Picking state champions: 1921 to 1925

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This post is a continuation of an earlier post I wrote where I broke down the unofficial state champions from 1926 to 1930. The Wyoming High School Activities Association only recognizes champions from 1931 forward, so I decided to take a look back and see who had won consensus state championships in Wyoming before the WHSAA got around to officially sanctioning state playoffs…

Here is the latest update on that research:

1925 champion: Worland. The Warriors beat Cheyenne Central 19-7 in the unofficial state title game on Dec. 4 in Worland. The Warriors went 9-0-1 in 1925, giving up only 10 points all season — three to Natrona and seven to Central in the title game. The lone smear for Worland was a scoreless tie with Thermopolis, a team the Warriors beat 7-0 on Thanksgiving prior to beating the Indians. Central finished 8-1-1.

1924 champion: Worland. A season full of parity made deciding a champion difficult, but the Warriors beat top challenger Natrona 27-7 in a game on Dec. 5 in Casper. Worland finished 8-1, splitting the season series with Thermopolis, while Natrona finished 7-2, losing to Laramie as well as Worland. A ton of other teams finished with solid seasons, but they all had something on their resume that kept them from postseason consideration: Thermopolis was 6-1-1 (a loss to Worland and a surprising early season tie with Greybull), Laramie was 5-1-1 (tied and lost to Central), Sheridan was 6-1 (lost to Buffalo), Buffalo was 5-2 (lost twice to Sheridan), Cheyenne Central was 6-2-1 (lost bad to Natrona) and Kemmerer was 5-0 (didn’t play anyone outside the southwest district).

1923 champion: Sheridan. The Broncs’ 8-0 record, including victories over Newcastle, Thermopolis, Natrona, Buffalo and Gillette, was the best in the state in 1923. Although no “title game” was staged, the Broncs were the consensus state champions because they were the only team to finish the season undefeated.

1922 champion: Sheridan. Once again, no title game was scheduled. Once again, it was the Broncs’ praiseworthy record (7-1) that earned them the championship by consensus. The Broncs’ only loss was to Billings, Mont.; Sheridan shut out its opponents in six of its seven victories. Cheyenne Central (7-1) extended an offer for a championship game, but Sheridan refused, citing the Indians’ 14-0 loss to Natrona in the regular season and its own unbeaten record in Wyoming games. Sheridan was the only team to rise above a quagmire of solid-but-not-excellent teams: Natrona (6-2) lost to Sheridan 21-15 in the season finale and also split a home-and-home with Douglas, winning 6-0 and losing 21-20; Central lost to Natrona but beat Douglas 16-2 late in the season; Thermopolis won the Bighorn Basin league at 6-1 but its lone loss was a 3-0 heartbreaker to Douglas.

1921 champion: Sheridan. I am still researching the 1921 season, but I can tell you that Sheridan won the title with an 8-0 record, going the entire season without giving up a point to a Wyoming opponent.

The 1921 season was a watershed one for Wyoming football. According to an article from the Wyoming State Tribune published in the early 1920s, the number of high schools fielding football in Wyoming jumped from six in 1920 to 16 in 1921. It was also the first year of organized conference play in the Bighorn Basin, as five teams (Greybull, Basin, Thermopolis, Worland and Cowley) played full conference schedules.

The six teams that played prior to 1920? Well, that was Sheridan, Natrona, Cheyenne Central, Laramie, University Prep and …. I’m not sure. By 1922, 28 schools had fielded teams; by the middle of the decade, the number was pushing 40.

The 1920s saw unprecedented development of the game statewide. But even in the game’s infancy, schools kept their focus on winning a state championship. Sheridan and Worland were the two schools fortunate enough — and good enough — to snag unofficial titles in the game’s early days.

–patrick

Stadium checklist (yours and mine)

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A conversation I had back in October with Wyoming Tribune-Eagle sportswriter Jeremiah Johnke — a guy who I always appreciate seeing in the press box next to me — sparked a mental tally in my head that I am finally putting down “on paper.”

