Football: Championship Games for 6-Man, 8-Man Friday; 1A, 2A Saturday
Photo: CHSAA file photo
AURORA – The Colorado High School Activities Association will host its 2024 Football State Championships for 6-man, 8-man, 1A and 2A this Friday and Saturday at the Dutch Clark Stadium in Pueblo.
The 6-man championship game between No. 1 Cheyenne Wells and No. 2 Stratton will kick things off at noon on Friday, while No. 1 Haxtun and No. 3 Akron will then take the field at 5 p.m. for the 8-man championship game. On Saturday, the 1A championship game will feature No. 1 Wray and No. 2 Forge Christian at noon and No. 3 The Classical Academy and No. 9 Wellington in the 2A championship game at 5 p.m. All games can be streamed live on the NFHS Network.
Tickets can be purchased online through the CSU Pueblo box office. In addition to single game tickets, there’s a Friday or Saturday combination ticket where one ticket is good for both games on a particular day, or an all-session pass that will grant entry to all four games.
Credentialed media will need to enter the stadium through the West Side, sign in at the Media Check In and have this year’s CHSAA media pass visible at all times. The press box will be on the East Side of the stadium.
In 6-man, Cheyenne Wells and Stratton will be meeting in the championship game for a second-straight season. Top-seeded Cheyenne Wells survived a scare from No. 4 Idalia in the semifinals, as the Tigers used a 28-24 win to advance to its third championship game in the last four years. This will be the sixth overall title game appearance for Cheyenne Wells, and its fourth in 6-man. The Tigers have won one state championship in football, claiming the 2021 6-man title.
No. 2 Stratton, looking for a third-straight state title in 6-man, knocked off No. 3 Otis, 49-32, in the semifinals to secure its 19th appearance in a football state title game. The Eagles have won the last two 6-man championships after finishing runner-up to Cheyenne Wells in 2021, and have advanced to the title game for the eight-straight year. During that stretch, Stratton has won three state title.
In 8-man, No. 1 Haxtun avenged its championship game loss to Mancos last year, handing the Bluejays a 28-8 loss in the semifinals, to advance to the title game for a third time in the last four years. The Fightin’ Bulldogs last won an 8-man state title in 2021, which was the program’s sixth 8-man state title and eighth football state championship overall.
Akron, the tournament’s No. 3 seed, knocked off No. 7 Simla, 48-27, in the semifinals to advance to the state finals for the first time since 2016. Although the Fighting Rams have never won an 8-man state championship, they’ve played for two 8-man titles and have won six 1A state championships, the most recent coming in 2008. Akron advanced to eight of nine 1A title games from 2001-09, and won five of them to move their state championship total to six in football.
In 1A, No. 1 Wray defeated No. 5 Buena Vista, 52-15, to advance to the championship game, where it will be playing for a 1A state title for the fifth time since 2004. Although the school has never won a 1A state championship, Wray’s last state title in football came in 1993, when it won the 3A championship, marking the school’s second football state title (1984, A).
No. 2 Forge Christian is making its first appearance in the 1A state title game after shutting out No. 3 Limon, 37-0, in the semifinals. Formerly known as Faith Christian, the school has won four football championships, capturing the 3A title in 1998, and 2A titles in 2004, 2006, and 2009. The school’s most recent championship game appearance came in 2013, when it played in the 2A championship game.
In 2A, The Classical Academy – the tournament’s No. 3 seed – advanced to its second-ever state championship game by upsetting No. 2 Basalt, 41-28, in the semifinals. The Titans will be playing for their first-ever state title in football and in their first championship game since 2021 (spring).
No. 9 Wellington – playing in the program’s third season after the school re-opened in 2022 – continued its magical season by defeating No. 13 Eaton in the semifinals, 45-15. With the win, the new Wellington High School will be looking to bring a state championship back to the community since the former iteration of the school won back-to-back C (6-man) titles in 1952 and 1953. Those two titles marked the the only times the former school had ever played in a football title game.
