ARVADA — Back in youth football, Collin Root wanted nothing to do with facing Andrew Wingard.
“I hated playing against him,” Root said. “He was a little bit of a showboat but the same, exact player talent-wise. He had breakaway speed that nobody could match. … He was an all-star in Little League.”
Nearly a decade later, Root and Wingard are in their fourth year as teammates at Ralston Valley, which plays Cherry Creek in a Class 5A football semifinal Friday night at the North Area Athletic Complex.
The seniors have grown physically, mentally and emotionally, and have bonded as teammates.
“Oh, yeah,” Root said. “It’s nice not having to play against him.”
The Mustangs (12-0) will be playing for a shot at their first championship game. The 6-foot, 175-pound Wingard has been a big reason, having scored 37 touchdowns this season and also excelling as a defensive back.
Statistics don’t concern him, though.
“What matters to me is getting all of these wins,” said Wingard, a native of Lincoln, Neb. “I love playing defense. And, you know, I really love carrying the ball — it’s a lot of fun.”
Consider the two linked.
“He’s the reason why they’re where they’re at,” Pomona coach Jay Madden said. “You have to have that one guy, and he’s their guy.”
Wingard ran for 111 yards and caught five passes for 70 yards and a touchdown in the Mustangs’ 22-15 victory over Pomona last month to win the Jefferson County League.
In the state quarterfinals last week, he scored six touchdowns against Fairview.
“We obviously had an extremely high opinion of him before the game and, obviously, it only got better,” Fairview coach Tom Mc- Cartney said. “What some people don’t realize is, the six touchdowns were awesome, but he was so good on defense and he was so physical. I was super impressed how he flew around and made tackles. He had an interception and ripped the ball out to cause another turnover.”
Ralston Valley coach Matt Loyd called Wingard “one of my top five players” in 15 years and referred to him as “kind of fiery.”
Wingard’s competitiveness showed against Fairview.
“I want to be one of those lead-by-example kind of guys,” he said. “When Fairview came right out and scored in about 30 seconds, I wanted to come out on the next play and tie the game … that kind of stuff.”
His stuff worked as Wingard blew past the Knights’ coverage for a 95-yard touchdown on a kickoff return, and the tone was set. Ralston Valley never punted, scored the final 36 points and won 71-29.
“That’s the kind of player he is,” said Root, an active end who helped the Mustangs beat Eaglecrest 44-43 with a 56-yard field goal on the final play in a second-round playoff game.
Root, along with running back Kyle Rush and a sturdy offensive front, also highlight two sound starting units that Loyd said provide balance and options in which “teams just can’t key on (Wingard) as we have some other guys to go to.”
However, everyone’s aware of Mustangs Option No. 1, a blond with 4.48 speed in the 40 and a 3.58 grade-point average who has .
“For him to go both ways as well as he does, there’s a reason he’s going D-I,” McCartney said.
Wingard said a championship would have extra meaning. Teammate Anthony Falbo, also a Mustangs captain, lost his mother to cancer in September.
“It would mean everything,” Wingard said. “We’re doing it for him and the community.”
Neil H. Devlin: ndevlin@denverpost.com or
Ralston Valley storming playoffs
The Mustangs have made the Class 5A semifinals twice in three years.
Ralston Valley, in its 15th season, has never made a championship game.
In 12 playoff quarters, the Mustangs have scored 163 points, and they have 549 for the season.
Of Andrew Wingard’s 28 rushing TDs, one was a 99-yarder.
The Mustangs have 34 sacks, seven by defensive end Collin Root, who also has kicked 49 extra points and three field goals.
Neil H. Devlin, The Denver Post