Jeremiah and I were running off the mental checklist of Wyoming football stadiums we had seen and of stadiums where we had actually seen a game played. Jeremiah’s list was quite extensive. But so was mine. I think we tied….

Eventually, I actually sat down and started tallying.

My list of stadiums that I’ve been to is quite a bit more extensive than my list of stadiums where I’ve actually seen (or participated in) a game. As my wife can attest to, whenever I drive within a few miles of a stadium I haven’t seen, I have to go drive around and check it out. The seen/participated list means the most to me; I have very distinct memories of each one of those stadiums because of what I watched (or did) there.

Anyway, here’s my list. What’s yours? I’m really curious to see where other fans in the state have been… and feel free to share your stories about your travels around the state!

(Before you get around to posting your list, a couple ground rules: First, if you need some help with a school checklist, click here, and if you want some more info on the particular stadiums, click here. Second, “been to” means, at minimum, you drove to the field and stopped your vehicle. Driving past it, even at 15 mph, doesn’t count. Third, “watching” a game means being there the ENTIRE time. You can’t count it if you were only there for a few minutes, or if you drove past it one day and they were playing a game there.)

Stadiums I have been to: Big Horn, Big Piney, Buffalo, Burns, Cheyenne Central, Cheyenne East, Cheyenne South, Cody, Cokeville, Douglas, Dubois, Farson, Gillette, Glenrock, Green River, Greybull, Guernsey, Hanna, Hulett, Kaycee, Kelly Walsh, Kemmerer, Lander, Laramie, Lingle, Lusk, Meeteetse, Midwest, Moorcroft, Mountain View, Natrona, Normative Services, Pine Bluffs, Pinedale, Powell, Rawlins, Riverside, Riverton, Rocky Mountain (the old field in Byron), Sheridan, Shoshoni, Southeast, Star Valley, Sundance, Ten Sleep, Thermopolis, Torrington, Upton, Wheatland, Wind River, Worland, Wright, Wyoming Indian. (53 stadiums)

Stadiums where I have watched/played in a game: Big Horn, Buffalo, Burns, Cheyenne Central, Cheyenne East, Douglas, Dubois, Gillette, Glenrock, Hanna, Hulett, Kaycee, Kelly Walsh, Laramie, Meeteetse, Midwest, Moorcroft, Natrona, Pine Bluffs, Rocky Mountain (the old field in Byron), Sheridan, Sundance, Ten Sleep, Torrington, Upton, Wyoming Indian. (26 stadiums)

And for clarity’s sake, here are the stadiums I haven’t been to: Burlington, Evanston, Jackson, Lovell, Lyman, Newcastle, Rock Springs, Rocky Mountain (the new field in Cowley), Saratoga, Snake River, Tongue River. (11 stadiums; I’ve driven past most of these but never took the time to actually stop and look.)

Your turn…

–patrick

Newsbreak: Football championships

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WHSAA tables decision (Casper Star-Tribune).

By now, though, the decision has been made: The state championships will be at UW the next three years (thanks to CST reporter Clint Robus’ Twitter feed).

What do you think? The move is not all that surprising, and it gives Laramie three years to gain some consistency with the event rather than playing this year-to-year game that’s gone on for the past three years…. Thoughts?

–patrick

Shrine Bowl rosters announced

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The rosters for the annual Shrine Bowl all-star football game have been released. The game will be played June 11 in Casper.

SOUTH
Big Piney: Zach Wenz, Shane Copeland, Ken Howard.
Cheyenne Central: Zach Peck, Josh Borm, Thad Lane.
Cheyenne East: Chase Metzler, Jacob Edwards, Michael Galicia.
Cokeville: McKay Tonga, Chance Maddock.
Douglas: Joe Lake, Trent Boner, Dylan Klava, Taylor Lisco, Justin Melton.
Evanston: Jeff Lee, Nolan Smith, Jack Lambert.
Green River: Cooper Palmer.
Lingle: Brody Serres.
Lusk: Ace Thurston, Jerit DeGering, Derek Smith.
Lyman: Nate Eyre, Colby Gaylord, James Taylor.
Mountain View: Wynston Anglen.
Pine Bluffs: Blayne Gilbert.
Rawlins: David Greninger.
Rock Springs: Zack Rosette.
Snake River: Sean Rietveld.
Torrington: Evan Rader.
Wheatland: Merit Bunker, Ward Anderson, Quinn Zimmerman.

