6-man, 8-man, 1A and 2A Football Teams Attend Walkthrough, Luncheon in Pueblo
Photo: CHSAA file photo
PUEBLO – The top football teams in the state from the 6-man, 8-man, 1A and 2A football descended on Pueblo on Monday for a walkthrough of the Dutch Clark Stadium before heading to CSU Pueblo’s Occhiato Student Center for the Colorado High School Activities Association’s championship luncheon.
The event featured Pueblo City Mayor Nick Gradisar, Greater Pueblo Chamber President Duane Nava, speakers from CSU Pueblo, the Rotary Club, CHSAA, and six different head coaches from three different classes of football teams. The 2024 Football State Championships for the four classifications will be held this Friday and Saturday at Dutch Clark Stadium. Tickets can be purchased through the CSU Pueblo box office.
Friday, Nov. 29
Noon – 6-Man Championship: No. 1 Cheyenne Wells vs. No. 2 Stratton
5 p.m. – 8-Man Championship: No. 1 Haxtun vs. No. 3 Akron
Saturday, Nov. 30
Noon – 1A Championship: No. 1 Wray vs. No. 2 Forge Christian
5 p.m. – 2A Championship: No. 3 The Classical Academy vs. No. 9 Wellington
Below are some excerpts from each of the coaches statements during the luncheon:
Jesse McConnell, 6-man Football:
Like all of the coaches and athletes in here, our season has had ups and downs. We played the hardest schedule we could, so it was nice seeing our boys respond throughout the season. We have a lot of young kids – half of my team are freshmen – so this is a good experience for them to see what it takes to get here. … I tell everybody, if we want to reach our goal and state title, we’re going to see Cheyenne Wells at some point; they’re a great team, really well coached. If you haven’t seen 6-man, come check it out, because qw play rhw same style and it’s always a fun game to watch.
Myles Smith, Cheyenne Well, 6-Man Football:
I kind of just want to talk about this older group of boys that we brought here; these upperclassmen. Last year, they fought their tails off. No one really expected them to get to the championship game, but they found a way, and they were able to take that confidence from last year into a totally different situation this year. They found their way the top and they had that target on their back all season long, but they just kept finding ways to get the job done. Last weekend, we had a little bit of a scare. But, you know, great kids, they find a way to get the job done. So I’m excited for them to have one more opportunity to win a championship this weekend. Like Jesse said, we inevitably knew it was probably going to be against Stratton; they’re a very well coached team, great group of kids, fundamentally sound… there’s a reason that they’re here almost every year, especially lately. So we know it’s going to be an exciting game and we hope everybody makes it here to watch that game.
Jerome Weers, Akron, 8-Man Football:
I just want to echo a thank you for CSU Pueblo and Rotary Club and everyone to put this on. This has been the first chance that we’ve had to come down here. This is our first time playing in the state championship since 2016 when they were played at home fields; so it’s really neat. I asked my five seniors yesterday if they wanted to come down and have this experience, and I’m glad we did. It’s awesome to be able to play at a venue like Dutch Clark. I just want to talk about these kids for a minute. I told them at the beginning of the year that they had a chance to at least be a semifinal team. And I said, when you get to the semifinals, no matter what, you’re going to play a good team, and then you just let the ball roll at that point, and it just happened to bounce our way in that game; we played well and I’m glad for these guys. I’ve had the opportunity to coach these kids since they were sixth graders, and I got two seasons with them as eighth graders because of COVID, we had a spring and a fall season that year, so I’ve actually got to coach these five young men more than I’ve coached any other kids that I’ve had in my career. So for me, the coolest thing is I’m glad that they had the chance to come and play this weekend, not for me, but for them, because they’ve earned it over the course their years.
J.D. Stone, Haxtun, 8-Man Football:
First of all, I’d like to thank everybody from the Rotary Club, the City of Pueblo, CSU Pueblo, CHSAA, Sandy, John and Wayne for putting on such an amazing event for our young men. The experience you guys have created for this young group of kids is second to none. I would like to introduce some of my guys. I brought five seniors, a couple of these guys started on our 2021 championship team, so I’m pretty proud of them. We put a lot of time in. … We’re extremely excited to be back. This is our third time in four years, and I don’t think we could be more excited. Hopefully it goes a little better than last years, but we think we’re ready. … I have a message for all of the coaches and athletes in here. This is an experience that’s hard to get to. It’s not easy to get here every year, and it’s not easy to get here every couple of years even. So enjoy this week; enjoy this week with your kids and your boys as much as you can. You boys, enjoy this time with your brothers because it goes by fast.
Travis Peeples, Wellington, 2A Football:
We’re three years into the new school, and we’re the farthest, most north school there is. I wrote a note here because we’re known for one thing – well, we’re known for a lot of things, good football in the 50s and 60s, we won the 52 and 53 state championship in 6-man football and we have it hanging in our new school. But we’re also known for a guy named Byron White, the wizard, who played at CU they were 8-0 andhe was number two in the Heisman voting. So we have a little bit of tradition, even though we’re only three years old. We have 10,000 people in our town, and Friday nights it shuts down. I’ll put it up against anywhere in Texas or Florida or any small town. We had 3,000 people show up last Friday night, five deep around the track. … We’re excited to be here for the first time and represent our town; our town will show up. Thanks Pueblo for hosting this. I know that you’ll see a bunch of these W’s running around, staying in your hotels and eating at your places, and that’s about all we’ve got. Good luck to all you guys. We’re really privileged and happy to be here, and thanks for everything.
Justin Rich, The Classical Academy, 2A Football:
This is one of the best football towns in all of Colorado, and we’re blessed in Colorado Springs to come down here and play some Pueblo teams; I was even blessed to work with CSU Pueblo for one year and see the way you guys love football. … First of all, I love whenever I get this to brag on on The Classical Academy, nobody understands what The Classical Academy is. It’s a public charter school, tuition free, that started about 25 years ago. A few families decided they were going to get together and build a charter school that mirrored the classical education that our Founding Fathers had. So our only way to get to the school is by waiting list, and if you’re not in by third grade, you’re not going to get in. They have a whole lot of reading, a whole lot of writing, a whole lot of arithmetic, a whole lot of rhetoric, a whole lot of stuff… they have to learn some Latin in eighth grade. They’re surrounded by great teachers and great administrators, and before I ever get them, they have great character. They know how to learn, and they’re ready to learn. Our school’s been very, very good for us, to let us and the other athletic programs be the front porch of that institution. As the football team, we’re just happy to try to live by our core values, which is passion, brotherhood and grit, and then to be the public representation of what TCA stands for, with excellence, with honor. We have four young men that show that very well.
John Sullivan, CHSAA, Closing Remarks:
Coaches and athletes, I want to take one last moment here to wish you all good luck this weekend. You’re not here by accident. You get here due to leadership, and it’s a much easier job for the coaches when there’s leaders on the field. In just looking and meeting a lot of you today, and the way you shook my hand and the way you look me in the eye, there’s a lot of leaders out there. I do ask one thing of you, the players that are in here, you have some some mentors in here that will be with you your whole life. At some point, take time and thank them. Thank your parents for all they’ve done this year, as well, and enjoy the weekend. It’s going to be awesome. Congrats!
