LAKEWOOD — And now they wait. …
The Columbine Rebels have done their part. By waxing rival Lakewood 42-14 on Thursday night at Jefferson County Stadium, they completed the regular season with a perfect 9-0 mark.
The top team in the Associated Press Class 5A media poll also finished 7-0 in the big-school Jeffco League, so looking forward to the playoffs no longer is relevant for them.
They’re in. And they’ll see where they’re seeded Sunday, when the 32-team bracket is released. But it certainly doesn’t take away from their excitement.
“This is what we’ve worked for all season,” running back Mikey Griebel said. “We’ll be ready to roll.”
Said Rebels coach Andy Lowry, who watched his program complete its third undefeated regular season: “The kids have done a great job all season and they deserve this.”
The Rebels, five-time state champions since 1999 and most recently in 2011, took command early and often.
Ultimately, Griebel ran six times for 164 yards — including a 78-yard sprint for a score to open the second half and employ the 40-point mercy rule and running clock — and caught two touchdown passes from senior Jake Lowry.
Once again the Rebels’ front walls turned in strong efforts; Tim Mullin ran for two touchdowns; and the Rebels’ defense capped the regular schedule with another dominant effort, this one against the Tigers (3-6, 2-5), who managed two late scores.
“You see some things you want to clean up as a coach,” coach Lowry said. “But the kids played well.”
Arapahoe and Westminster also entered Week 9 undefeated at 8-0, Lowry pointed out, so Columbine will wait to see if it gets the top seed. Either way, they appear playoff ready.
Lakewood 0 0 7 7—14 Columbine 7 28 7 0—42
C — Mullin 38 run (Hartman kick). C — Griebel 14 pass from Lowry (Hartman kick). C — Griebel 13 pass from Lowry (Hartman kick). C — Mullin 2 run (Hartman kick). C — Cole 7 pass from Lowry (Hartman kick). C — Griebel 78 run (Hartman kick). L — Cowden 28 pass from Sundberg (Efaw kick). L — Maestes 5 run (Efaw kick).
Neil H. Devlin: ndevlin@denverpost.com or @neildevlin