Alternates: Baylor Sieg, Douglas; Scott Davis, Evanston; Clint Dewald, Glenrock; Jacob Flores, Green River; Raymond Hohn, Hanna; Dylan Mastrud, Kemmerer; Wes Dalles, Laramie; Jordan Mirich, Lingle; Lance Hladky, Lusk; Austin Lang, Pine Bluffs;Aaron Belton, Pinedale; Jared Craig, Rawlins.

Student Manager: Megan Wingeleth, Lyman.

Coaches: Pat Fackrell and Larry Wagstaff, Evanston; Scott Schultz, Wheatland; Ted Holmstrom, Lyman; Matt VandeBossche, Lusk; Michael Bates, Snake River.

NORTH
Big Horn: Michael Klepperich, Wyatt Mirich, Nelson Alzheimer.
Buffalo: Jace Jensen, Hayden Kessler, Lee Iberlin, Jake Hepp.
Cody: Andrew Blaylock, Travis Calkin, Morgan Heimer.
Dubois: Trent Slagowski.
Gillette: Brek Carper, Jake Gill, Riley Bousa.
Greybull: Clay Cundall.
Kaycee: Shawn Straub.
Kelly Walsh: Kyle Smith, Tanner Vivian.
Lovell: Darren Ballard.
Natrona: Jim Shellenberger, Cole Montgomery, Braden Barnes, Lucas Rowley, Chase Cimburek.
Newcastle: Jeremy Beehler.
Powell: Tyler England, Colby Gilmore.
Riverton: Jarrett Watson.
Rocky Mountain: Kaleb Hoyt.
Sheridan: Kyle Hutchinson, Dawson Osborn, Zack Will.
Thermopolis: Tanner Cornwell.
Worland: Caleb Garza.
Wright: Holden Fauber, Ryan Haefele.

Alternates: James Bushnell, Cody; Matt Fales, Cody; Joe Bartlett, Dubois; Zach D’Amico, Natrona; Dakota Webb, Natrona; Travis Garhart, Newcastle; Fabio Soto, Powell; Ben Anson, Riverside; Jim Johnson, Riverton; Wes Sessions, Sheridan; Alex Sami, Tongue River; Coleman Stanger, Wind River.

Student Manager: Kristin Tammany, Riverton.

Coaches: John Cundall and Jeff Sukut, Greybull; Vic Wilkerson, Gillette; Pat Lynch, Buffalo; David Trembly, Dubois; Dustin Sipe, Kaycee.

Sheridan, Laramie both bid for football championships

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Sheridan, Laramie both bid for football championships (Casper Star-Tribune).

In sum, Sheridan has submitted a bid to host the football championships in 2011 and 2012. Laramie’s bid is to host in 2011, 2012 and 2013. The WHSAA can accept one bid or the other, or reject both and go back to having title games at host sites.

–patrick

National Signing Day 2011

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Today is National Signing Day for college football — the beginning of a nearly two-month period in which high school seniors can make their college choices public. Wyoming always has its fair share of seniors move on to the college ranks, and this year will be no exception.

Let me know where this year’s senior class of football players is going! Leave a comment here, post it to the w-f Facebook page, or e-mail me at pschmiedt@yahoo.com. I will post the choices here as I receive them, throughout the day and throughout the next couple months. You are also encouraged to let me know about walk-ons and verbal commitments, as well.

Signings and verbal commitments, as I have them:

BIG PINEY: Zach Wenz, Black Hills State.

