CLASS 5A FIRST ROUND STATE PLAYOFF MATCHUP
N0. 24 FAIRVIEW (5-4) vs. NO. 9 GRANDVIEW (6-3)
Nov. 2, Stutler Bowl, 7 p.m.
BREAKDOWN: Grandview and Fairview last met in the playoffs in the second round of the 2009-10 5A state playoffs, with Fairview winning 36-25. Grandview won the past three times the teams played when both were members of the Centennial League, including 42-3 in the 2007-08 season before Fairview left. …GRANDVIEW: Coach John Schultz’s team went deeper than any other Aurora squad in the 2011 5A playoffs, as the Wolves made it to the semifinals before suffering a 35-7 loss to eventual state champion Columbine. Grandview hasn’t lost a first round playoff game since 2003 and Schultz is undefeated in the opening round after taking over in the 2004-05 season from original coach Rocky Whitworth. …The Wolves won five of their last six games in the regular season, bouncing back from a loss to rival Cherokee Trail to defeat Cherry Creek and then Smoky Hill. Grandview’s three losses all came to top 10 teams — No. 1 ThunderRidge, No. 3 Cherokee Trail and No. 6 Chaparral …Offensively, senior Tanner Gentry has been one of the state’s top playmakers at wide receiver, as the University of Wyoming pledge has 41 catches for 908 yards — second-most in 5A — and nine touchdowns, plus added five touchdowns rushing. Quarterback Reece Weber has thrown for 16 touchdowns against five interceptions — four coming in one game against Cherokee Trail — while rushing for 362 yards and five scores. The running back tandem of Cassius Davis and Isaiah Jackson has combined for over 1,000 yards and nine TDs. Grandview’s defense allowed more points than in years past, but still swarms to the football. …FAIRVIEW: The Knights — who upset Regis Jesuit in the 1st round of last season’s playoffs before losing to eventual state champion Columbine — have been up and down all season, with an early injury to quarterback Anders Hill and the schedule being formidable in stretches. …While Gentry is the big receiver on Grandview’s side, Fairview has two receivers with big numbers in junior Sam Martin and senior Cole Scheifele. Martin is 5A’s leading receiver with 1,118 yards and 13 touchdowns (on 67 catches), while Scheifele has nabbed 57 balls for 902 yards. Hill has resumed his starting role and threw six touchdowns in Fairview’s regular season finale against Boulder. Defensively, the Knights get to the quarterback (18 sacks) and have caused 25 turnovers (15 interceptions, 10 fumble recoveries. …The winner plays either No. 8 Fountain-Fort Carson or No. 25 Douglas County in the second round.
Reach Sports Editor Courtney Oakes at sports@aurorasentinel.com or 303-750-7555