ARVADA - Right when the Wolverines, looking to pull out a fourth consecutive come-from-behind victory, needed their opponent to be astounded by more of their late-game magic, the Eagles were not.
Down by eight points in a Nov. 10 battle where quick-strike offense was the exception rather than the norm, favored Bayfield had 32 seconds left with which to force overtime. The Wolverines had one last chance from their own 12-yard line after Faith Christian junior Mike Osgood punted from his own 44.
And though it didn't seem like a lot of time in which to hustle 88 yards, BHS' backers knew it could be done. It had only taken their Wolverines 30 seconds to surge 72 yards and score on their previous series, via senior David Hawkins' three-yard dive with 2:26 left in the CHSAA Class 2A State Playoffs' quarterfinal clash.
Burned by a 69-yard Hayden Farmer-to-Hawkins pass the play before, Faith Christian regained some confidence when Osgood blocked junior Trenton Harrison's point-after kick, preserving a 21-13 advantage, and gained even more when Osgood covered Daniel Westbrook's attempted onside kick.
And despite having to surrender the football to the top-seeded visitors for a third time in the fourth quarter, the 9-seed Eagles were on guard against any more big plays. Farmer threw a pass into the left flat to senior Keyon Prior, but with nowhere to run, Prior flipped a pass back to Farmer. Unable to fully scan the field for anyone open downfield, Farmer was dropped for an 8-yard loss back to the 4.
Hoping to get some yardage back and stop the clock with just a tick left, setting up a potential Hail Mary heave, Farmer looked to hit senior Cameron Liddell in stride going out of bounds along BHS' sideline, but could not make the connection.
And just like that, the Wolverines' much-anticipated 2018 met an unexpected early end, ending a run for a senior class which helped Bayfield qualify for the postseason four times and earn two State Championships, while going 19-0 in conference play, 23-0 at home, 42-4 against in-state competition, and 42-5 overall.
"Our boys were fantastic all year," said head coach Gary Heide. "I couldn't be more proud of them. I'll remember those last four games we played forever. Sure, we came up short in this one, but it was one great season."
"Big congrats to Faith Christian; they are a good, hard team," he continued. "They've had a big improvement from a year ago. They deserve to continue on."
Despite perfect weather, both sides' nerves showed at the start. BHS junior Dylan Hilliker was unable to hang onto a Farmer toss left (senior lineman Isaac Lorenzen, fortunately, was credited with the recovery) on the game's first play. FC junior Edoardo Castaneda fumbled a Harrison punt (classmate Erick Granados made the recovery) on its fourth after taking an immediate hit from BHS sophomore Cade Carlson.
Keeping possession at their own 35, the underdog Eagles (9-2 overall) then struck first, covering the needed 65 yards in 11 patient plays and 4 minutes, 55 seconds, with junior Isaiah Kroll hitting senior Jordan Abbott from 11 yards out with 6:16 left in the first quarter.
Sophomore kicker Jon Randall, a converted soccer player, boomed the PAT through the uprights for the early 7-0 lead, but it wouldn't last long as the Wolverines (8-2 overall) then drove 63 yards in 11 plays and 5:20, with Farmer plowing through two Eagles for a 5-yard touchdown. Harrison's extra point was good, tying the score with 50 seconds left.
Both quarterbacks' initial completions during their teams' respective scoring series hinted at the possibility of big plays aerially, with Kroll finding junior Samuel Neve for 35 yards and Farmer linking with Prior for 18. But ball control was clearly paramount, with Faith Christian relying on Granados and senior David Nagy and Bayfield countering with Hawkins.
Beginning their next drive at their own 23 with 0:44 left in the first, FC grinded out a 77-yard masterpiece which sapped 6 minutes, 26 ticks off the clock and ended with Kroll finding senior Brian Turner from 17 yards out. Randall again easily tacked on the point after, putting the Eagles ahead 14-7 with 6:18 left before halftime.
Up to the can-you-match-this task, the Wolverines threatened to respond in kind. Starting at their own 23 with 6:06 left, and overcoming a disputed intentional-grounding call against Farmer on first down, BHS forged ahead to Faith's 30.
