Durango High School’s football team had a nearly perfect regular season. The Demons outscored their opponents 378 to 170, won nine of 10 games and finished second in the Pikes Peak League behind a No. 1 Pine Creek team that hasn’t lost since 2013. None of that matters now.
It’s win or go home from this point forward as the No. 5 Demons will open the Colorado High School Activities Association Class 4A State Football Playoffs this Saturday at home against No. 12 Aurora Central. The winner will face either No. 4 Vista Ridge or No. 13 Loveland.
Aurora Central finished the regular season with an 8-2 record. The Trojans came in third place in the 4A Mountain League. After starting the season 7-0, they sputtered down the stretch with losses to No. 8 Wheat Ridge and No. 10 Denver South in two of their last three games by a combined score of 79-14.
“We’ve got some film on them, and it looks like they have a bunch of good athletes on this team,” Durango head coach David Vogt said Sunday after state seedings were announced. “They’re big, fast and they’re run heavy. They love to run the ball.”
The Trojans have had plenty of success on the ground. They averaged 307 rushing yards per game during the regular season to only 53 passing yards. Junior running back Francisco Aranda has been the most successful runner in a crowded Aurora Central backfield. He leads the Trojans in rushing yards (922) and carries (123). He rushed for over 100 yards in four of the Trojans’ 10 games, and his 261-yard performance in a 34-6 blowout against George Washington was the highlight of his season. Aranda also leads the team on defense at the outside linebacker position where he’s racked up a team-high 63 tackles.
Containing Aranda will be a top priority for the Demons if they want to advance to the next round. Denver South limited the junior to five yards on seven carries and came away with a 42-0 rout in the process.
If Aranda isn’t carrying the pigskin, it’s likely senior running back Taevon Jordan will take the handoff. Jordan’s 677 rushing yards are second on the team and his eight touchdowns lead the Trojans.
When Vogt says Aurora Central is “run heavy,” he isn’t joking. Both Aranda and Jordan have accumulated more rushing yards than the 492 passing yards junior quarterback Jalil Grimes has thrown for this season. Grimes has only thrown for 100 or more yards in one game and has completed more than five passes in a game once. Throughout the regular season, the Trojans ran 70 passing plays to 445 running plays.
“We’ll lean on our big guys up front again,” Vogt said. “They’ve been setting the tone all season on both sides of the ball, and we’ll need another big game from them to beat these guys.”
The group of Diego Arias, Max Hyson, Laitham Johnson, Jack Madden, Sterling Worley and company have been rock solid this year for Durango. They’ve shut down runners and caused havoc in opponents’ backfields time after time.
On offense, the same guys up front have plowed through defensive lines to open gaping holes for senior running back Lawrence Mayberry, who rushed for at least 100 yards in nine of 10 games this season. He’s showing no signs of fatigue, rushing for 799 yards in the last five games.
“That’s our M.O.,” Vogt said. “We’re going to run the ball, and if they stack the box we’ll spread it around.”
Spreading it around is something senior quarterback Terrence Trujillo has no problem doing. He’s thrown 24 touchdown passes this season, 14 to senior wide receiver Lucas Baken. If nobody is open, Trujillo is comfortable taking off. His 681 rushing yards are second on the team, and his 109 yards last week in a 48-6 win against Rampart were a season high.
“We’ve got a lot of weapons on offense but our offensive line is really good,” said Trujillo, son of Geno and Nicole Trujillo. “They deserve a lot of the credit. Without them, we wouldn’t have the success we’ve had.”
jfries@durangoherald.com
If You Go
Who: No. 12 Aurora Central at No. 5 Durango
What: CHSAA Class 4A State Football Playoffs, first round
Where: Durango High School
When: Noon, Saturday
Listen Live: KKDG 99.7 FM
Twitter: @The7thFreezer
Ticket Info: Gates open at 10 a.m. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. No presale tickets are available. General admission is $8. Students and adults 60-and-over will cost $5. Kids 4-and-under get in free. Only CHSAA and CHSCA passes will be accepted.
