AKRON — Throughout Colorado high school football’s history that is nearing nine decades, so much of its lore and heart were instituted on the Eastern Plains.
It’s practically hallowed ground on the right side of the state, a region that’s still relevant today in any of Colorado’s seven classifications.
Another glorious entry into state records occurred Friday night as visiting Yuma ended three-time defending Class 1A champion Akron’s winning streak at 46 games with a 17-14 victory.
Quarterback Mitch Wills, patient and steady throughout the game, rolled left and scored from 4 yards standing up with eight seconds to play for the win, surely a shot heard throughout the state from a packed Akron field.
Ranked No. 3 in The Denver Post/9News 1A poll, the Indians improved to 8-0, 4-0 in the North Central League. They clinched no worse than a tie for the league title and probably will recall the game for as long as they live.
“It’s really sweet,” Wills said. “We knew we had a chance. We knew we could play with the best, and that’s what we thought going in.”
Indians head coach Keith Gille almost couldn’t contain himself and was well aware of his history.
“These kids are the greatest,” he said. “(The Rams) are a well-coached team that we have a lot of respect for. They’re disciplined and do what they’re supposed to do. But our kids were great. We lost to them 14-10 two years ago and blew it. We were four of those 46 (losses), so it’s about time we got on the winning side.
“And we started this sucker in my first game as a head coach after 20 years in (Jefferson County). We started it on this field.”
Indeed, top-ranked Akron’s streak, the third-longest in state history, began and ended with Yuma. In 2006, Akron whipped the Indians 35-0 in the season opener. Yuma didn’t forget and threw everything at the Rams (7-1, 3-1), who uncharacteristically had trouble protecting the ball and avoiding penalties, to end it.
The Indians constantly shuffled their linemen on defense. They took advantage of two Akron fumbles inside its 20-yard line by the usually dependable Jourdan Hottinger. Yuma also won the line of scrimmage early and often against the Rams, not an easy task, and had terrific success mixing its plays.
Never mind that Yuma’s Drake Veal dropped what would have been a sure touchdown reception on fourth down that could have made it 14-0 or that he also dropped another possible scoring catch on the Indians’ winning drive.
It was that kind of a Yuma night.
“It doesn’t get any better than this,” said Yuma running back Joel Rhoades, who contributed 149 yards rushing and scored the game’s first touchdown on a 35-yard pass from Wills.
Leading 10-7 entering the fourth quarter, Yuma ground out yardage and clock, but punted with 7:07 to play. Akron, pinned at its 9, used 30 of Hottinger’s game-high 196 yards on the ground on the first play to get out of a hole and do its thing with the single wing. The Rams mixed in a few passes, then used Hottinger’s 1-yard plunge and extra-point kick by Byron Guy for a 14-10 lead with 1:51 remaining.
It seemed as if Akron would near Stratton’s 48-game streak (from 1992-96), but Wills calmly led a 68-yard drive. The biggest plays were 13- and 16-yard completions to Jordan Sprouse and a 12-yard rush by Rhoades.
When Wills found the end zone on third down, the life came out of Akron and its considerable following.
“Turnovers and penalties, they’ll get you every time,” Rams coach Brian Christensen said. “All the credit goes to (the Indians). That’s a good football team . . . it’s a chance to wake up for us.”
Meanwhile, the Yuma celebration remained strong.
“Our mind-set was, you have to expect to win every game,” Yuma two-way lineman Austin Traphagan said. “You just have to go out there and do your job better.”
On this night, the Indians, did, and took their lofty place in state history.
Neil H. Devlin: 303-954-1714 or ndevlin@denverpost.com
