Saturday’s 4A state quarterfinal between No. 4 seed Durango High School football and No. 5 Heritage High School had everything a fan could want, except Durango fans saw their team lose, 45-36.
The game had long passing touchdowns, long receiving touchdowns, fumble recoveries, interceptions, kickoff return touchdowns.
Momentum swung multiple times with a combined seven turnovers and long touchdowns, but Durango couldn’t stop the run in the second half. With the game tied at the half, Heritage senior running back Mo Thenell had three 20+ yard touchdowns, senior quarterback Jamison Seese had an 81-yard touchdown, and junior running back Cash Rubenzer had a 62-yard touchdown, all in the second half.
Thenell was the catalyst for all of the rushing offense in the second half. At 5-foot-10-inches and 210 pounds, he looked like a high school version of star NFL running back Derrick Henry. He bulldozed over numerous Durango defenders, broke countless tackles and outran Durango defenders for scores, wearing down the Durango defense as the game went along.
He finished with around 200 yards and three scores; all three of his scores happened after he changed cleats late in the first half to help deal with the slippery Durango turf.
Durango had its moments on offense with big plays, but the three first-half turnovers, and the inability to stop the run in the second half ended the Demons’ season.
“It sucks, but like I said the whole year, I'm proud of how these kids fought,” Durango head coach Hunter Holmes said. “It's a perfect storyline, outside of winning a state championship, for what these kids have gone through. This game shows the fight of the senior class and why they're going to be great husbands, great fathers, great everything.”
Durango ended its season at 9-3 overall. The Demons’ three losses were to teams ranked inside the top five of 4A. Junior quarterback Grady Feeney finished 5/13 passing for 179 yards, one passing touchdown and two interceptions. Feeney also led the Demons with 23 rushes for 131 yards, two touchdowns and a fumble.
Senior running back Gus Halls finished his career with 12 rushes for 105 yards and a touchdown. Senior wide receiver Seb Tripp finished with two receptions for 101 yards, a receiving touchdown and an 80-yard kickoff return touchdown.
Heritage improved to 9-3 overall with the win. Seese finished with a passing touchdown, a rushing touchdown and three interceptions.
“We had to battle hard,” Heritage head coach Tyler Knoblock said. “Holy smokes, Durango was ready to play today, and they've got some absolute just phenomenal athletes, a couple of those guys that we just had to know where they were all the time … At the end of the day, we do believe a lot in our defense and our offensive line.”
The game didn’t start on the best note for the Demons. They drove it into Heritage territory before Feeney threw his first pass, a deep ball, toward junior wide receiver Mason Miller. It was underthrown and was easily intercepted by the Eagles with eight minutes left.
Durango had two chances to get Heritage off the field on third down; the third third down was the charm, as sophomore linebacker Hayes Fancher dropped Seese on a read option to bring up 4th-and-9 and end the first quarter. Heritage hit the 26-yard field goal for the 3-0 lead with 11:55 left in the second quarter.
The Demons turned it over again to start the second quarter. Feeney was battling for an extra yard when he coughed up the ball. Heritage recovered and two players later, Seese found his receiver wide-open for the 30-yard score. The Eagles led 10-0 with 11:07 left in the second quarter.
Durango’s defense stepped up on the next drive. On 3rd-and-long, Seese threw into double coverage, and junior Presley English was there for the contested interception.
After multiple failed passing attempts, Feeney finally connected on a deep ball to McInnes for 63 yards. The Heritage defensive back was caught looking in the backfield, and McInnes got behind him. The drive stalled, and senior kicker Dylan Burns hit a great 42-yard field goal to make it 10-3 Heritage with 2:51 left in the first half.
The next three minutes were chaos. Seese attempted a screen pass that was juggled and intercepted by Ayden Casias in the red zone. On Durango’s next play, Feeney threw into triple coverage and got intercepted.
A big Thenell run helped get Heritage in the red zone. On 3rd-and-long, Seese threw another interception to English. On Durango’s first play with 26 seconds left, Feeney found Tripp over the middle. The Heritage linebacker slipped, and Tripp broke a few tackles for a 95-yard score. Durango and Heritage were somehow tied at 10 going into the second half.
“That’s exactly what you would expect out of Seb to have that kind of effort and never stop believing,” Holmes said about Tripp.
Heritage looked like it was off the field after a 3-and-out, but the Eagles’ punt hit a Durango blocker on the bounce, and Heritage recovered on the 30-yard line. It took Thenell one play to find the end zone for his 30-yard score, giving Heritage a 17-10 lead with 10:52 left in the third.
Durango responded with its first rushing score of the day. Feeney pitched it to Halls, who found a hole up the left side. He took it the distance down the left side for the 72-yard score. The game was tied, 17-17, with 4:30 left in the third.
The Demons looked like they had the momentum with the Eagles’ offense on 3rd-and-16. Seese had the answer with an 81-yard scramble up the right side for the score. Heritage led 24-17 with 2:03 left in the third.
Heritage kept at least a seven-point lead throughout the fourth quarter because neither team could stop the other.
Heritage increased its lead to 31-17 with 10:52 left, thanks to a 22-yard Thenell rush up the middle for the score. Feeney then rushed the Demons down the field and lowered his shoulder from 2 yards out for the score. Durango trailed 31-24 with 5:50 left. Once again, Heritage had the response with a 62-yard score from Rubezner up the middle to regain its 14-point lead, 38-24.
Tripp took the kick return 82 yards for the touchdown and just like that, Heritage led 38-30 with 4:24 left. But Seese converted a 4th-and-4 with his legs, and Thenell sealed the win with a 23-yard touchdown to put Heritage up 45-30 with two minutes left.
The Demons will lose a lot of talented skill players in Tripp, McInnes and Halls. Most of the starting offensive and defensive lines will be gone, and the Demons will have to find a new kicker and punter to replace Burns. Durango will have Feeney and Miller returning to help lead the offense.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
