Durango pummels Bayfield in perhaps final Vallecito Bowl

Friday, Sep 27, 2019 8:50 PM Updated Friday, Sep. 27, 2019 10:41 PM

Durango takes breath out of depleted Bayfield

Durango High School celebrates with the Vallecito Bowl trophy after beating Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Everett Howland of Durango High School leaps for a touchdown during the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Everett Howland of Durango High School rushes the ball after a handoff from Jordan Woolverton during the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Isaac Ross hands off to Dillon Vroman of Bayfield High School while playing Durango High School on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Bayfield High’s defense takes down Durango High quarterback Jordan Woolverton on Friday night.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School wins the toss before the start of the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

The Bayfield High School football run through the tunnel before the start of Friday nights game against Durango High School at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

The Bayfield High School football team touches the golden boulder as they take to the field before the start of Friday nights game against Durango High School at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High fans showed up for the Bayfield High School football game against Durango High School at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Bayfield High School cheerleader Kaeli Marx, 17, does a backflip before the Durango High School game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

A beautiful sunset during the Durango High School Bayfield High School game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School wins the toss before the start of the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango defense played tough against Byafiled High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride

Durango High School quarterback Jordan Woolverton calls out a play during the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Bayfield High School quarterback Isaac Ross throws the ball while playing Durango High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Everett Howland of Durango High School rushes the ball after a handoff from Jordan Woolverton during the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Everett Howland of Durango High School rushes the ball during the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School quarterback Jordan Woolverton passes the ball during the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Gage Mestas of Durango High School brings in a catch during the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Everett Howland of Durango High School leaps for a touchdown during the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Bayfield High School defense takes down Durango High School quarterback Jordan Woolverton on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Cael Schaefer of Bayfield High School runs the ball while playing Durango High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School and Bayfield High School line up during the game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Isaac Ross hands off to Dillon Vroman of Bayfield High School while playing Durango High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango defense played tough against Byafiled High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride

Number 24 of Bayfield High School runs the ball against Durango High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School defense swarms the Bayfield High School offense during the game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School blocks a Bayfield High School punt during the game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Bayfield High School cheerleaders cheer on their team during the Durango High School game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Bayfield High School defense tries to stop the Durango High School offense on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Bayfield High School fans filled the stands for the Durango High School game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School head coach David Vogt congratulates his players during the Bayfield High School game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School defense played hard against Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Gage Mestas of Durango High School is upended by James Mars of Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Bayfield High School fans filled the stands for the Durango High School game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Ben Finneseth of Durango High School brings in a touchdown reception against Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School players congratulate each other during the Bayfield High School game on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High fans showed up for the Bayfield High School football game against Durango High School at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Colby Basye of Durango High School holds the Vallecito Bowl trophy after beating Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School head coach is all smiles after beating Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School celebrates with the Vallecito Bowl trophy after beating Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Colby Basye of Durango High School holds the Vallecito Bowl trophy after beating Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Durango High School celebrates with the Vallecito Bowl trophy after beating Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS. Photo by Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

A depleted Bayfield High School football team never had a chance Friday night against cross-county rival Durango.

Durango, the ninth-ranked team in Colorado Class 3A football, never gave Bayfield a chance to breathe in a 55-0 victory Friday night at Wolverine Country Stadium in Bayfield.

The night marked the end of a renewed four-game series between the varsity teams of Durango and Bayfield after the teams hadn’t faced each other from 1936 until 2016. Durango went 3-1 during the four games, with a 14-6 overtime win in 2016, a 32-16 win in 2018 and Friday night’s blowout. It was the 20-13 Bayfield win in 2017 that was still in the Demons’ minds when they returned to Wolverine Country Stadium for the first time since that loss. Durango improved to 16-1-1 all time in the series against Bayfield with Friday night’s win.

“The one year we lost, we should have won,” said DHS senior linebacker and running back Everett Howland. “Every week we weren’t playing Bayfield, we had Bayfield on our minds. To come out on top the last time we play them, it feels even better.”

Bayfield (1-3), which made a habit of beating its opponents by lopsided margins during the previous four seasons, was on the wrong end of the mercy-rule running clock when Durango took a 41-0 lead after the first play of the second quarter. A Bayfield team that won two Class 2A state championships in 2015 and 2017 will now try to regroup before league play begins and hope to continue its streak of four consecutive Class 2A Intermountain League championships.

“I have a whole lot of belief in us,” BHS head coach Gary Heide said. “I see scores out there, and I think there are good teams but maybe not any teams that aren’t unbeatable. Alamosa got beat tonight, so I know we can beat them, too. Even though I’d rather be 1-3 and we are at a low point right now, no doubt about it. If we can somehow get healthy and get back, I really believe we can go win that IML. I’d rather be 4-0, but we’re 0-0 in league.”

