CLASS 5A STATE FOOTBALL 1ST ROUND MATCHUP
REGION A: NO. 5 CHEROKEE TRAIL (5-4) VS. NO. 4 HERITAGE (7-2)
6 p.m., Nov. 7, Littleton Public Schools Stadium
BREAKDOWN: Cherokee Trail of the Centennial League and Heritage of the South Metro League have never met in the playoff before and only have squared off twice all-time, splitting a two-game regular season series in 2010 and 2011, with the Cougars winning 34-14 in 2010 and Heritage prevailing 21-20 in 2011…Coach Monte Thelen has Cherokee Trail in the postseason for the 11th straight season, a span that stretches back to its debut in 3A in 2005, plus two seasons (2006 and 2007) in 4A and the past eight in 5A. The Cougars own a 6-4 mark all-time in the opening game of the playoffs…Heritage has qualified for the postseason for the eighth time in the past 10 years, which included a two-year stint in 4A during which it won the 4A state championship. Coach Tyler Knoblock’s Eagles lost in the second round of last season’s 5A playoffs to Regis Jesuit…CHEROKEE TRAIL: Thelen’s team should be ready for the playoffs given that eight of the Cougars’ nine regular season opponents qualified for the playoffs and three of their Centennial League opponents (Grandview, Cherry Creek and Valor Christian) earned No. 1 seeds. Bouncing back from a loss to league champion Valor Christian, Cherokee Trail posted a 14-13 win over Eaglecrest and a 10-0 victory over Overland to close out the regular season…Defense has kept the Cougars in nearly every game with the exception of allowing 42 points to explosive Grandview and 33 to high-powered Valor Christian and two of Cherokee Trail’s four losses came by five points or less. Senior LB Anthony Holmes has racked up 84 tackles, while Cherokee Trail’s prolific pass rush is led by senior DL Seth Bogulski with a whopping 17 sacks, followed by senior DL Kaylon Brown with 10. Eleven players in all have at least two sacks. On the back end, junior S Mike Ward leads the team with interceptions and returned two for touchdowns…Thelen said the Cougars are as healthy as they’ve been at any point in the season and should get back a few players who have missed significant time due to injury. Cherokee Trail already has back junior quarterback Conner Nantkes, who was lost to a broken arm in a preseason scrimmage, but has thrown for 331 yards and three touchdown passes in two-plus games since his return in Week 7. Nantkes has two primary targets in the passing game in senior WR Tyler Kruse (323 yards receiving) and shifty junior WR KJ Sapp, who has a team-high four touchdown catches as part of his 223 yards. Junior RB Max Gonzales has provided some oomph to the Cougars’ run game, as he leads the team with 507 yards rushing and three scores, while senior RB Quincey Voss has found the end zone five times to go with 393 yards rushing working behind a line featuring senior OL Ashton Torres and junior OL Ruben Estrada…HERITAGE: Since a 34-21 loss to undefeated Arapahoe that turned out to be the difference in the South Metro League standings, Heritage has won three straight games (all against Aurora opponents in Hinkley, Gateway and Rangeview) and lit up the scoreboard in the process by outscoring those opponents 136-78. The Eagles scored twice in the fourth quarter to rally past Rangeview for a 19-18 victory on Oct. 30…The Eagles have a prolific passing attack behind junior QB Chase Hansen, who has thrown for 15 touchdowns, including 10 to senior WR Tim Pless, who has 859 receiving yards. Sophomore RB Tyler Zoesch leads a diverse rushing attack with 619 yards rushing and has scored seven times, as has senior RB Daejour Haynes…Haynes is also a ballhawk on the defensive side, as he leads Heritage with four interceptions. Senior LB Anthony Gray is the team leader in tackles …WINNER: The Cherokee Trail-Heritage winner moves on in Region A to the second round — scheduled to be played between Nov. 12-14 — where it will face the winner top-seeded Columbine, a 48-13 first round winner against No. 8 Overland.
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. FB: Aurora Prep Sentinel
