If a sequoia has ever moved faster, nobody in this stadium would believe it.
The most improbable, did-you-see-that?-get-ESPN-on-the-phone run of the football season traveled 80 yards. This omigosh dash was made by a 6-foot-7, 285-pound lineman from
Columbine High School named Ryan Miller.
Give a big, rebel yell to Miller and his teammates for stunning previously undefeated Mullen 13-10 in the Class 5A state championship game.
“We heard all the talk about how we were playing the University of Mullen, with all their Division I players,” Columbine junior Ben Tedford said. “But we decided to come out and be tough and smack ’em in the mouth.”
The bodacious play that set the tone for the upset was as eye-opening as the shock of spiky red hair atop Miller’s head.
The ferocious running game of Columbine had devoured the first quarter and staked the Rebels to a 7-0 lead. But it seemed only a matter of time before Mullen, which had averaged 45.8 points per game, would explode offensively. The Mustangs confidently trotted on the field early in the second period, taking possession of the football after a Columbine punt on their own 7-yard line.
The Mustangs immediately put the ball in the hands of senior running back Phil Morelli, who dashed past a charging Miller in the backfield. Look out! Morelli had busted the play toward the sideline, and the prize recruit of Colorado State turned on the burners, crossing midfield, leaving Columbine defenders grasping at air, his Mullen helmet a gold blur as he crossed the 40-yard line, the 30, heading toward the end zone.
Then, out of nowhere, rolling like an 18-wheel truck that had lost its brakes down a mountain highway, here came Miller, chasing down a prep running back with D-I credentials. After running 80 yards in relentless pursuit, Miller reached out a huge paw and horse-collared a shocked Morelli 13 yards short of the goal line.
“Oh, my legs were hurting,” Miller said. “That’s a fast kid.”
How important was the never-say-quit tackle? Two snaps after Miller made the best high school play anyone saw all year, Mullen committed a turnover, allowing Columbine to cling to its precarious lead.
“I had no idea Ryan Miller was that fast. During speed drills in the summer, he seemed slow. But he found another gear from somewhere,” Tedford said.
Although Notre Dame came calling with its best sales pitch, Miller has decided he wants to play college ball at a place closer to home and closer to his heart. As an offensive lineman who can block out the sun, Miller projects to be the first big recruiting coup for new Colorado coach Dan Hawkins.
After Jeff Cicchinelli ended a clutch and brutally efficient drive with a 2-yard touchdown run that put the Rebels ahead by three points with 1 minute, 46 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Mullen had one last shot to rally behind free-flinging quarterback Clint Brewster.
On the second snap of the last-chance possession by the Mustangs, however, Brewster scrambled, desperately looking for an open receiver, until he got caught in the shadow of Miller.
As Miller wrapped two huge arms around the quarterback, Brewster unloaded a pass that ended in a Columbine interception. Victory for the Rebels was clinched. Miller had come up big. Again.
“Oh, that big, old hoss. How awesome was that?” said Columbine coach Andy Lowry, the best high school coach in a state loaded with great prep mentors. There is no better argument on behalf of Lowry’s ability than the four state titles won by the Rebels starting with 1999.
On a field crowded with talent destined to make headlines on college campuses across the country, Miller cast a giant shadow on the biggest prep game of the year in Colorado.
Grabbing the championship trophy shortly after the celebration by Columbine began, standing near the 50-yard line, pumping a trophy prize whose brilliance was reflected in the stadium lights, Miller towered above his fellow players and shouted: “We are …”
And, the reply from teammates was as loud and proud as any football team can be: “Columbine!”
Ever hear a stadium shake with a rebel yell?
Staff writer Mark Kiszla can be reached at 303-954-1053 or mkiszla@denverpost.com.
