Leaving no doubt to the Selection Sunday committee whether or not they deserved to begin their state championship defense at home, Bayfield completed an undefeated romp through the Intermountain Conference this past Saturday evening by assailing Alamosa.
And even more brutally than last season's 41-7 result; this fall there'd be no last-minute, shutout-snapping long-bomb to the end zone as the Wolverines prevailed 44-0.
The win secured the Wolverines' circuit title and, most importantly, making moot their standing in CHSAA's RPI ratings system when the time came to seed the 2016 Class 2A State Football Playoffs' bracket.
BHS (7-2, 5-0 IMC) was awarded the 16-team bracket's #5 starting position and a first-round date at 1 p.m. Saturday with 12-seed Florence inside Wolverine Country Stadium.
And though times, players and-in Bayfield's case-coaches may have changed, one had best believe the opportunity to oust the school which denied the Pine River Valley program the ultimate prize in 2011 won't be lost on these Wolverines.
On paper, that fact certainly doesn't bode well for the Huskies, who lost 21-16 at Alamosa way back in Zero Week beginning the season. Then again, the Huskies did hold La Junta, the bracket's 1-seed, to its second-lowest point total (28) of the year last weekend.
So despite FHS coming to town just 5-4 overall, and a third-place 2-3 in the Tri-Peaks-headed by classification powers La Junta (9-0, 5-0) and Colorado Springs' The Classical Academy (8-1, 4-1)-expect BHS to have no illusions of enjoying a first-round walkover.
The Florence-Bayfield winner will move on to meet either 4-seed Sterling or #13 Manitou Springs in next weekend's quarterfinals. Interestingly enough, should BHS and La Junta survive the first two rounds, the Wolverines and Tigers would revisit last season's semifinal (played at home in Bayfield) in one of this year's semis.
MANGLING THE MOOSE: In holding an opponent to seven points or less for the fifth straight week, Bayfield controlled the ball effectively against Alamosa and topped the 300-yard mark in rushing while quarterbacks Josh Westbrook and Hayden Farmer combined to add another 134 aerially.
Sophomore David Hawkins rumbled for 146 yards on just 18 carries and scored two touchdowns, while senior Jesse Westbrook gained 60 on only 10 carries and scored once, as did Josh Westbrook.
Farmer finished 6-of-9 passing for 81 yards and struck for two TDs, while Westbrook was 5-of-9 for 53 and one six-pointer, and neither quarterback threw an interception. Senior Brian Mashak snagged three throws for 58 yards and a pair of scores, while juniors Ryan Phelps (21 yards) and Dax Snooks (nine) and sophomore Keyon Prior (15 yards) each caught two passes.
Junior Carl Heide caught a 14-yard TD, and junior Hunter Killough (4-55 rushing) had one grab for 17.
Defensively, Killough was credited with a team-high 13 tackles. Junior Cole Wood made eight stops, while Jesse Westbrook, Phelps and senior Macoy Michaeli each contributed seven. Wood and Phelps each had two QB sacks, Wood and Michaeli each recovered a fumble, and Prior snatched an interception.
Dropped to 5-4 overall and 3-2 in the Intermountain, the Mean Moose and first-year head coach Dillon McNamee still managed to make the playoffs as the 14-seed and will travel to #3 TCA for a 7 p.m. kickoff tonight.
