The Bayfield football team doesn’t have a problem with traveling to away games, it has an unblemished record to show its road accomplishments.
But, normally being an undefeated, No. 1 seeded team means home-field advantage in the Colorado High School Activities Association state tournament. That is not the case for the Wolverines, who will travel to No. 9 Brush in the northeast corner of the state in the quarterfinals for a 1 p.m. kickoff Saturday.
That means the Wolverines will travel over 400 miles for the biggest game of the year. Bayfield football head coach Gary Heide understands rules are rules. In fact, Heide will use the brutal road trip as an opportunity to get his team inspired by going back to the place that triggered a season-worth of inspiration: Colorado State University–Pueblo.
Bayfield (9-0) has crushed every opponent during the regular season, and the intensity all started at a preseason camp at CSU-Pueblo. What happened in Pueblo helped cause a great season including the Wolverines’ 40-0 first round victory over No. 16 Manitou Springs last Saturday.
“We’ll take advantage of (the trip) and be back at (CSU-Pueblo), which is a nice place,” Heide said in a phone interview with The Durango Herald.
Heide’s team will load the buses early Friday morning for the trip to Pueblo, where Bayfield will have one more practice to get the team mentally ready before heading to Brighton for the rest of the night.
“We want to be at the spot where we really developed,” Heide said. “Obviously (CSU-Pueblo) is a great setting and facility. We just feel honored to practice on their field.”
According to CHSAA tournament rules, the higher seeded team shall be the host in the first round. In subsequent rounds, the team with the fewest number of home playoff games shall be the host.
If both teams have equal away games, the following criteria will determine the host: If opponents are from the same conference, the school with the higher conference standing in the regular season shall be the host. If opponents are not from the same conference, the higher seed shall host.
Since No. 9 Brush (7-3) beat No. 8 Moffat County 48-27 on the road, that means No. 1 Bayfield has to travel to play the Brush Beetdiggers.
Both Bayfield and Brush play a similar smash-mouth style of football that includes a stingy defense and stout running game.
“They have a lot of history; they have really good athletes and they’re playing their best ball right now,” Heide said. “Records go out the window, and we have to prepare for a very physical team, a very emotional team, a talented team and a well-coached team, as well.”
The Wolverines will have to prepare for senior running back Clay Shaver who rushed for 1,266 yards and 17 touchdowns in the regular season. In last Saturday’s win, Shaver racked up 197 yards on 21 carries for three scores. The Beetdiggers also have senior wide receiver BJ Hirschfeld, who had 106 yards of total offense between running and receiving against Moffat County.
Aside from Shaver, the Wolverines will also have to focus on running quarterback Arnaldo Maltos-Garcia, who ran for 434 yards in the regular season as a senior. Maltos-Garcia was held to 39 yards on the ground against Moffat County but was the leading tackler on defense with 10 total tackles.
The Beetdiggers will have their advantages of being home where they are 4-0 and will flaunt an offense that has scored 249 points this year. The downside of the Beetdiggers is that they’ve allowed 233 points this year. Their defense can be run against, as they’ve allowed an average of 325 yards rushing in their three losses to Sterling, Platte Valley and Fort Morgan, which are all playoff teams. For the Beetdiggers, they’ll have their hands full with Bayfield senior running back Zane Phelps.
“I don’t believe anyone can stop him. He’s been a horse for three years,” Heide said of Phelps. “We’ll be smart and have some strategy to enhance Phelps, but, in my mind, he can’t be stopped.”
In last week’s win against Manitou Springs, Phelps didn’t have his best game, but that was because Manitou Springs stacked its defense in order to stop Phelps, who still finished with 100 yards and three scores. Luckily for Heide, Bayfield has seniors Kelton McCoy, Brody Mcghehey, Wyatt Freier and Taed Heydinger to fall back on.
“We have a great quality quarterback,” Heide said of McCoy. “With our offensive line and our good receivers, that’s the luxury we have. We can see what type of rhythm we get into and see what works best.”
A cause for concern was Bayfield’s point-after attempts against Manitou Springs. The Wolverines went an embarrassing 2-for-6 in PATs. Heide said he addressed that issue this week.
“(The kids) might be fired up after the touchdown with no focus on the final play,” Heide said. “The main part is focus on the play after you score a touchdown.”
jmentzer@durangoherald.com
IF YOU GO
Who: No. 1 Bayfield at No. 9 Brush
What: CHSAA Class 2A State Football Playoffs, quarterfinals
When: 1 p.m., Saturday
Where: Brush, Colorado
Listen Live: KLJH 107.1 FM
Twitter: @jonathanmentzer
