Class 5A
1. Cherry Creek (10-0) won at Grandview, 52-15: The defending 5A champions capped a dominant run through the 5A Centennial League with their 23rd straight victory. Grandview avoided being Creek’s fourth straight shutout victim, but Creek gave up just 27 total points in league play while posting a cumulative score of 241-27. A bye week and the top seed in the 5A state playoffs await. Next week: TBD.
2. Ralston Valley (10-0) won vs. No. 4 Arvada West, 49-20: No Zeke Andrews? No problem. Junior backup Logan Gabler threw three TD passes and sophomore Levi Rillos scored on runs of 5 and 67 yards and hauled in a 60-yard touchdown as the Mustangs claimed the 5A Metro League title with their star QB unavailable. Ralston Valley added a pair of defensive touchdowns, with senior Hunter Essenpreis returning an interception 55 yards for a score and Nico Benallo returning a fumble for a TD, to hand A-West its first loss of the season. Next week: TBD.
3. Mountain Vista (10-0) won vs. Castle View, 56-7: Junior QB Marquise Reese had more touchdown passes (5) than incompletions (2) as the Golden Eagles put the finishing touches on a second straight unbeaten regular season in style. Reese finished with 317 yards on 19-of-21 passing, with junior Brooklyn Bailey (6 catches, 134 yards, 3 TDs) and senior Ja’Pree Jennings (9 catches, 106 yards, 1 TD) both topping the century mark. Reese also added a rushing score as part of a 49-7 first half. Next week: TBD.
4. Arvada West (9-1) lost at No. 2 Ralston Valley, 49-20: The Wildcats defense had few answers against their cross-town rivals, and Logan Duhachek’s 1-yard TD plunge was all the points A-West could muster in a 35-7 first half that was too much to overcome. Next week: TBD.
5. Legend (9-1) won vs. Regis Jesuit, 42-28: The Titans scored 28 unanswered points in the second half to avoid a stunning upset and preserve their hopes of landing a top-four seed in the 5A state playoffs. Next week: TBD.
6. Valor Christian (8-2) won vs. Rock Canyon, 42-7: Senior Chase Hanosh gobbled up 159 yards and two touchdowns on three carries, junior Jackson Coleman ripped off 103 yards and two TDs on three catches, and the Valor offensive machine fired on all cylinders in the Eagles’ fourth straight blowout win to close out the regular season. Sophomore QB Titus Huard had 136 yards and two TDs on 6-of-7 passing, and senior Dakota Rich added a pick-6. Next week: TBD.
7. Fairview (9-1) won vs. Rocky Mountain, 63-21: Sabi Ruttgers returned the opening kickoff for a TD and found the end zone three more times after that — once rushing and two other times on passes from Ki Ellison — to cap the Knights’ fourth straight unbeaten league championship run. Toray Davis ran in four TDs of his own and Fairview matched its highest point total of the season. Next week: TBD.
8. Pine Creek (7-3) won vs. No. 9 Fountain-Fort Carson, 14-7: Xavier Lukes ran in touchdowns from 2 and 32 yards out, the last coming with 15 seconds left in the third quarter, and the Eagles held on from there to escape with a critical win for postseason seeding. Next week: TBD.
9. Fountain-Fort Carson (7-3) lost at No. 8 Pine Creek, 14-7: The Trojans took an early 7-0 lead on Da’kari Releford Jr.’s 8-yard run in the first quarter, but Pine Creek shut them out the rest of the way and scored twice in the second half to win the defensive slugfest. Next week: TBD.
10. Mullen (6-4) won vs. Rangeview, 52-30: Senior QB Cole Parsons’ touchdown run just before halftime gave the Mustangs a 29-9 lead at the break, and a scoring strike to Michigan TE commit Mason Bonner put the game away for good up 45-15 in the fourth. Mullen now awaits its playoff seeding after the program’s first league title since 2016. Next week: TBD.
Class 4A
1. Dakota Ridge (10-0) won at Bear Creek, 49-14: The Eagles locked up the top seed in the 4A playoffs for the second straight season behind an explosive night from Nathan Rodriguez. The senior nabbed a pair of touchdown passes from senior QB Kellen Behrendsen, and tacked on a punt return TD after that to give Dakota Ridge a 21-0 lead after one quarter. Behrendsen tossed two more TD passes to Jaxson Arnold and Coby Stewart as the Eagles took a 42-7 edge into halftime and cruised from there. Next week: TBD.
