Only one football team has come close to shutting down Valor Christian during its impressive four-year run of state titles.
Cherokee Trail held the Eagles scoreless in last year’s state championship game for three-plus quarters before losing 9-0. It’s the only time Valor Christian has been held to fewer than 10 points since 2008.
Saturday, the tough, defensive-minded Cougars get another opportunity when they host the No. 2-seeded Eagles (11-1) at 1 p.m.
Cherokee Trail (10-2), seeded sixth and in its third Class 5A semifinal in four years, has allowed an average of just 10.9 points this season — second-best in 5A behind Valor’s 10.2.
“We have been blessed with good defenses for a number of years,” Cougars coach Monte Thelen said. “We just try to put our best football players on defense.”
What the Cougars may lack in size, Thelen said, they make up for with a mix of experience, skill and speed — led by seniors Jacob Martin, Mar’Keith Bailey and Evan White.
“All three are really hard workers, can run well and are physical,” he said.
Thelen admitted his team probably isn’t going to shut down Valor’s star running back, Stanford-bound Christian McCaffrey. But the Cougars plan to contain him.
“We need to tackle well — he’s hard to tackle — minimize his big plays and hope for the best,” Thelen said of McCaffrey.
White, a safety who , said if the Cougars can force Valor to pass the ball, it will play to their strength. Last week, they in a win over Cherry Creek.
“We’ve got to stop that run,” White said. “We just have to make tackles.”
It’s a tough hurdle, but Cherokee Trail finds itself only one win from getting another shot at a state title.
“Since the offsesason, we’ve made it a goal to make it back to the state championship game,” Thelen said. “It’s been our focus.”
Joe Nguyen: jnguyen@denverpost.com or twitter.com/byjoenguyen
