When the Dolores football team made the transition from 11-man to 8-man football a couple seasons ago, the Bears plunged headfirst into arguably Colorado’s toughest league in small-school football.
With a steep learning curve during that span, the Bears (2-7 in 2023) hope that the improvements they implemented last fall carry over into bigger leaps in 2024 – and if so, Bear football fans have plenty to be optimistic this season.
DHS welcomes in new head coach Travis Rantz, who steps up from his assistant role to take the helm for a youthful squad.
Rantz brings back a bevy of talent from last year’s squad that posted the program’s best win total and most points scored since 2018. Included in that returning group, junior Michael Rantz demonstrated himself to be one of the most dynamic players in the Mountain League, serving as the team’s top receiver and special teams returner. Along with Rantz, senior Tray Traweek, who started at quarterback his first three years in black-and-red, has taken on the vocal leadership to push their teammates this offseason.
Anchoring the line, senior Micah Vrtatko has played a pivotal role in the Bears’ ability to control the point of attack. “Micah really stepped up for this summer, and we’re happy to see him really taking on a leadership role,” mentioned the head coach of his nose guard.
The wrestling team connection, with DHS wrestling coach Casen Eldridge also on Rantz’ coaching staff, has brought an elevated work ethic to both sports. Dual sport athletes Jacob Stepp, Nathan Hill, and River Wickstrom, along with newcomer Aidan Sweat and junior Deven Winter emerged through the offseason.
Travis Rantz, who coached many of the current athletes during their middle school years, looks forward to the challenge of playing in a league that boasts the last two state champions. He’ll lean on his coaching staff to each provide a different element to practices while the Bears continue to gain cohesion on the field. “We’ve got a good rapport with the athletes,” said Rantz of his background with the kids, “and it’s nice to have those different layers within the coaching staff, from the fire-up coach (Eldridge) to the discipline coach (Dustin Russell) – I’m able to step back and direct traffic,” said Rantz.
“Continuous improvement, that’s what we’re wanting,” added Rantz, “we’ve had kids going to camps, hitting the weights, doing the workouts throughout the offseason – and that’s going to help create that improvement.”
The Bears get into the season with a new opponent for their opener, when they face Justice on Friday, Aug. 30 at 2 p.m. in a neutral site game at Sargent. After a trip to Monticello on the following Friday, the Bears open their home schedule with three straight weekends on their home turf. The Bears play Rangely on Sept. 13 at 7 p.m., before their homecoming game against Whitehorse on Sept. 20. Mancos pays a visit on Thursday, Sept. 26 to open up league play.
From there, the Bears face the rest of the Mountain League slate, facing Sargent (Oct. 4) and Dove Creek (Oct. 18) on the road before returning home to face Sanford (Oct. 25) on Senior Day. The Bears cap off the regular season with a trip to Norwood on Nov. 1.
“The kids are playing as a unit and feeding off each other,” said Rantz, “there’s no friction in the locker room, and they’re able to stay positive – and that’s the mentality that we’re taking into each practice – and it’s a good feeling.”