Durango High School quarterback Jordan Woolverton passes the ball against Bayfield High School on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Winning league will be a difficult task for a Wolverines team that was already without 12 injured starters Friday night and saw a couple more players shaken up against Durango. Star running back Dylan Hilliker has been out all season, and he was joined on the sidelines by skill position players such as James Mottin, Dawson French, Crosby Edwards, Cade Carlson and Trenton Harrison as well as big lineman Ethan Morris. Heide hopes to get even six or seven players back healthy before next week’s league opener at Alamosa.

Bayfield, which often held opponents to negative offensive yards and scarce first downs during its recent glory years, was held to only one first down and less than 10 yards of offense in the first half by the smothering Durango defense.

“Our physicality wasn’t quite where it would be with five or six older kids out,” Heide said. “Even simple game experience, we’re lacking that. You could see a lot of our guys not only are not the most physical guys out there, but they’re struggling with where to go, what to do. It kind of snowballed there, and it’s kind of double for us when it comes to game experience right now because we are not able to continue a JV schedule this year.”

Durango High School and Bayfield High School line up during the game on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Meanwhile, Durango (3-2) totaled 85 rushing yards and 182 passing yards in the first half alone, as junior quarterback Jordan Woolverton passed for five touchdowns on 7-of-7 passing.

“It was definitely a bit easier,” said Woolverton. “But Bayfield is still a good team. They were down a lot of their great guys, and they’ll be a good team and bounce back in 2A and should go deep in the playoffs this year.”

Durango’s defense forced a quick Bayfield punt to open the game. The Demons then went 51 yards on five plays, and Woolverton hit Chase Robertson on a 9-yard TD pass to open the scoring. Woolverton ran for a 2-point conversion to make it 8-0 with 10 minutes to go in the first quarter.

Showing no mercy, Durango had an onside kick and Woolverton recovered on the Bayfield 47.

“They left that hole open, and we’ve talked that if anyone leaves that hole open, we’re taking advantage of it,” DHS head coach David Vogt said of the onside kick.

Gage Mestas of Durango High School brings in a catch during the Bayfield game on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

Woolverton then aired out a 38-yard pass to Gage Mestas and then a 9-yard TD pass to Howland that made it 14-0 with 9:35 to go in the first quarter.

It got ugly for Bayfield on the next series of downs. Punting from his own end zone, John Foutz had a punt sky straight in the air and fall on the Bayfield 4-yard line. Everyone cleared away from the ball as it came to rest, and Howland raced in and picked it up for Durango and walked untouched into the end zone for a TD that made it 21-0 with 8 minutes to go in the first quarter.

Durango blocked the next Bayfield punt and got the ball on the Bayfield 9-yard line. With 5:49 to go in the first quarter, Howland ran for a 9-yard TD to make it 27-0.

The Demons would add scores on Woolverton-to-Mestas passing touchdowns of 77 and 13 yards before Woolverton capped off the first half with a 25-yard TD pass to Ben Finneseth. Mestas was questionable to play because of a shoulder injury, and Woolverton was thrilled to have his big-play threat on the field.

Everett Howland of Durango High School rushes the ball against Bayfield High on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

“The shoulder is healing up, and it was great to be out here with the boys,” Mestas said. “Credit to our line doing what they did to give us so many opportunities.”

The lone first down of the first half for Bayfield came as time expired in the second quarter when Isaac Ross connected with James Mars on a pass.

“Our defensive ends do a great job containing, and our corners keep guys inside,” Howland said. “It keeps our linebackers free, and it feels great to get those free hits.”

Durango capped off a long scoring drive of nine plays on a 3-yard TD run by Nate Messier to end the third quarter. That made it 55-0 going to the fourth quarter.

“Bayfield, their line has carried them into the playoffs every year, and I think our line is doing that this year,” Howland said.

In the fourth quarter, Bayfield mounted a real offensive drive. Cael Schaefer converted a fourth-and-2 on a nice run and had a facemask penalty move the ball out to the Bayfield 38. Brecken Espinosa then had two strong runs to get into Durango territory for the first time with two minutes to go in the fourth quarter. Bayfield tried a double pass, as Epinosa caught a ball and heaved one deep for Schaefer, but the pass went just long. Ross then tried a deep pass, but it also went long.

Cael Schaefer of Bayfield High School runs the ball while playing Durango High School on Friday night at BHS.

Jerry McBride/Durango Herald

On its final chance to score, Ross threw another deep ball that was intercepted by Woolverton to bring the game to a merciful end. It was a fitting finish. An interception by Bayfield in the closing minute sealed the victory for the Wolverines on the same field in 2017.

“It felt really good to end the game with an interception,” Woolverton said. “It was a memory throwback, but this time it was with us winning. It was a fun game, fun environment, and I loved every second of it.”

Next week, Bayfield will hit the road to face top-10 Alamosa, which beat previously top-ranked La Junta this season.

The Demons will have a bye to prepare for play in the 3A South Central League with the opener at 6 p.m. Oct. 11 against Pueblo Centennial at the CSU-Pueblo Thunder Bowl.

“A bye week for recovery, get our muscles bigger and get ready for the Pueblo teams,” Mestas said. “That Pueblo South game, especially. That’s going to be a big one.”

jlivingston@durangoherald.com