PUEBLO – After a season with the loftiest achievements in program history, the high-flying Mancos Bluejays soared into Pueblo in search of their first-ever state title in football.
Under the Friday night lights of the ThunderBowl in Pueblo, however, No. 1 Haxtun proved to be too much for Mancos, picking up their program’s eighth state title, and first since 2004, in a 40-0 win over the Jays.In a matchup of two of the state's best offenses, No. 2 Mancos (11-1) and the Fightin’ Bulldogs (13-0) would pit their strengths against one another. The Bluejays, led by the most prolific rusher in program history – senior Chase Moore – would test their mettle against a stout Haxtun defense, which has allowed only 10 points per contest this season.
Meanwhile, a battle-tested Mancos defense, coming off one of its best games of the season in a semifinal win over Sanford, would look to contain the multipronged Bulldog attack, led by 1,500-yard rusher Isaac Andersen, a senior.
Several hundred traveling fans welcomed the Bluejays to the turf field on the campus of Colorado State University-Pueblo, fired up by the program’s maiden voyage to a state championship game. With an electric atmosphere, the Jays would see the football first, ready to set the tone.
Junior quarterback Ayden Mathews completed his first pass of the night, a laser to senior receiver Kruiz Wagoner, setting up the Mancos offense with a fourth-and-short on their own side of midfield. Head coach Josh Gardner opted to go for the first down, but the Bulldogs stuffed the run to take over at the Mancos 42 for their first possession.
From there, Haxtun seized the early momentum, marching down the short field using a mix of three different weapons, Andersen, junior Michael Gerk, and the savvy decision-making of fleet-footed quarterback Owen Knode. A two-minute drive saw the Bulldogs move into the red zone, before Andersen’s 5-yard burst put the Bulldogs on the board. With Knode sneaking in on the conversion, Haxtun led 8-0 four minutes into the contest.
Mancos sought to respond, and gained a first down on the ensuing drive, thanks to a 13-yard sweep from Moore. Working across midfield, Mancos’ second drive eventually fizzled as well, forcing the Jays to punt.
Senior Evan Sehnert belted a high punt inside the Haxtun 20, giving the Bulldogs a long field to face. For Haxtun head coach JD Stone, a player on the program’s last title in 2004, the longer field gave his offense more time to showcase its arsenal of plays. The Bulldogs steadily churned out first downs en route to an 80-yard scoring drive, capped by Gerk’s 3-yard run. Early in the second quarter, the Jays found themselves in unfamiliar territory, behind by two scores for the first time all season.
From there, Haxtun capitalized on the first of four Mancos turnovers, as an interception set up a short field. One play later, Knode found junior wide receiver Kyle Fryrear from 38 yards out to make the score 22-0. Then after a pair of stalled drives, Haxtun added two more scores before the break, the second for Andersen and first for senior Ozzy Coss.
Mancos emerged from the locker room, trailing 34-0, with ambition to turn the script. The Jays recovered an onside kick to begin the half and started to move the ball into Haxtun territory. However, a turnover on downs ended the threat. Knode and the Haxtun offense would waste little time in making the Jays pay, as the senior QB found Fryrear a second time, and the 40-0 score would put the game out of reach.
Senior defensive linemen Mason Goodwin and Jesse Henry, so instrumental in the Bluejays dominance all season, battled well all night, and sophomores Chris Medina and Broc Imel seemed to be in the middle of every defensive stop. Sophomore Cole Dainty-Guilfoyle collected a couple of stops for a loss as the defense tried to slow down the high-powered Bulldogs.
On the offensive line, seniors Andres Moreno and Luika Cova joined forces with junior Lane Greenlee to allow Moore lanes to operate, but Haxtun shut down all the Mancos threatening drives.
Ultimately, Haxtun would hoist the trophy, while Mancos would settle for the runner-up prize, received by the Bluejays’ senior captains with their heads held high.
Gardner, whose journey has coincided with the seniors’ four years of success, was quick to praise their opposition. “They're a tough team,” said Gardner. “Our kids played hard, but the chips didn’t fall the way we wanted them to tonight.”
Eleven Bluejays would see their high school football careers come to a close in a place that no other Jay had ever tread – in the state title game. Mancos posted a 32-6 record and a pair of Mountain League titles during that run, setting a high bar for upcoming classes.
“Our leadership was tremendous this year,” Gardner said about the senior players. “We've really come together – and I couldn’t be more proud of our boys.”
Along with this year's achievements, the Bluejays set a program best for wins in a season (11) and a win in their first ever state semifinal. They made a clear statement to the community that Mancos football was developing a tradition as one of the hardest-working teams in the state.
“This whole season has been a perfect storm,” Gardner said. “The kids have been buying into the program, the coaches are sending a unified message, and the support from the community has been awesome – they've been buying into the program, too.”
