Colorado 5A high school football playoffs have wide open feel as quarterfinals approach

So far, the Class 5A playoffs have mostly gone to plan, and that's been the problem with the big-school circuit the last several seasons.

But now the unpredictability that has been absent through several years of Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch) and, prior to that, Mullen (Denver) as the prohibitive favorites has surfaced. It is genuinely difficult to pick a frontrunner this time.

"It has felt and looked like there may have been as many as eight teams that could win it all this year," Regis Jesuit coach Mark Nolan said. "It is great for the kids, great for the state of Colorado to have parity like that."

Translation: This weekend's quarterfinals should be epic.

No large-scale upsets have occurred so far, as all the remaining seeds are No. 1s and 2s, other than Fountain-Fort Carson (Fountain), a No. 3 that knocked off No. 2 Rocky Mountain (Fort Collins) in the second round.

So here's where the heavyweights truly clash.

The Regis Jesuit (Aurora) versus Cherry Creek (Greenwood Village) matchup is abundant with storylines, with it being a rematch of Cherry Creek's 27-14 win to open the season. Since then, Regis has reeled off 10 straight wins and the Raiders appear poised to limit the Bruins (8-3) and dynamic back Milo Hall, who has rushed for 1,658 yards and 22 touchdowns.

Those numbers are nearly identical to Regis back Alec Barnes (1,588 yards and 21 TDs), and the Raiders also have been proficient through the air with quarterback Matt Houghtaling producing 16 touchdowns with only two interceptions.

Ralston Valley (Arvada) is coming off a miraculous 44-43 win against Eaglecrest, in which kicker Collin Root drilled a 56-yarder as time expired. The Mustangs and standout running back Andrew Wingard now will match up with Fairview (Boulder) in a battle of 11-0 squads. The Knights boast the classification's most thorough air attack behind quarterback Johnny Feauto (3,648 yards, 37 TDs, seven interceptions).

Valor Christian, meanwhile, will aim for its third-straight 5A crown and sixth overall against No. 1 seed Pomona (Arvada). While Pomona has pulled off down-to-the-wire wins against Arapahoe and Columbine, Valor has outscored its two playoff foes by a combined score of 92-12.

Overall top seed Grandview (Aurora) (11-0) will look to keep its incredible roll going against Fountain-Fort Carson. The Wolves have shut out each of their playoff opponents (by a combined 91-0 margin) and have blanked four opponents this season. FFC quarterback Stock Chenault will have to keep up his efficient ways (17 TDs, one interception) for the Trojans to have a shot.

Class 4A

Two road teams crashed their way into the quarterfinals in No. 11 Broomfield and No. 13 Falcon (the classification uses a straight 16-team bracket and not quadrants like 5A).

Falcon knocked off No. 4 Denver South 28-13 and held 2,100-yard rusher Trevonte Tasco to two yards on nine attempts. The Falcons (7-4) will take on No. 5 Pueblo South (10-1), which has perhaps the most balanced attack of the remaining teams.

Top-seeded Pine Creek (Colorado Springs) recorded its third shutout of the season in blanking Ponderosa 42-0 in the first round, and the Eagles (11-0) will take on a hard-nosed Windsor squad that routed Vista Ridge 42-6. Pine Creek senior Josh Odom has rushed for 1,759 yards and 32 touchdowns while Windsor (8-3) counters with 1,000-yard back Jake Shields.

Broomfield (8-3), a 10-point road winner at No. 6 Dakota Ridge, will welcome No. 3 Montrose to its turf in the classification's lone Saturday game. Eagles quarterback Logan Mccormick has been a do-it-all player this season, while Montrose (10-1), led by Mike Rocha, has racked up nearly 4,000 yards on the ground.

No. 7 Longmont will travel to No. 2 Fort Collins in a rematch of a Week 4 contest, won by Fort Collins 13-7. Longmont (8-3) has won seven straight since then while Fort Collins (11-0) has yet to lose. Each team cruised in the opening round.

"We've had a couple position changes since that game, so we're eager to take another shot and get back out there," Longmont two-way lineman Tanner Wilkey said. "We want to keep going and make our push."

Class 3A

Perhaps no team made a bigger statement in the opening rounds than Fort Morgan. The 10th-seeded Mustangs seemed to be a sizable underdog at No. 7 Holy Family (Broomfield) but thoroughly handled the Tigers in a 35-18 win.

"Every formation that they had, we knew what was coming," said Fort Morgan fullback/defensive lineman Toby McBride, the reigning 4A 220-pound wrestling champion. "We were just really prepared. We had blitzes coming that they weren't ready for, and once they started adjusting to them, we would switch that up."

Fort Morgan will aim to keep its roll going against No. 2 Evergreen. The Cougars (11-0) and quarterback Dylan Reifeis handled Glenwood Springs 24-7 in the first round.

No. 3 Roosevelt (Johnstown) will take on No. 6 Rifle in a battle of squads that rampaged their way to first-round wins. Roosevelt racked up 489 yards on the ground in handling Eagle Valley 42-7 and Rifle jumped to a 61-0 lead on Northridge before triumphing 61-13.

Top-seeded Discovery Canyon (Colorado Springs) avoided the No. 16-over-No. 1 loss of last year and rocketed to the program's first playoff win with a convincing 41-0 romp over Berthoud. The Thunder (11-0) now gets No. 9 Delta, which went on the road to clip No. 8 Conifer 24-21.

Pueblo East, responsible for that 16-over-1 upset last season, wrangled in the No. 4 seed this time and will take on No. 12 Palisade. Pueblo East routed Canyon City 35-7 while always-potent Palisade went on the road and upset No. 5 Lutheran 28-24 by scoring two touchdowns in the final three minutes.