Akron – There were no sleepless nights or jittery stomachs for the Akron Rams leading up to Saturday’s Class 1A state championship game.
Making a sixth title-game appearance in eight years, the Rams were not overwhelmed to be playing in the big show. But the Akron seniors were riding a two-game losing streak over three seasons in the final game, and they were ready for things to change.
A dominating second half did that, and Akron shut down and shut out visiting Lyons 27-0, giving nothing on defense and taking what it wanted on offense to win the fourth state title in school history and the first since 2002.
“I was pretty calm going into this one. This was the third championship game the seniors have played in, and we couldn’t get it done in the first two. It makes this so much better when you know what defeat tastes like,” Akron senior back Steven Hall said.
Hall, The Denver Post’s most valuable player, carried 17 times for 92 yards and three touchdowns, and counterpart Dalton Jefferson finished with 120 yards on 16 carries. Akron (13-0) racked up 307 total yards and held Lyons (11-2), making its ninth trip to the title game, to 119 yards and five first downs.
“That was the key. We didn’t move the ball like we wanted to and they were just unstoppable,” Lyons coach John Nichols said.
Ten years from now, the Lions will remember this season for ending three-time defending state champion Limon’s state-record 50-game winning streak in the state semifinals.
Akron, meanwhile, might remember a nervous walk into the locker room at halftime with a tenuous 6-0 lead and ending the third quarter knowing a state title was at hand.
“We were a little worried at the beginning of the second half. We were vulnerable only being up by six points,” two-way lineman Trent Campbell said.
The Rams’ opening drive of the third quarter was a major turning point. Akron clawed out 59 yards on 14 plays, including a fourth-down conversion by Jefferson, and ate up seven minutes before Hall broke loose for a 15-yard touchdown.
Akron’s defense, which allowed 71 points – or 5.5 per game – all season, forced Lyons into a three-and-out possession and marched down the field again for another touchdown by Hall.
“After we got that score, (Lyons) kind of collapsed from there on out,” Akron linebacker Mick Strand said. “I wasn’t nervous at all coming into the game. We were here last year, so this is common ground for us.”
Lyons had five second-half possessions and didn’t come close to the end zone. The Lions crossed midfield just three times all game and never threatened to score.
“It could have gone the other way in the second half. We were real fortunate that the kids came out and had a terrific second half,” Akron coach Brian Christensen said.
Lyons’ Josh Ackerman finished with a team-high 32 yards rushing, and quarterback Sam Stall finished 2-of-14 for 48 yards with an interception.
Lyons 0 0 0 0 – 0
Akron 0 6 7 14 – 27
A – Hall 1 run (kick failed). A – Hall 15 run (Hottinger kick). A – Hall 1 run (Hottinger kick). A – Jefferson 8 run (Hottinger kick).
MVP
Steven Hall, Akron
Hall finished the season with 1,096 yards on the ground, and he scored three touchdowns in the state championship game. While he was quick to credit his offensive line – and others might point to Akron’s tricky single-wing offense – Hall was a force. On his second touchdown, Hall faked a counter handoff, spun the ball around his waist and left defenders in his wake on the way to the end zone. He finished the year with 21 rushing touchdowns, but it was the title trophy that mattered. “This is sweet,” he said.
