With some freakish early winter rolling across Colorado just in time for Saturday’s quad- shot of high school football championship games, it seems appropriate the best player in the state comes from Steamboat Springs.
Nevermind that he’s a Sailor.
Austin Hinder, the Steamboat Springs quarterback who will lead the Sailors into Saturday’s Class 3A championship against upstart Valor Christian, on Thursday was named Colorado’s Gatorade player of the year.
“As far as a football talent, he can play at any level at any school in our state,” Palisade coach John Arledge said. “He is a Division I kid and rightly so. He’s got size and speed. I thought he was a better runner than he is a thrower. He can whiz it, though.”
Hinder is a finalist for national player of the year. The 6-foot-5, 185-pound senior quarterback has passed for 2,110 yards and 25 touchdowns. He also has 791 yards rushing with 12 touchdowns.
The Steamboat-Valor matchup at Aurora’s Legacy Stadium follows the completion of the Class 2A game between Kent Denver and Faith Christian.
The 4A title game between Longmont and Heritage at 11 a.m. at Invesco Field precedes the 5A final at 2:30 p.m. between Pomona and Mullen. It all adds up to a jampacked schedule of high school football, with two convenient locations to maximize viewing.
Championship Saturday
Denver Post high school sports editor Neil H. Devlin breaks down the state championship games:
CLASS 5A, 2:30 p.m., at Invesco Field
(3) Pomona (12-1) vs. (1) Mullen (13-0)
A victory by Pomona (QB Nathan Grimes) over the more gifted, defensive-minded Mustangs (defender of the year candidate Nduka Onyeali) would be one of the biggest upsets in Colorado history.
CLASS 4A, 11 a.m., at Invesco Field
(11) Longmont (11-2) vs. (5) Heritage (12-1)
There are a couple of gunslingers at quarterback (Heritage’s Mitch Griebel and Longmont’s Jake Johnson), but interior play has decided many of 4A’s recent title bouts.
CLASS 3A, 2:30 p.m., at Legacy Stadium, Aurora
(4) Steamboat Springs (13-0) vs. (2) Valor Christian (13-0)
In just its second varsity season, Valor has been glorious but now faces top-flight QB Austin Hinder and the Sailors’ underrated, deep skill corps.
CLASS 2A, 11 a.m., at Legacy Stadium, Aurora
(7) Kent Denver (11-2) vs. (1) Faith Christian (13-0)
A few cycles ago, Colorado broke up the private school-dominated Metropolitan League, but here they are again playing for a title. So much for attempts to administrate outcomes.
STAY ON THE COUCH
Beavers, Buffs in spotlight.
The Oregon State men’s basketball team had a significant audience of one in its last outing, and will have a big audience of thousands tonight when the Beavers take on Colorado in Corvallis, Ore., at 10 p.m. MST.
Last weekend, OSU had President Obama in attendance for the Beavers’ 64-57 win over host George Washington in the District of Columbia. OSU coach Craig Robinson is the brother of first lady Michelle Obama.
Tonight, the Beavers (2-3) will be on national TV against a so-far solid CU team, when the Buffs (5-2) try to knock off the Pac-10 entrant on FSN.
The telecast will be called by play-by-play man Paul Sunderland and former Nuggets forward Don MacLean.
GET OFF THE COUCH
More running on tap.
North to south, three running races this weekend provide plenty of incentive to fight the cold.
In Fort Collins on Saturday, the Arthritis Foundation’s Jingle Bell Run/Walk will take racers around a certified 5-kilometer course at the CSU oval. The race starts at 10 a.m. (). Denver’s big Jingle Bell run, by the way, is next weekend, Dec. 13, at Washington Park.
In Denver, the Rudolph Ramble 5K Run goes around City Park Saturday as part of the Run Denver race series at 10 a.m. ().
Sunday in Colorado Springs, the Falcon Wanderers 5K/10K Walk has nothing to do with balloon boy. It’s a walk to 6,400 feet in elevation. Starts at 8:30 a.m. ().
AROUND TOWN
Rivals CC-DU ready to square off.
The skaters in the locker rooms will be playing for a 59-year-old Gold Pan Trophy. But for college hockey fans around the country, the stakes are in the final outcome. The home-and-home series tonight and Saturday between No. 2-ranked Denver and No. 6 Colorado College could have a domino effect across the national polls.
Just 11 points separate DU from No. 1 Miami (Ohio) in the poll. And Denver is ahead of No. 3 North Dakota after sweeping a two-game series against the Sioux two weeks ago. CC is out of the top five behind Bemidji State. The Tigers in the national coaches poll are No. 5.
So a sweep this weekend by either DU or CC could mean some big jumps or drops in the national polls.
Today’s 7:30 p.m. game is in Colorado Springs, with the puck dropping on Saturday’s game in Denver at 7 p.m. Both games air on FSN.
WHAT WE’D LIKE TO SEE
The big draw.
Today’s broadcast of the 2010 soccer World Cup draw, which airs on ESPN2 at 10 a.m., is not your ordinary selection show. Four years ago, when matchups were announced, some 300 million people tuned in worldwide.
The draw will be determined today in Cape Town, South Africa, the site of the tournament starting June 11. The U.S. will learn its position in one of eight four-team groups.
This much we know: The U.S. will come from a pool that includes their own CONCACAF group and Asian teams, so the Americans will face an African squad, one from Europe and a seeded team (either Argentina, Brazil, England, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Spain or South Africa).
And on Thursday, FIFA announced that the winning team will earn $31 million in prize money. The runner-up gets a mere $25 million.
