AURORA | It unfolded in a much different way than last season, but Cherokee Trail suffered another agonizing loss to Valor Christian in the Class 5A state football playoffs.
A shootout in contrast to a defensive battle like the Eagles’ 9-0 victory over the Cougars in last season’s 5A state championship game, sixth-seeded Cherokee Trail started strong, but couldn’t keep its momentum as Christian McCaffrey and second-seeded Valor Christian came away with a 42-23 5A semifinal victory Saturday afternoon at Legacy Stadium.
The Stanford-bound McCaffrey racked up 288 yards from scrimmage, rushed for three touchdowns and returned an interception for another score in the fourth quarter to help send the Eagles (12-1) into the Nov. 30 5A state championship game against No. 1 Fairview at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Knights (12-0) outlasted fifth-seeded ThunderRidge 38-28 in the other semifinal.
Senior quarterback Aric Johnson ran for a touchdown and threw a TD pass to senior Dominique Grady, junior Cameron Smith rushed for 85 yards and a score and senior safety Evan White intercepted two Valor Christian passes for coach Monte Thelen’s Cherokee Trail team, which finished the season 10-3.
“You have to give a lot of credit to Valor, they’re obviously a dominant team,” said Thelen, whose team is 22-5 over the past two seasons and has made three trips to the 5A semifinals in the four seasons.
“We gave it our best shot, we just came up short today,” he added. “We’re really proud of our kids and we feel strongly like we’re one of the top programs in the state.”
The Cougars failed to get on the scoreboard the last time the teams met, but needed only three offensive plays to score a touchdown in the long-awaited rematch.
After McCaffrey’s 12-yard touchdown run put the Eagles ahead 7-0 on the opening series, Cherokee Trail countered on a drive that featured a 41-yard pass from Smith to junior Izaiah Lottie, followed by Smith’s virtually uncontested 25-yard dash to the end zone.
Feeding on the momentum, senior Cameron Currington stuffed McCaffrey on a screen pass to snuff out Valor Christian’s next possession, with Cherokee Trail taking over to in fine field position to launch a second scoring drive.
Another big pass from Johnson to Lottie put the Cougars in the red zone, but Smith got stopped on 3rd-and-1 at the 10, forcing Cherokee Trail to settle for a 26-yard Johnson field goal that put it in front 10-7.
The Cougars defense kept things going by generating turnovers on the next two possessions, as White picked off Eagles quarterback A.J. Cecil and Niko Sangster pounced on a McCaffrey fumble, which Cherokee Trail cashed in on with a 10-play drive that ended in Johnson’s 1-yard touchdown run.
With confidence on the rise, the Cougars watched Valor Christian country with a swift drive that ended with McCaffrey’s 1-yard TD and the first of the Eagles’ two defensive touchdowns on the day, a 47-yard fumble return by David Corral after Johnson was hit from behind.
A promising start for Cherokee Trail instead saw it facing a five-point halftime deficit. Getting the ball to open the second half gave the Cougars the hope of making a statement, but a quick three-and-out instead worked against them.
“We wanted to set the tone from the start and prove we’re still in this game,” Lottie said. “But the momentum changed there and if affected us through the rest of the game.”
White picked off Cecil on Valor Christian’s ensuing possession as he tried to hit Trey Hanley in the end zone, but the next Eagles’ drive found paydirt when Cecil fooled the defense with a fake handoff to McCaffrey, pulled the ball and raced untouched up the left sideline to make it 28-16.
Valor Christian’s massive offensive line — which features a slew of 300-pounders — began to become more effective as the game wore on, as did the dual threat of McCaffrey, who racked up 229 yards rushing, and Cecil, who added 83 of his own.
“You don’t know if it’s going to go inside or outside, if McCaffrey’s going to get it or the quarterback keeps it,” senior defensive end Nic Bogulski said. “They have a big O-line, so you can’t see them. All of sudden, the ball’s out, they have 15 yards on you and you can’t do anything about it.
“At the beginning of every game we say, if we keep moving forward, they keep moving back. We just couldn’t push forward enough this time.”
Cherokee Trail made it interesting when Johnson found Grady with a 9-yard touchdown pass on the second play of the fourth quarter to make it a 28-23 ballgame, only to see Cecil and McCaffrey carry five times each on the next drive, which went 85 yards, capped by McCaffrey’s 15-yard score.
McCaffrey struck one last blow with just over two minutes remaining, stepping in front of a Johnson pass near midfield and returning it for the Eagles final touchdown.
The loss stopped the Cougars’ dreams of a championship, which were stoked when they walked off the field on the losing end of last season’s state championship game.
“It’s the worst feeling in the world, but I wouldn’t have wanted to out with anybody but this team,” Currington said. “They are a bunch of troopers and the returning players are going to do their thing next year and get a championship.”
White, who is headed off to play at the University of Colorado next year, didn’t want to see his high school career come to an end, but will take the memories of a successful season with him.
“I’m proud of my team, we fought hard,” he said. “It’s been a great season, it’s just sad we had to take this loss. We’re not too happy right now.”
For a junior core that includes Smith, the team’s leading rusher, Lottie and others, it
“It means we’re going to have to work harder,” Lottie said. “We want that state ring, so we’re going to have to work harder towards that. The seniors were a good example of all of us. They set the bar high.”
For a photo gallery of the game, click here.
(2) VALOR CHRISTIAN 42, (6) CHEROKEE TRAIL 23
Score by quarters:
Valor Christian 7 14 7 14 — 42
Cherokee Trail 10 6 0 7 — 23
SCORING
First quarter
Valor Christian — Christian McCaffrey 12 yard run (Paul Grizzle kick), 8:16
Cherokee Trail — Cameron Smith 25 yard run (Aric Johnson kick), 7:26
Cherokee Trail — Johnson 26 yard field goal, 2:11
Second quarter
Cherokee Trail — Johnson 1 yard run (kick failed), 8:08
Valor Christian — McCaffrey 1 yard run (Grizzle kick), 4:54
Valor Christian — David Corral 47 yard fumble return (Grizzle kick), 2:55
Third quarter
Valor Christian — A.J. Cecil 24 yard run (Grizzle kick), 4:23
Cherokee Trail — Dominique Grady 9 yard pass from Johnson (Johnson kick), 11:24
Valor Christian — McCaffrey 15 yard run (Grizzle kick), 6:40
Valor Christian — McCaffrey 50 yard interception return (Grizzle kick), 6:40
RUSHING
Valor Christian: Christian McCaffrey 28-229, A.J. Cecil 16-83, Nathan Whatmore 4-10
Cherokee Trail: Cameron Smith 23-89, Aric Johnson 11-74, Izaiah Lottie 1-1
PASSING
Valor Christian: Cecil 8-12, 77 yards, 2 interceptions; McCaffrey 0-1
Cherokee Trail: Johnson 11-20, 130 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions
RECEIVING
Valor Christian: McCaffrey 6-59, Trey Hanley 1-13, Brandon O’Donnell 1-5
Cherokee Trail: Lottie 5-89, Jason Thompson 3-18, Dominique Grady 2-17, Isaiah Kaiser 1-6
Courtney Oakes is Sports Editor of the Aurora Sentinel. Reach him at 303-750-7555 or sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter: @aurorasports. Facebook: Aurora Prep Sentinel