GRAND JUNCTION - No matter how brisk the air may have been or how much leftover snow was piled up near the end zones, there was no containing an offense that was simply on fire Saturday afternoon at Grand Junction's Stocker Stadium.
The Delta Panthers capped off an undefeated season and proved just why they were the top seed of the playoffs with a 54-14 victory over Rifle to claim the 2A state championship, its first state title since 1960.
The pristine Panther record included a 28-7 win over the Bears back in September, the only loss for Rifle and one they were eager to avenge.
However, Delta capitalized on early turnovers Saturday with an interception by senior Panther Jhett Ryan on the Bears' opening drive that they quickly turned into six points with the first of five touchdowns Delta running back Talan Hulet had on the day, with three earned in the first half alone.
The Bears fumbled on their next possession, which put Delta right back in prime scoring position. Panthers pulled in a punt on the next drive and started the second quarter with another Hulet TD to lead 20-0.
Rifle bookended the intermission with a TD catch by junior Tryston Sheets near the end of the half and a pick-six by senior Logan Gross right out of the locker room to put the total at 20-14, the closest it would be.
Still, Delta had no trouble taking the lead and running up the score in the second half as the Bears turned the pigskin over with six total turnovers in the game.
“Turnovers were the key of the day for us,” Delta head coach Ben Johnson said. “I thought we held composure after that and were able to keep marching down the field.”
Besides Hulet’s multiple crossings of the goal line, Delta quarterback Ty Reed punched in one TD and slung it to Rylan Bynum and junior Jordan Fraser, as well.
Panther senior Jovanny Romero ran in a two-point conversion in the third quarter, which meant a great deal after being limited in game time thanks to postseason injuries.
“Getting that feeling of the last score one last time was amazing,” Romero said.
With a running clock adding to their energy, Delta players and coaches were euphoric as they were awarded the title banner and trophy, the first for the school in the sport in six decades.
The Panthers were state runners-up last season — falling 21-10 to Eaton — and getting the perfect finish meant all the more this time around.
“We wouldn’t have minded having Eaton again to avenge that, but Rifle did a good job taking care of them for us last week” Johnson laughed.
Though he was hoping to add another state banner to the one earned by the program in spring 2021, Rifle head coach Ty Leyba couldn’t fault his players for a defeat to the No. 1 team.
“We had guys who fought all the way through and I’m proud of them for that,” he said. “There’s a reason why Delta was undefeated this year.”
With 30 points to his name and plenty of defensive hits as well, Hulet was given the game ball as the outstanding player of the day.
“I gotta give credit to the guys up front, they dominated the whole game blocking for us,” Hulet said. “We’ve grinded all season, and this is the turnout we wanted. Last year, we came up short and we weren’t going to let it happen this time. It’s an unbelievable feeling. We all had to work for it to happen.”
Hulet added that the cherry on top was having the game relocated by CHSAA to better suit both schools with a neutral but nearby site at Colorado Mesa University rather than CSU-Pueblo.
“I love it that both Western Slope teams could kind of have a home game, and both sides were packed,” he said. “The atmosphere was crazy, and I loved it. Seeing everyone smile and seeing everyone happy with what we’ve done is unbelievable.”