Boys Track & Field: Fort Collins Among 5A Teams Chasing Championship

AURORA – It would take a sensational boys track & field team to end Cherokee Trail’s championship streak in Class 5A.

You see, the Cougars have won the past three state titles in the highest classification. They are one of the great dynasties in Colorado sports at the moment. The Aurora powerhouse deserves its number one preseason ranking by CHSAANow.com.

And yet, there’s a team up north that is lurking. Fort Collins has serious firepower.

The Lambkins are ranked fourth, behind fellow contenders Northfield and Eaglecrest, but they might be underrated. After all, they have already smashed school records in the 4×100- (41.61 seconds) and 4×200-meter relays (1:26.28). They also ran a blistering time of 3 minutes, 22.05 seconds in the 4×400 relay. All three sit atop the Colorado rankings two weeks into the season.

Andre Rose, Jackson Ruff, Preston Mozer, and DJ Ruff teamed up to blast the Fort Collins High records in the shorter sprint relays. When you have burners like that, you should feel optimistic about the rest of your season.

The Ruff brothers help lead the way and the older one, DJ (a senior), said their 4×100 relay looks to break the all-classification record held by Grandview.

“We were actually just talking about that at practice,” Ruff said. “The record is 40.59 in 2022 and I think that was probably the big goal going into the season. We knew the group of guys that we had assembled and knew we would have a really good shot this year. I think even more than that, we’ve really been thinking beyond that. We all feel like there’s a lot more there, even beyond the state record – we were thinking even sub-40 potentially.”

The eldest Ruff has a personal best 100 time of 10.54 seconds, which is the top returning mark in Colorado. He hopes to break the school record, which is also the state record for all classes, of 10.27 by Ray Bozmans in 2012. His brother ran 10.89 as a freshman. Rose torched a 10.86 last year and Mozer ran 11.11 in the first meet this season as a sophomore.

It’s quite a stacked group as Ryder Viles also provides depth with a personal record of 11.29.

“I think this is for sure the highest quality training group I’ve been a part of,” Ruff said. “All the guys are really locked in to the process. This is easily the best team that I’ve been a part of.”

We’re only two meets into the 2026 CHSAA track and field season, but already Fort Collins has produced other eye-popping times, as well.

Mozer is a sensational sophomore, as he ran 21.61 in the 200 to win at the ThunderRidge Invitational over teammates DJ Ruff (21.71) and Jackson Ruff (22.41). Mozer and the senior Ruff have the best times in Colorado early on.

“I think the kid that will surprise everybody is Preston Mozer,” Fort Collins coach Jeff Brennan said. “I went to the district track meet (middle school two years ago) and I saw Preston perform as an eighth grader. I think he ran a 51.9 for the district record. Will Johns, at the same meet, set the district record in the mile. I knew those two guys were coming to Fort Collins, so that was really exciting. Jackson didn’t compete at that district track meet, because he’s been a big-time soccer player and just done track on the side. We knew of Jackson. Getting those three to come into the program in the same class was really exciting.”

Mozer also ran 48.28 at ThunderRidge to earn first place, which is the number two time in the state right now. Jackson Ruff was second in 49.52 (number five mark in Colorado).

“Jackson is out-of-this-world talented,” Brennan said. “He plays on a really competitive soccer team down in Denver. By doing track part-time last year, he ran 22.00 (200 meters), ran 10.89 (100), and then ran a 48.2 in our 4×400 at state. He’s trained in track this year more than maybe he did all of last year.”

They have four sprinters who could team up to win relay state titles, potentially in two of them, and then also contend to make the state finals in individual events.

DJ Ruff, a Colorado State University recruit, looks to be a serious championship contender in the 100 and 200. Mozer may have a shot in the 200 and 400. Rose and the younger Ruff could be fast enough to place top nine in some events themselves.

Whatever sprint relays (4×100, 4×200, or 4×400) they decide to run their top athletes in at state, they could earn gold medals.

Sprinters from teams like Cherokee Trail, Eaglecrest, Fountain-Fort Carson, and Ponderosa could be a threat in the relays as well.

The state track & field meet is May 14 through 16 at Jeffco Stadium in Lakewood.

