2016 CLASS 5A STATE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF MATCHUP
NO. 12 CHAPARRAL (7-3) VS. NO. 5 EAGLECREST (10-0)
At Legacy Stadium, Nov. 11, 7 p.m.
BREAKDOWN: The only undefeated team remaining in Class 5A is Eaglecrest, which won the Mount Wilson League championship and gained an automatic trip to the playoffs after missing out last season. The Raptors play host to Chaparral, the runner-up in the Mount Evans League behind Pomona, in the 5A first round. The last time the programs played in the postseason was in 2012, when Eaglecrest — then the No. 22 seed when the playoffs were 32 teams — upset sixth-seeded Chaparral 14-13, while the Wolverines had the upperhand with a 35-10 victory over the Raptors in the first round of the 2006 5A playoffs.
CHAPARRAL: Coach Rod Dobbs’ Wolverines enter the playoffs with five wins in their last six games, with the lone loss coming to league champion Pomona in Week 9. Offensively, Chaparral has been quite balanced with 1,388 yards passing and 1,165 yards rushing. Senior QB Taden Blaise has thrown for 1,085 yards and 12 touchdowns (against five interceptions) as he has utilized a plethora of passcatchers, led by junior WR Peyton Ross (399 yards receiving, six touchdowns), while senior TE Jacob Hawkins has pulled in four TD passes to go with 194 yards and junior TE Doug Wick paces the team in total receptions with 20. Senior RB KJ Phillips has been an effective rusher and has gained 886 yards on the ground and scored 10 times, while junior RB Carnell Lewis has been a strong compliment with 315 yards and five touchdowns…Defensively, Chaparral has yielded just 171 points in 10 games, the seventh-fewest in 5A, and posted shutouts against Prairie View, Mountain Vista and Hinkley. Junior LBs Tristan Dietz and Jacob Stanton make a lot of plays for Chaparral, as both have made more than 100 tackles (111 for Dietz, 109 for Stanton), while freshman S Issac Wilson has been a force as a newcomer with a team-high 10 sacks and ranks third on the team in tackles and sophomore S Tizell Lewis has three of the Wolverines’ 13 interceptions on the season.
EAGLECREST: Coach Mike Schmitt’s Raptors completed the second undefeated regular season in school history to join the 1993 team that went on to win the 5A state championship and also captured the first league title for the program since that same ’93 unit. Eaglecrest has been among the best in the state on both sides of the football, with a defense that has yielded just 127 points — third-fewest in 5A — and an offense that has 365 points to its credit, good for fifth-most in the classification…Offensively, the Raptors are big and physical all along the line, which has allowed them to be very effective both running and passing the football. Junior QB Jalen Mergerson has been very efficient and careful in the passing game, as he’s thrown just two interceptions — including one that was the result of a tipped pass in the regular season finale vs. Arvada West — while tossing 17 touchdown passes and picking up 1,250 yards through the air, while he is also the team’s second-leading rusher with 683 yards and a team-best nine rushing scores. Junior RB Kenny Wantings has developed into a major threat on the ground, as he has picked up 813 yards and six touchdowns, while junior RB Victor Garnes generally sees more passes thrown his way than rushing attempts, but he has run for 574 yards and eight touchdowns, with a healthy rushing average of 10.4 yards per carry. Garnes is the leading receiver with 524 yards and six touchdowns, while sure-handed junior WR Theryne Sandoval-Jimenez has 257 yards and three touchdowns and senior TE Tyler Peabody and junior WR Corey Corbin offer Mergerson other quality options in the passing game…Defensively, junior LB Cody Bardin has been outstanding with 108 tackles, while sophomore LB Tyler Dufour is not far behind with 89, despite missing the regular season finale after being cleared from concussion protocol. Junior DL Kyante Christian is active along the line with nearly a handful of sacks, senior LB Quentin Bowen seems to always be around loose footballs, while Garnes is the third-leading tackler and has picked off four passes, which is second behind senior DB Kyle Johnson, who has seven interceptions.