CHEYENNE CENTRAL: Josh Borm, Chadron State; Brant Douglas, Nebraska-Kearney; Thad Lane, Dickinson State.

CHEYENNE EAST: Jeremiah Hunter, Sioux Falls; Matt Moyte, Dakota State.

CODY: Andrew Blaylock, Black Hills State; Travis Calkin, Chadron State.

DOUGLAS: Gary Bolinger, South Dakota School of Mines; Trent Boner, Black Hills State; Justin Melton, Chadron State; Jacob Vogel, Black Hills State (transfer from Wyoming).

EVANSTON: Gilber Delgado, Black Hills State.

GILLETTE: Brek Carper, Chadron State; Jake Gill, Black Hills State.

GREEN RIVER: Spencer Lane, Lewis and Clark College (Ore.); Cooper Palmer, Carroll College; Colter Rood, Carroll College.

GREYBULL: Clay Cundall, Chadron State.

KELLY WALSH: Lane Millay, Dickinson State; Riley Moore, Dickinson State; Kyle Smith, Carroll College.

LARAMIE: Wes Dalles, Chadron State; Austin Ontiveroz, University Of Mary; Joshua Peterson, Dickinson State.

LUSK: Jerit DeGering, Chadron State.

MOORCROFT: Brady Buer, Black Hills State (transfer from Wyoming).

NATRONA: Braden Barnes, Black Hills State; Brock Beddes, Chadron State; Cole Montgomery, Chadron State; Kyle Vinich, Chadron State.

PINE BLUFFS: Blayne Gilbert, Black Hills State.

ROCK SPRINGS: Neil Novak, Black Hills State (transfer from Chadron State).

SHERIDAN: Kyle Hutchinson, Dickinson State; Dawson Osborn, Carroll College; Wes Sessions, Dickinson State; Drew Slikker, Carroll College; Zack Will, Black Hills State; Dan Zemski, Black Hills State.

SHOSHONI: Chase McNamee, Black Hills State (transfer from Univ. of Sioux Falls).

SUNDANCE: Ray Moore, Black Hills State (transfer from Univ. of Sioux Falls).

THERMOPOLIS: Tanner Cornwell, Black Hills State; Kyle Pebbles, Black Hills State; Mitch Syverson, South Dakota Mines.

WHEATLAND: Ward Anderson, Black Hills State.

WORLAND: Bradley Hunter, Black Hills State.

–patrick

Five Minute Introduction (the early days version): Carpenter, Fort Washakie, Gebo, Grass Creek, Heart Mountain, Monarch, Valley

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This is the last of the Five Minute Introductions — and they are all for teams that started and ended their programs before World War II. I hope you’ve enjoyed the past year-plus of these quick little look-ins at each of the state’s high school football programs! Now, on to the final seven:

School: Carpenter
Nickname: Coyotes
Colors: blue and white
Stadium: Unknown
State championships: None
Short history: The Coyotes won three games in two seasons of six-man football right before World War II. Carpenter beat Albin for its only victory in 1940 and beat Potter, Neb., and Burns for its two victories in 1941. Carpenter finished its two seasons a combined 3-12.

Carpenter team page.

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School: Fort Washakie
Nickname: Indians
Colors: Unknown
Stadium: Unknown
State championships: None
Times worth remembering: In 26 tries over six seasons, the Fort Washakie school won just one game, a 32-13 victory over Pavillion on Oct. 24, 1941. However, in that final season in 1941, the Indians found a niche in six-man football and were consistently competitive. Like many small football programs in the state, though, World War II helped put an end to the program.
Times worth forgetting: Fort Washakie went five seasons — 1936-40 — without a victory, piling up a combined mark of 0-19-2 in that span. The Indians failed to score in 14 of those 21 games.

Fort Washakie team page.