But the Lambkins don’t just have great sprinters. They also boast plenty of talent in distance events with Cadel Ruthven, Will Johns, and Sean Giles.

Ruthven is coming off a cross country season in which he shattered the school record in the 5,000 meters with a time of 14:41 at the Liberty Bell Invitational. He won several races, finished fifth at the 5A state championships, and then was 22nd at the Brooks XC Championships in San Diego.

The University of Colorado signee has also earned six state medals in track and field, with his top individual finishes coming during sophomore year (third place in 800 and 1600).

“I think he could win either one of them,” Brennan. “You never want to say both, because of how loaded it is at the distance level. Not just at 5A, but all classes. He is definitely one of the premier distance guys in the state.”

Said Ruthven: “I’m trying to win a state title individually and obviously try to help the team get a team title. Some of my other goals past that in June are trying to get as close as I can to breaking four (in the mile) and trying to get under 8:50 for the two mile.”

He holds the school records in the 800 and 1600 as well, and might compete at state in the 3200 or perhaps the 4×800 relay.

“Compared to last year, just the training and the workouts I’ve been doing, I’ve been so much better with better intensity and better volume,” said Ruthven, who averages around 60 miles per week. “I think I’m definitely more fit than I was before and I’m really excited for this season.”

The senior will certainly be in the mix for titles at the 5A championships, but fellow distance runners Giles and Johns also look to earn medals.

Giles came close to qualifying for the state meet last year in the 1600 (4:23 personal record) and 3200 (9:29). Johns did not quite make it, but he has run some terrific times for someone just starting his sophomore season (1:58 in the 800, 4:28 in the 1600, 9:32 in the 3200, 15:07 in the 5K).

DJ Ruff enjoys watching the cross country runners take their talents to the track.

“We’re really close to the distance guys,” he said. “We all talk a lot. We’re a really tight-knit team. It’s a little bit out of my realm of knowledge, but I do think it’s cool that they’re really able to kind of beat up on the other teams.”

Defending 800 and 1600 state champion Ben Lee of ThunderRidge, as well as 3200 and cross country champion Ben Adams of Mountain Vista, will seek more distance championships, too.

“Colorado definitely has some of the best boys in the nation,” Ruthven said. “I love racing all those guys at the state meet and at big national competitions.”

To boost their point total at the 5A state meet, Fort Collins also has Ian Tiley and Beckett Thompson, who may qualify and perhaps place in the 300-meter hurdles. In field events, Truitt Boothe has the top returning discus throw in the classification (163 feet, 8 inches). Guy Curtis will take a crack at the triple jump crown after finishing fourth last season (45-8 ¼). He is also third in Colorado right now in long jump. Jacob Richter might nab a state medal in triple jump, as well.

And so this may be the most well-rounded boys track and field team in Class 5A. There’s several contenders, as Valor Christian, Loveland and Cherry Creek also have quality teams, along with the teams ranked above Fort Collins, but the Lambkins have to be considered one of the very best squads. Having 90 boys on the roster certainly helps, as does camaraderie.

“I think one of the biggest reasons is we’re a very tight-knit group,” DJ Ruff said. “No matter what event group you go to, whether it’s the sprints, the throws, the distance runners, the jumpers, everyone is pretty cool with each other. We have a great, competitive atmosphere at practice. It’s kind of hard to get a spot on varsity. It’s always competitive to get that spot.”

Ruff comes from a highly competitive sports family as his father was a state championship sprinter at Mullen and a dual-sport athlete (track and football) at Colorado State. His mother played volleyball at the Division I level, and his sister ran track at Colorado.

The Ruff brothers will look to utilize their natural abilities and training (their parents are among the sprint coaches for Fort Collins) to hopefully lift the program to its first track and field state championship since 2016. The girls team won 5A that year.

Amazingly, Fort Collins High has racked up 20 track state championships overall (17 boys, three girls). They haven’t reached the very top in a while – 2012 was the last for the boys – but the program has an amazing history.

“In the city of Fort Collins, Fort Collins High is known as the home of the champions,” Brennan said of a school with 65 state championships across all sports. “All I ever wanted to do was continue to push the program in the right direction and just try to keep it near the top of the 5A competition within the state of Colorado. We just really hit a sweet spot here with our seniors, juniors, and sophomores.”