LAKEWOOD | The Cherokee Trail football team took its best shot at dethroning the defending Class 5A state champions Nov. 16, but Columbine refused to have its run come to an end.
The fourth-seeded Rebels were held to one score by the 20th-seeded Cougars in the opening half at Jeffco Stadium, but piled up 35 in the final two quarters on their way to a 42-21 victory.
Columbine got a touchdown on the opening playoff of the second half on a kickoff return and rushed for four touchdowns the rest of the way to earn a spot in the quarterfinals, where it will face No. 5 Valor Christian.
PHOTO GALLERY FROM CHEROKEE TRAIL-COLUMBINE, HERE
“We went in thinking we were going to shock the state, but not ourselves,” said coach Justin Jajczyk’s Cougars, who finished the season 5-7. “Even though we didn’t get the outcome we wanted, our guys really left their mark on Columbine and the state. We have a lot to build on.”
Jajczyk said he offered to postpone the game out of respect for longtime Columbine head coach Andy Lowry, whose wife, Janet, died the previous night after a lengthy battle with cancer. But Lowry wanted the game to go on as scheduled and turned out to be more of a battle than many might have expected.
Cherokee Trail — which came into the contest after a first round upset of No. 13 Castle View — knew what it faced in Columbine, which had become a regular season opponent several times in recent years and came ready to play in the opening half.
The Cougars even got on the scoreboard first at the end of a sustained drive that began late in the first quarter and ended with 9:09 left in the half when senior quarterback Tyson Smith rocketed a pass into the end zone to junior Brian Cusack. The score came on a 4th-and-long after Smith’s rushing touchdown had been negated by a holding call.
Columbine got a significant return on the ensuing kickoff and followed it with a 12-play drive that took up most of the rest of the quarter. Mark Snyder scored the first of his three touchdowns in the game on a 1-yard run, which sent the game into halftime at 7-7.
That changed on the opening play of the second half, however, as Rebels’ sophomore Juice Mabini took the opening kickoff back 89 yards to the end zone.
“They hadn’t broken a kickoff since the state championship game last year against Cherry Creek,” Jajczyk said. “They are just so opportunistic. …They don’t beat themselves and you almost have to play a flawless game against them.”
Mabini struck again on defense shortly after that with an interception on a pass Smith had intended for senior Cade Brook (who finished with a team-high 70 yards receiving while playing a massive role in the interior defense). That series also ended with a touchdown for Columbine, which overcame a hurdling penalty on a run by Snyder, who made up for it three plays later with a 1-yard run.
The Cougars tried to respond, but Smith stumbled and went down on a 4th down play near midfield. The Rebels took advantage of a short field as Snyder and James Basinger chewed up all the yardage with Basinger securing a touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter to make it a three-score game.
Smith worked the ball upfield on the next possession with connections with Brook, Cusack and senior Brandon McCullough, while senior Noah Collins (who rushed for 109 yards) finished the drive with a tough 3-yard touchdown run. Collins would score again with three minutes left, but that came after Snyder and Chris Angelini both had scores.
“There were three plays I would like to have back, but otherwise, our kids were tremendous with their execution and toughness,” Jajczyk said. “I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
Much like the other two Aurora area programs that also made it to the second round — 12th-seeded Regis Jesuit and 17th-seeded Grandview — Cherokee Trail played its best football when it counted.
It came through a difficult non-league schedule that featured No. 2 Mountain Vista and Dakota Ridge (4A’s No. 1 seed) — both of which remain alive in the quarterfinals of their respective postseasons — then started Centennial League play against 5A No. 1 seed Cherry Creek.
A big 14-13 win over Eaglecrest at a pivotal point of the season put the Cougars in position to make it to the postseason and once there, they dispatched Castle View in the opening round with a thorough performance.
Cherokee Trail graduates a group that includes standouts in Brook, Collins, Smith, Marquis Jamison and others who made the Cougars a team to be reckoned with after all they had been through.
This experience, plus a strong group of returners on the offensive line, defensive backfield and the maturation of some promising freshmen seem to have the program pointed in the right direction.
“The seniors did a great job of raising the standard,” Jajczyk said. “From getting the first playoff win here in three years and going toe-to-toe with the defending state champion, they were absolutely huge.”
The Aurora area’s representation in the 5A playoffs ended in the second round, as 12th-seeded Regis Jesuit lost to No. 5 Valor Christian 24-17 Saturday morning (story, here), a day after 17th-seeded Grandview fell to No. 1 Cherry Creek 38-10 (story, here).
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@sentinelcolorado.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
2024 CLASS 5A STATE FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS (2ND ROUND)
(4) COLUMBINE 42, (20) CHEROKEE TRAIL 21
Score by quarters:
Cher. Trail 0 7 0 14 — 21
Columbine 0 7 14 21 — 42
SCORING
Second quarter
Cherokee Trail — Brian Cusack 19 yard pass from Tyson Smith (Connor Carlson kick), 9:09
Columbine — Mark Snyder 8 yard run (Brennan Goodwin kick), 2:37
Third quarter
Columbine — Juice Mabini 89 yard kickoff return (Goodwin kick), 11:46
Columbine — Snyder 1 yard run (Goodwin kick), 5:50
Fourth quarter
Columbine — James Basinger 1 yard run (Goodwin kick), 11:56
Cherokee Trail — Noah Collins 3 yard run (Carlson kick), 6:08
Columbine — Snyder 6 yard run (Goodwin kick), 5:18
Columbine — Chris Angelini 26 yard run (Goodwin kick), 4:26
Cherokee Trail — Collins 5 yard run (Carlson kick), 2:58
PASSING
Cherokee Trail: Tyson Smith 18-32, 191 yards, 1 touchdown, 1 interception
Columbine: Brennan Goodwin 0-1, 0 yards
RUSHING
Cherokee Trail: Noah Collins 15-109, Brian Tucker 11-16, Smith 1-4, Brian Cusack 1-3
Columbine: Mark Snyder 21-158, James Basinger 12-67, Chris Angelini 3-32, Juice Mabini 1-7, Corbin Dyer 1-4, Goodwin 4-(minus 10)
RECEIVING
Cherokee Trail: Cade Brook 6-75, Brandon McCullough 2-60, Cusack 7-40, Marquis Jamison 1-14, Collins 1-2
