3A football championship to be held at Air Force Academy
The Class 3A state football championship game will be held at the Air Force Academy’s Falcon Stadium, Palmer Ridge athletic director Lance McCorkle said on Monday.
The title game, which matches No. 2-seeded Palmer Ridge against No. 5 Erie, will be played on Saturday at 1 p.m.
“It’s going to be awesome,” McCorkle said. “I think it’ll be good for the kids. It’ll be fun for them.”
Said Erie athletic director Justin Carpenter: “We’re very excited and grateful to be playing another week, and our community and our kids are very excited for this opportunity.”
The 3A title game is played at a site the highest seed designates. Typically, this is a home site, but the site must hold at least 5,000 fans, per CHSAA guidelines. Don Breese Stadium, where Palmer Ridge plays its home games, has a capacity of roughly 2,500.
While exploring other sites, Falcon Stadium (which has a capacity of 46,692) emerged as an option, McCorkle said. The football team’s booster club has raised the entirety of the funds to pay for the rental of the facility.
Everyone attending the 3A championship game will need to enter the base through the North Gate, but they will not be permitted to enter until 11 a.m. Fans should be prepared and have up-to-date license plates, registration and ID.
Parking will be free.
Palmer Ridge enters the game unbeaten at 13-0, while Erie is 11-2 and has won four consecutive games.
Palmer Ridge has never won a football championship, and this is actually the school’s first appearance in a title game. The Bears topped Palisade in the semifinals to advance.
Erie has won one championship (1A in 1997), and will be making its fourth title game appearance. The Tigers beat Longmont in the semis to punch their ticket.