Looking at the season as a whole, even with the tough state game loss, Gardner put the result into perspective. “It's hard to tell them now, but we know that one day, we'll look back and be extremely proud of this season.”
In a matchup of two of the state's best offenses, No. 2 Mancos (11-1) and the Fightin’ Bulldogs (13-0) would pit their strengths against one another. The Bluejays, led by the most prolific rusher in program history – senior Chase Moore – would test their mettle against a stout Haxtun defense, which has allowed only 10 points per contest this season.
Meanwhile, a battle-tested Mancos defense, coming off one of its best games of the season in a semifinal win over Sanford, would look to contain the multipronged Bulldog attack, led by 1,500-yard rusher Isaac Andersen, a senior.
Several hundred traveling fans welcomed the Bluejays to the turf field on the campus of Colorado State University-Pueblo, fired up by the program’s maiden voyage to a state championship game. With an electric atmosphere, the Jays would see the football first, ready to set the tone.
Junior quarterback Ayden Mathews completed his first pass of the night, a laser to senior receiver Kruiz Wagoner, setting up the Mancos offense with a fourth-and-short on their own side of midfield. Head coach Josh Gardner opted to go for the first down, but the Bulldogs stuffed the run to take over at the Mancos 42 for their first possession.
From there, Haxtun seized the early momentum, marching down the short field using a mix of three different weapons, Andersen, junior Michael Gerk, and the savvy decision-making of fleet-footed quarterback Owen Knode. A two-minute drive saw the Bulldogs move into the red zone, before Andersen’s 5-yard burst put the Bulldogs on the board. With Knode sneaking in on the conversion, Haxtun led 8-0 four minutes into the contest.
Mancos sought to respond, and gained a first down on the ensuing drive, thanks to a 13-yard sweep from Moore. Working across midfield, Mancos’ second drive eventually fizzled as well, forcing the Jays to punt.
Senior Evan Sehnert belted a high punt inside the Haxtun 20, giving the Bulldogs a long field to face. For Haxtun head coach JD Stone, a player on the program’s last title in 2004, the longer field gave his offense more time to showcase its arsenal of plays. The Bulldogs steadily churned out first downs en route to an 80-yard scoring drive, capped by Gerk’s 3-yard run. Early in the second quarter, the Jays found themselves in unfamiliar territory, behind by two scores for the first time all season.
From there, Haxtun capitalized on the first of four Mancos turnovers, as an interception set up a short field. One play later, Knode found junior wide receiver Kyle Fryrear from 38 yards out to make the score 22-0. Then after a pair of stalled drives, Haxtun added two more scores before the break, the second for Andersen and first for senior Ozzy Coss.
Mancos emerged from the locker room, trailing 34-0, with ambition to turn the script. The Jays recovered an onside kick to begin the half and started to move the ball into Haxtun territory. However, a turnover on downs ended the threat. Knode and the Haxtun offense would waste little time in making the Jays pay, as the senior QB found Fryrear a second time, and the 40-0 score would put the game out of reach.
Senior defensive linemen Mason Goodwin and Jesse Henry, so instrumental in the Bluejays dominance all season, battled well all night, and sophomores Chris Medina and Broc Imel seemed to be in the middle of every defensive stop. Sophomore Cole Dainty-Guilfoyle collected a couple of stops for a loss as the defense tried to slow down the high-powered Bulldogs.
On the offensive line, seniors Andres Moreno and Luika Cova joined forces with junior Lane Greenlee to allow Moore lanes to operate, but Haxtun shut down all the Mancos threatening drives.
Ultimately, Haxtun would hoist the trophy, while Mancos would settle for the runner-up prize, received by the Bluejays’ senior captains with their heads held high.
Gardner, whose journey has coincided with the seniors’ four years of success, was quick to praise their opposition. “They're a tough team,” said Gardner. “Our kids played hard, but the chips didn’t fall the way we wanted them to tonight.”
Eleven Bluejays would see their high school football careers come to a close in a place that no other Jay had ever tread – in the state title game. Mancos posted a 32-6 record and a pair of Mountain League titles during that run, setting a high bar for upcoming classes.
“Our leadership was tremendous this year,” Gardner said about the senior players. “We've really come together – and I couldn’t be more proud of our boys.”
Along with this year's achievements, the Bluejays set a program best for wins in a season (11) and a win in their first ever state semifinal. They made a clear statement to the community that Mancos football was developing a tradition as one of the hardest-working teams in the state.
“This whole season has been a perfect storm,” Gardner said. “The kids have been buying into the program, the coaches are sending a unified message, and the support from the community has been awesome – they've been buying into the program, too.”
Looking at the season as a whole, even with the tough state game loss, Gardner put the result into perspective. “It's hard to tell them now, but we know that one day, we'll look back and be extremely proud of this season.”
