Green Mountain football senses return to winning ways
LAKEWOOD — Green Mountain’s football program is looking to the past to hopefully capture some success in the present.
“It is something to strive for,” Green Mountain’s first-year head coach Matt Pees said of the program’s 1995 and 1999 Class 4A state championships that were won before some his current players were even born. “This community has done it before. Even those it’s been a long time since that kind of success — I think the last playoff win was 12 years ago. It is something we want to get back to. They have the privilege to be the first class to change the culture and get back to that tradition when Green Mountain was just dominating.”
There is a buzz around the program this season with Pees moving from offensive coordinator into the head coaching job. Then there is the moving from 4A to 3A in classification.
The Rams will play in the 3A West League for the next two-year cycle that includes plenty of Jeffco flavor. Alameda, Conifer, Evergreen, Lutheran, Skyview and Green Mountain make up the new conference.
“We haven’t treated it any differently, but you can definitely sense there is a different feel,” Green Mountain senior quarterback Dylan Jacob said during the first week of practice. “Everyone is so much more excited. For the last couple of weeks everyone has enjoyed showing up. It’s a completely different atmosphere.”
Green Mountain is fortunate to have a signal-caller with as much varsity experience as Jacob, who becomes a three-year starter behind center.
“He (Jacob) has grown a lot, not just physically, but mentally is a big part of it,” Pees said. “Being a quarterback is one of the toughest positions in sports and he does a great job at it. He is a four-sport athlete with a 4.2 GPA. He is an outstanding kid. He wants to win more than anyone else on this team.”
While Green Mountain had just a 1-9 record last season, the Rams returning several returning varsity players that have varsity experience under their belts. There were just a handful of seniors last season. Pees has plenty of seniors this year to lead the Rams into this new era of playing in 3A.
“We have 18 seniors and they are hungry,” Pees said. “They are working their tails off to have that success.”
Pees believes the opportunity of being in the conversation of a football program on the rise isn’t far away and the entire community can help the cause.
“The community is incredible here. Green Mountain is an outstanding community between parents, administration and facility. It’s a great place to be,” Pees said. “With the tradition that is involved that was a big plus as well. There is a core in place already to build something on.”
On the field; seniors Ben Schlieper, Preston Schattinger, Spencer Lagerberg, Mason Bell, Justin Booher, Kyle Clabaugh and Jacob begin the conversation with how Green Mountain can turn its program around.
“This year we have a lot of seniors that are returning. We have a lot of leaders and everyone is communicating,” Clabaugh said. “I think there is a little more pressure, but we all trust each other here. We are all teammates and I think we’ll do pretty well this season.”
Green Mountain begins the season on the road against Harrison in Colorado Springs on Sept. 2. Week 2 will be interesting with a showdown against D’Evelyn on Sept. 9 at Trailblazer Stadium in Lakewood. The Jaguars are also dropping down a classification from 3A to 2A, but has been a consistent playoff team for years.
“It every other sports it’s really be a tough rivalry,” Jacob said of D’Evelyn. “We have never played them in football, so we want to come out and show them what Green Mountain football is all about.”
The Rams face former league rivals Golden and Standley Lake in non-league games. Those Jeffco schools remained in 4A for the current two-year cycle.
“There is a ton of talent in the teams we are going to play,” Pees said of the Rams’ schedule. “We love our conference. We think it’s going to be a great experience for our guys. We get to play a lot of Jeffco schools.”
