LONGMONT — Ask around about Dan Geubelle and the stories start taking on larger-than-life status. He’s not only a star running back for Broomfield High, but a skilled snowboarder and all-around good kid.
But the only part that mattered for 48 minutes Friday night was the running part. And boy did Geubelle run.
The senior ripped through Longmont’s defense en route to 232 yards and five touchdowns, powering the No. 2 Eagles to a 41-17 win over the No. 5 Trojans on a brisk night at Everly-Montgomery Field.
“He was unbelievable,’ Longmont coach Doug Johnson said. “When he did get challenged, he broke tackles and spun. We knew he was good.”
What Longmont didn’t know was that Geubelle, who averaged 9.6 yards per carry, had been waiting for this moment, this stage, for two years. Injuries sidelined him for this game in his sophomore and junior seasons. He salivated at the chance to face a rival during this, his senior season.
“I was feeling good. I was pumped up,” Geubelle said. “The linemen pounded them, making big holes. It’s pretty easy when they do that.”
The score, however, wasn’t necessarily indicative of the close nature of the game. Longmont hung tough in the first half as Broomfield (7-1) threatened to run away with things. Geubelle scored three first-half touchdowns on runs of 4, 45 and 4 yards, but when Miles Bergner nailed a 42-yard field goal with 6.5 seconds left in the first half, the Trojan were down only 21-17 at halftime. After allowing 14 first-quarter points to the Eagles, Longmont answered with 17 of its own in the second quarter.
The second half, however, was all Broomfield.
Turnovers and other mistakes started to mount, and Broomfield took full advantage. The Eagles recovered a fumble on Longmont’s second play of the third quarter, and Geubelle cashed it in two plays later with an 11-yard touchdown jaunt.
From there, Broomfield never looked back and cruised to the win.
“I thought they did a great job of preparation and kind of took us out of our passing tempo,” Broomfield coach Gary Davies said. “Dan was pretty special tonight, so we kind of rode him. He’s just an incredibly competitive kid.”
Broomfield completed just one pass all night, but with Geubelle’s output, didn’t need more than that.
As for Longmont, quarterback Forest Wetterstrom completed 13-of-22 passes for 159 yards but was intercepted twice. He did run for a 7-yard touchdown.
But it was Broomfield’s night.
“Hopefully, we’re hitting our stride,” Davies said. “One game at time.”
Broomfield 14 7 7 13 — 41
Longmont 0 17 0 0 — 17
B: Geubelle 4 run (Davies kick); B: Geubelle 48 run (Davies kick); L: Finley Garcia 1 run (Bergner kick); B: Geubelle 5 run (Davies kick); L: Wetterstrom 6 run (Bergner kick); L: Bergner 42 field goal; B: Geubelle 11 run (Davies kick); B: Geubelle 1 run (Davies kick); Davies 1 run (Davies kick)
Chris Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com