But the counterstrike was stopped short; Farmer then threw incomplete on first down, Hilliker took a 4-yard loss on second, Farmer lost two more on a third-down sack, then another eight when Eagle senior Jacob Theilen dropped him on fourth.
Unable to advance from their own 44 with 0:50 left, the Eagles went back to their locker room content to hold a 7-point lead, but wary of Bayfield's comeback knack, which showed itself early in the third quarter, as Prior intercepted a Kroll throw at the BHS 30 with 8:45 left.
"Man, they were one heck of a team," said an exhausted Theilen afterwards. "We were digging with all we had."
Again, however, luck wasn't with the Wolverines. With nothing to show for their 13-play push before halftime, they'd have nothing to show again after Faith Christian junior Joel Burck recovered a failed reverse pitch from Prior to Hilliker on the new series' 14th snap.
With Burck able to return the fumble to the FC 34, the Eagles then killed off the quarter's remaining 4:21 with seven run plays and eight total before punting the ball away three plays into the final frame. Pinned back at their own 12 with 11:04 left in the contest, the Wolverines gave the ball to Hawkins for no gain on first down. Theilen then sacked Farmer for a 2-yard loss on second, and Abbott then stepped in front of a Farmer third-down pass at about the 21-yard line, returning it untouched for six points with 9:44 left.
Randall again nailed the PAT, putting Faith Christian up by a shocking 14 points.
Farmer responded quickly, hitting Hilliker for a 14-yard gain on first down from his own 20-Faith's kickoff went for a touchback. Unfortunately, the possession ended three plays later when Theilen again stormed BHS' backfield to sack Farmer back to the 30. Prior then punted, but despite no return, the Eagles went back on offense at their own 40 with just 8:02 remaining.
Kroll went to the air no more; Faith Christian ran the ball 10 consecutive times, but relinquished possession after a 3-yard Kroll scramble failed to gain another first down. Still, another 5:06 had expired, putting Bayfield in hurry-up mode.
"We didn't quit to the bitter end," said Heide. "The touchdown by (Hawkins), we really felt good and thought we'd get an onside kick. We didn't get it."
"I'll always remember this year as a stellar year, a great Intermountain League champion that made it to the quarterfinals," he added.
Unofficially, Farmer finished 9-of-20 passing for 167 yards while Hawkins led the ground attack with 65 yards on 15 carries, numbers the Eagles knew could have been much greater had BHS gained the upper hand anytime after intermission.
"Big Thirty-three," Theilen said of Hawkins. "We were trying to clog the whole middle, make sure the A- and B-gap wasn't there, and he just kept plowing! He's one heck of a tank."
Hawkins' 69-yard catch led all Bayfield receivers, while sophomore Crosby Edwards snared three passes for 28 yards, Prior three for 24 and Hilliker two for 46.
In victory, Kroll threw for 91 yards on 7-of-17 accuracy while Granados carried 16 times for 74 yards and Nagy 19 for 48.
Kroll netted minus-1 yard rushing on five attempts, while Farmer finished with five on nine.
"Got to hand it to Bayfield's offense; they just did a great job controlling the ball too," said Kroll. "Made it really hard for our defense."
"Personally, I feel let down that I couldn't give all these people and players who have given us so much one more home game at least," Heide said after an emotional final huddle. "It didn't happen, but I couldn't be more proud of how the guys played. To go 42-5 over the last four years, I love everyone for it."
Up next, Faith Christian will host 4-seed La Junta (11-0) in a semifinal game Saturday, Nov. 17, with the Tigers having ousted #5 Salida (9-2) by a 20-0 count in the quarters. Also alive are 2-seed Loveland Resurrection Christian (11-0) and #6 Kersey Platte Valley (11-0), who eliminated #7 Rifle (9-2) and #3 Basalt (9-2), respectively.
THE MISSING 'LINK': For all of Faith Christian's defensive work, possibly no play proved more crucial than when Abbott managed to stretch out his right hand and successfully obstruct Wolverine junior James Mottin's view of a long Farmer pass during the second quarter.
Having burned Abbott on the play but needing to slow down and wait for the ball to come to him, Mottin was unable to clearly see the ball into his hands, then backpedal into the end zone for what would have been a 47-yard touchdown just five plays after Kroll's go-ahead TD to Turner.
