Roosevelt High School football coach Lane Wasinger has the upmost faith that his team can make a deep playoff run. But he also knows this is a team that needs to be challenged before the post season.
As the high school football schedule turns to Week 5, the Roughriders will face a challenge as they host Windsor in a huge Class 3A top 10 showdown on Friday.
Roosevelt has wins against Holy Family and Ponderosa already this season so they’ve already seen a couple of tough tests, but the game with Windsor is intriguing for several reasons. A lot of coaches identified the Wizards as a top-level 3A team when they dropped down to the classification prior to this fall. They lost their Week 1 game against Green Mountain 19-13, but since then have outscored their opponents 109-16.
Running back Tripp Thomas is a big reason for that as he has rushed for 335 yards and has half of the teams 16 total rushing touchdowns. Windsor’s defense doesn’t force a lot of turnovers, but it has kept teams out of the end zone and through four games has sacked opposing quarterbacks 15 time.
The Roughriders will counter with their own rushing attack led by Lucy Vigil. The senior averages 127 yards per game while Milo Pascual provides solid support with 65 yards per game. Pascual has a team-high seven rushing touchdowns.
This is the last non-league game for the Roughriders and the Wizards which means the stakes only get higher from here on out. Both teams would love to head into league play with a big win under their belt.
Throughout the state, there are other big games to keep an eye on as league play begins in Week 6.
**
Class 5A
(6) Ralston Valley at (4) Valor Christian
Although Valor sits at No. 4 in the Colorado Preps football rankings, there are many that believe the Eagles are the second best team in the state behind Cherry Creek. This two-week stretch will perhaps solidify those beliefs as Valor gets No. 6 Ralston Valley and then No. 2 Mountain Vista.
Bob Stitt’s offense has quarterback Dawson Olk throwing for 215 yards per game, more than half of which go to receiver Cash Spence.
After losing quarterback Logan Madden to graduation, Zeke Andrews has taken over and performed admirably for the Mustangs. He has thrown for 991 yards and seven touchdowns so far this season.
Class 4A
(4) Pueblo West at (7) Vista Ridge
All season, there has been a consensus top tier of teams in 4A and Pueblo West is comfortably in that company. On Sept. 13, the Cyclones took on 3A’s then- No. 1 Lutheran and absolutely smacked the Lions. They’ll get their toughest 4A test against the Wolves before diving into league play. Quarterback Gavin Lockett has been his usual dual-threat self as he has thrown for 462 yards and four touchdowns while also running for a team-high 415 yards and seven scores.
Vista Ridge’s lone loss of the season came at the hands of 5A No. 3 Columbine. Aside from that, the Wolves have looked good under new coach Matt Wibbels. Running back Gabriel Mcfarland runs for about 110 yards per game and quarterback Zayden Stevens has thrown for 643 yards and seven touchdowns.
The Bell Game
Pueblo Central vs. Pueblo Centennial
The oldest high school football rivalry west of the Mississippi River will be played in front of more than 10,000 fans at Dutch Clark Stadium on Friday night.
Central has won the last five meetings and leads the overall series 61-53-9.
The Wildcats are tough to beat when running back Amari Brown gets going. In three games, he’s averaging 180 yards. He missed the Week 4 game against Moorpark (Cal.), Central’s first loss of the season.
Centennial is currently riding a 15-game losing streak and would certainly pain the town of Pueblo red if they came away with the bell on Friday.