Playoff fever set to hit its stride in Colorado fooball

HIGHLIGHTS: Sophie Cunningham leads high school basketball team to FOURTH STRAIGHT STATE TITLE 66,449 views 1:58

VIDEO: Brin Hayden highlights
Watch the Resurrection Christian running back earlier this season against Eaton.

On the way to an undefeated regular season and the top overall seed headed into the state football playoffs, La Junta and Meeker showcased why the best offense is a great defense.

But having a great offense certainly doesn't hurt.

The Tigers and Cowboys enter the postseason as the teams to beat in their respective classifications. La Junta (9-0) is the No. 1 seed in Class 2A after allowing a touchdown or less in eight of its nine games, averaging more than 37 points along the way. A first-round date at home with University (Greeley) awaits Saturday.



Meeker (9-0), the No. 1 seed in 1A, allowed less than 12 points a game and topped the 40-point mark in four of its contests. The Cowboys are seeking their first state championship when they open Saturday against No. 16 Ellicott (Calhan).

Sedgwick County (Julesburg) begins its 8-Man title defense Saturday against McClave, and the 6-Man playoffs are already a week old. The quarterfinals are slated for this weekend, with the classification's title game taking place in less than three weeks on Nov. 19.

While the state's three biggest classifications have one more week remaining in the regular season, here is a look at the postseason kickoff for the rest of the state:

MaxPreps Colorado state football brackets

Class 2A
Defending champion: Bayfield
Top seed: La Junta
Overview: Only two undefeated teams remain in the field, with one being a newcomer to the 2A classification. Resurrection Christian (Loveland) moved up from 1A and hasn't skipped a beat, with the Cougars posting four shutouts over their past six games. Senior Brin Hayden is a threat on both sides of the ball. Hayden has passed for more than 1,100 yards and 17 touchdowns, but also leads the team in tackles (10.3 a game) and sacks (nine). … The Classical Academy (Colorado Springs) and Delta actually played each other in the 3A quarterfinals last fall. TCA is the No. 3 overall seed and Delta is No. 10, paying a visit to Faith Christian (Arvada) this weekend. … Defending champion Bayfield is the No. 5 seed. The Wolverines have won five in a row, giving up only a combined 17 points during that stretch.
First-round game to watch: No. 6 Kent Denver (Englewood) vs. No. 11 Weld Central (Keenesburg)
Kent Denver's only loss on the season came Sept. 23 to La Junta. The Sun Devils (8-1) are averaging 228 yards rushing a game, and have forced 26 turnovers on defense to go along with 31 sacks. Weld Central (8-1) won a combined seven games in the previous two seasons, but has taken 2A by storm this fall. The Rebels also run the ball very well, and sophomore Derek Sims has 8.5 sacks to his credit.

Class 1A
Defending champion: Buena Vista
Top seed: Meeker
Overview: Meeker earned its seeding by winning the ever-tough Western Slope League, including a hard-fought 12-7 victory over Paonia. Junior Logan Hughes tossed 22 touchdown passes during the regular season and rushed for four more. … Strasburg dropped down from 2A and put more points on the board than any team in 1A this season. The team's lowest-scoring output was a 41-point effort, and Jeff Giger's squad had three running backs score 10 touchdowns (the team had 49 TDs on the ground overall). … Peyton may be a No. 5 seed, but the Panthers were unbeaten in the regular season. Senior Trystan Hanks has rushed for 819 yards and 12 touchdowns.
First-round game to watch: No. 3 Paonia vs. No. 14 Buena Vista
Ordinarily a 3-14 matchup wouldn't garner as much attention, but this happens to be a rematch of the previous two 1A state championships. The Eagles have been to three title games in a row but fell to the Demons a year ago. Both teams have a different look from that game, but expect the competitive juices to be flowing just as intensely in this contest.



8-Man
Defending champion: Sedgwick County
Top seed: Sedgwick County
Overivew: Sargent (Monte Vista) is the only undefeated team in the 8-Man ranks, but Sedgwick County earned the top seed through RPI. The Cougars' only loss came to an out-of-state team, and the squad shut out five of its nine opponents in the regular season. … Speaking of Sargent, the Farmers own victories over the field's No. 3 and 4 seeds, and allowed a combined six points over their final three games. Senior Justin Hacsi has 976 yards and 17 touchdowns in eight games. … Hoehne scored the most points in the 8-Man classification and has a two-headed monster at running back in junior Jacob Yates (1,085 yards, 16 TDs) and senior Hunter Robins (914 yards, 12 TDs).
First-round game to watch: No. 8 Granada vs. No. 9 Merino
Both teams finished with 7-2 records during the regular season. Granada dropped two of its first three games, but closed with six consecutive victories. The Bobcats made it to the title game in 2012 and 2014. Merino dropped two in a row earlier this month, but gave Sedgwick County a game before the Cougars pulled away in the second half.

6-Man
Defending champion: Eads
Top seed: Kit Carson
Overview: Seeds 5-8 were eliminated in the first round of the 6-Man playoffs, including defending champion Eads. Peetz came up with the 78-56 victory and will meet Fleming in the quarterfinals. … Arickaree/Woodlin, the 2014 champion and 2015 runner-up, trailed 45-19 at halftime to No. 5 Genoa-Hugo before pouring in 34 second-half points to advance to the quarterfinals. Darian Wagner rushed for 185 yards and a score and also tossed a pair of touchdown passes. … Pawnee (Grover) eliminated No. 6 Cotopaxi 37-14 in the lowest-scoring game of the first round. … Top-seeded Kit Carson is chasing its first state title.
Quarterfinal game to watch: No. 4 Stratton/Liberty vs. No. 12 Arickaree/Woodlin
The 2013 champion Stratton/Liberty Joes scored 86 points in a first-round victory over La Veta, the second time the team has topped 80 points this season. Junior Jacob McCormick scored four touchdowns a week ago. The two teams met Sept. 30, with Stratton/Liberty picking up a 54-28 victory.