2. Montrose (10-0) won at No. 9 Pueblo West, 23-6: Elijah Womack ran in a pair of touchdowns and two-point conversions to give the Red Hawks a 16-0 halftime lead, then Ryan Pankey put things away with a touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter as Montrose completed its second consecutive 10-win regular season. Next week: TBD.
3. Palmer Ridge (10-0) won at Liberty, 58-7: Senior Cole Harris threw touchdown passes to three different receivers and also ran in two scores as seven different Bears got in the end zone to complete Palmer Ridge’s third 10-0 regular season in four years. A No. 2 seed is likely for the Bears in the 4A playoffs. Next week: TBD.
4. Riverdale Ridge (10-0) won at Grand Junction Central, 42-13: Senior backup QB Landon Banks kept the Ravens train rolling with 196 yards and two TDs on 17-of-23 passing and a pair of rushing TDs to secure the first unbeaten regular season in program history. Senior Jeter McArthur hauled in four passes for 83 yards and a score, while senior Diego Galvan carried the ball 16 times for 73 yards and a TD, and junior Dean Presswood returned a kickoff for a TD. The Ravens entered Friday night 10th in the CHSAA seeding index, meaning they needed help to get a first-round bye in the 4A playoffs. Next week: TBD.
5. Durango (8-2) won at Vista Ridge, 24-14: The Demons staked claim to a top-four seed in the 4A state playoffs after junior QB Grady Feeney ran for a pair of touchdowns and threw for another in Durango’s third straight win to finish the regular season. Next week: TBD.
6. Broomfield (8-2) won vs. Skyline, 47-0: The Eagles bounced back from last week’s loss to Riverdale Ridge in a big way, with Gavin Janssen running in a pair of touchdowns and Jacory Ellis returning an interception for a score in Broomfield’s second shutout of the season. Next week: TBD.
7. Monarch (8-2) won at Silver Creek, 49-7: The Coyotes scored 35 points between the second and third quarters to finish off their second straight unbeaten run through league play and keep their hopes of a first-round bye in the 4A state playoffs alive. Next week: TBD.
8. Sand Creek (9-1) lost vs. Grand Junction, 56-13: The Scorpions’ dream season came to a heartbreaking end in a do-or-die clash for the I-25 League title. Senior running back Ethan Mangrum (20 carries, 140 yards, 1 TD) submitted another gem, but Grand Junction exploded for 42 points between the second and third quarters to run away with its second consecutive crown in a league that’s only given one spot in the 24-team 4A bracket.
9. Pueblo West (7-3) lost vs. No. 2 Montrose, 23-6: The Cyclones defense did as well as anyone against Montrose’s blunt force offense, holding the Red Hawks to a season-low 23 points. But an early fourth-quarter touchdown run was all Pueblo West could muster on offense. Next week: TBD.
10. Heritage (7-3) won vs. Ponderosa, 35-14: Senior Mo Thennel (24 carries, 164 yards, 2 TDs) and sophomore Cooper Schwartz (15 carries, 123 yards, 2 TDs) took turns shredding the Mustangs defense, and senior QB Jamison Seese scored another as the Eagles slowly pulled away to all but lock up a first-round bye in the 4A state playoffs. Next week: TBD.
Class 3A
1. Windsor (9-0) won vs. No. 4 Mead, 23-0. Next week: at Greeley Central, 7 p.m. Nov. 7.
2. Pomona (8-1) won at Fort Morgan, 65-14. Next week: vs. No. 6 Thompson Valley, 7 p.m. Nov. 6.
3. Holy Family (8-1) won at Hinkley, 62-0. Next week: vs. Standley Lake, 6 p.m. Nov. 6.
4. Mead (7-2) lost at No. 1 Windsor, 23-0. Next week: at Niwot, 7 p.m. Nov. 6.
5. Roosevelt (6-3) won vs. No. 6 Thompson Valley, 34-22. Next week: at Mountain View, 7 p.m. Nov. 7.
6. Thompson Valley (7-2) lost at No. 5 Roosevelt, 34-22. Next week: at No. 2 Pomona, 7 p.m. Nov. 6.
7. Lutheran (6-3) won vs. Littleton, 59-6. Next week: at Kennedy, 6 p.m. Nov. 6.
8. Eagle Valley (9-1) lost vs. No. 9 Palisade, 28-10. Next week: Bye.
9. Palisade (7-2) won vs. No. 8 Eagle Valley, 28-10. Next week: at Glenwood Springs, 7 p.m. Nov. 7.
10. Pueblo East (5-4) lost vs. Coronado, 24-21. Next week: vs. Pueblo County, 7 p.m. Nov. 6.
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