Listen Live:
KLJH 107.1 FM
Twitter:
@jlivi2