Ryan West is perfect as an honorary captain in state championship games.
The Regis Jesuit athletic director was onhand at Canvas Stadium on the campus of Colorado State University Saturday morning as his alma mater Pomona played for the Class 3A state championship.
West starred as an offensive lineman on the 1986 Pomona team that lost to Cherry Creek in the Class AAAA state championship game that was played at Jefferson County Stadium. He was asked to be an honorary captain for this season’s Pomona team, which played top-seeded and previously undefeated Windsor in the 3A title game.
West watched as the second-seeded Panthers won their third all-time state championship and first since 2017 (when they defeated Eaglecrest 56-49 in the 5A state title game in which remains the highest scoring final in state history) with a 17-14 victory on a last-second field goal by junior Chase Keaton (see story, here).
“I’m 1-0,” West quipped in the midst of Pomona’s championship celebration.
The game also brought West back to Fort Collins, where he was a member of the Colorado State football team. He redshirted in 1987 and played in four games in 1988 as a freshman.
West served as principal at Englewood High School and became Regis Jesuit’s athletic director on an interim bases in the summer of 2024. He was hired officially in January (see story, here).
— Sports Editor Courtney Oakes