The Badgers remain Colorado’s ultimate behemoth.
Limon won its state-best 23rd football championship on Saturday at the ThunderBowl in Pueblo, rallying to beat Buena Vista, 14-10. The Demons topped the Badgers earlier in the season, but Limon avenged the loss by overcoming an early 10-0 deficit in the Class 1A title.
Badgers senior running back Jacob Jaklich got Limon on the board with a 3-yard rushing TD late in the first half. Then midway through the third quarter, sophomore quarterback Brooks Scherrer heaved a 38-yard TD pass to sophomore running back Camdyn Tacha for the go-ahead, game-winning score.
The Limon defense did the rest by shutting out Buena Vista in the second half. Saturday’s triumph marked the ninth state title for Badgers boss Mike O’Dwyer, who in the win tied legendary Limon coach Lloyd Gaskill with his 281st game coached for the program.
Class 2A
In the Class 2A title at the ThunderBowl that followed Limon’s victory, Wellington left no doubt as the Eagles steamrolled to the championship.
The 2024 runner-up knocked off defending champion The Classical Academy in the semifinals last week, then
The Eagles were up five touchdowns by halftime as the Cardinals never stood a chance. Brayton Meglen got things started with a 69-yard rushing TD about a minute into the game. About five minutes later, Tanner Gray added a 57-yard rushing TD, and Wellington was off to the races.
While the Wellington defense pitched a shutout, Owen Gabbert, Cyle Kisner and Cyle Kisner also had touchdowns to propel the Eagles to their third title. Wellington (13-0, with 10 of those wins coming by at least three touchdowns) hadn’t won a championship since claiming back-to-back six-man titles in 1952 and ’53. The original Wellington High School closed in 1964, and the school re-opened in 2022.
Class 3A
The Wizards were down 14-7 entering the final frame, but outscored the Tigers 14-0 in the fourth. Mason Moore’s 18-yard rushing TD tied the game with 10 minutes to go, then Grayson Jacobs’ 2-yard rushing TD swung the momentum permanently in Windsor’s favor. The Wizards are back in the championship for the first time since winning the 2015 Class 4A title.
As Panthers head coach Nate Johnson likes to say, the Pomona “train don’t stop.” The game was tied 14-14 after one quarter, but the Bulldogs’ offense couldn’t slow the Pomona offense. A Pomona scoop-and-score by Luis Santana midway through the second quarter shifted the momentum, and the Panthers didn’t look back after Tucker Ingersoll’s TD pass just before half.
Class 3A title game:Windsor (13-0) vs. Pomona (12-1), Dec. 6, 10 a.m., Canvas Stadium
Class 4A
Dakota Ridge 31, Heritage 14.Dakota Ridge raced out to a 28-0 lead at halftime in a game that was never in doubt. Landon Kalsbeck’s 30-yard rushing TD got Dakota Ridge going early in the first quarter, and by the time Kalsbeck added another TD on the ground and Kellen Behrendsen tossed a 25-yard TD, the rout was on. Dakota Ridge advances to its second championship (lost the 2004 4A title).
The Bears ended the Red Hawks’ undefeated season, and bid for a return trip to the title, in a dramatic game on the Western Slope. The difference was the Palmer Ridge defense’s ability to bow up against the run in the second half, when Montrose was limited to just seven points. A Bears field goal midway through the fourth quarter ended up being the game-winner.
Class 4A title game: Dakota Ridge (13-0) vs. Palmer Ridge (13-0), Dec. 6, 1:30 p.m., Canvas Stadium
Class 5A
Cherry Creek 21, Valor Christian 13. The defending champion Bruins were on the ropes at the Stutler Bowl. Cherry Creek turned the ball over a season-high four times, including two red-zone fumbles that ended promising drives. But Dave Logan’s squad owned the final 10 minutes, and running back Jayden Fox had two rushing TDs to swing the score. Cherry Creek advances to its eighth straight title game.
The Mustangs broke through to the first title appearance in program history by edging the Golden Eagles in a see-saw game at the North Area Athletic Complex. Landon Plichta’s 25-yard field goal with less than a minute left was the difference. Levi Rillos also broke loose for a 65-yard rushing TD in the fourth, his second of the game, as RV erased an early 14-0 deficit.
Class 5A title game:Cherry Creek (13-0) vs. Ralston Valley (13-0), Dec. 6, 5 p.m., Canvas Stadium