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School: Gebo
Nickname: Miners
Colors: Unknown
Stadium: Unknown
State championships: None
Times worth remembering: The 1932 season was Gebo’s lone winning season. The Miners went 5-3 and ended the season on a four-game winning streak. Gebo’s hallmark was defense; the Miners beat Basin, Shoshoni, Riverton and Ten Sleep twice — all by shutout.
Times worth forgetting: The Miners had three consecutive winless seasons from 1933-35, going 0-17-2 while playing the likes of Riverton, Thermopolis, Lander and Worland. The 1934 and 1935 teams both failed to score a point; at one point, Gebo went 13 consecutive games without scoring.

Gebo team page.

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School: Grass Creek
Nickname: Unknown
Colors: Unknown
Stadium: Unknown
State championships: None
Short history: The oilfield school northwest of Thermopolis has only one recorded game, a 45-0 loss to Thermopolis in 1926.

(Grass Creek doesn’t have a team page yet; its one game was played prior to 1930.)

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School: Heart Mountain
Nickname: Eagles
Colors: Unknown
Stadium: Unknown
State championships: None
Short history: The Heart Mountain Japanese internment camp team played for only two seasons, but in that time established a reputation as one of the state’s best teams. The Eagle varsity played seven games over two seasons, going 6-1. All six of the team’s victories were shutouts; the lone loss was a 19-13 defeat in a hard-fought game against Natrona. However, Heart Mountain was not a full-fledged member of the Bighorn Basin conference and many teams in the region refused to play the Eagles.

Heart Mountain team page.

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School: Monarch
Nickname: Unknown
Colors: Unknown
Stadium: Unknown
State championships: None
Short history: Monarch school, located north of Sheridan, has only one recorded game — a 34-6 loss to Dayton on Oct. 16, 1936.

Monarch team page.

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School: Valley
Nickname: Cowboys
Colors: Unknown
Stadium: Unknown
State championships: None
Short history: The Valley Prep school was best known as a high-end college preparatory academy, yet still played a hodgepodge schedule of Bighorn Basin squads. Even with little training and no home field, the Cowboys occasionally won and were always respected; the Cowboys beat both Cowley and Powell in 1930.

Valley team page.

Five Minute Introduction: Guernsey-Sunrise

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School: Guernsey/Guernsey-Sunrise
Nickname: Longhorns/Vikings
Colors: orange and black/black and yellow
Stadium: Viking Stadium
State championships: 2004, 2006 and 2009
Times worth remembering: Two time periods help define the Guernsey-Sunrise program. The Vikings were consistently one of the toughest teams in the southeast corner during the 1970s, putting together eight consecutive winning seasons from 1971-78. In that span, Guernsey-Sunrise went 55-17, including a stretch of 24-3 in the 1975, 1976 and 1977 seasons. Missing from that span, though, is a state title — Guernsey missed the playoffs in 1975, lost the title game in 1976 and lost in the semis in 1977. That’s why the Vikings’ recent streak of title game appearances — five in six years from 2002-07, including titles in 2004 and 2006, and an all-too-easy 9-0 season in 2009 that gave the school its first six-man state championship — represents the second golden era of Viking football.
Times worth forgetting: The time right before the Sunrise school closed in 1963 and right after represented the toughest time for the Longhorns/Vikings. Consecutive winless seasons in 1961 and 1962 for the Longhorns were followed up with one-win seasons in 1963 and 1964, the first two years of the Vikings.
Best team: From the two “golden eras” for Guernsey, two teams stand out, the squad from 1976 and the squad from 2004. The 1976 team led the B-C division with five first-team all-staters and had its only loss in the state title game; the 2004 team had seven first-team all-staters, lost in the regular season to Lingle but won the state championship by edging out Cokeville at Cokeville (this after beating Burlington on the final play of the game in the semis). Put them on the field at the same time, I think it’s a great game, but the 2004 team’s penchant for winning the big games gives them the edge.
Biggest win: The 2004 title game, bar none. The Vikings were big underdogs in the game against Cokeville, which had beaten Guernsey 54-0 in the 2002 title game and 52-0 in the 2001 quarterfinals. The momentum built from beating Burlington in the semifinals a week earlier on the road gave the Vikings the confidence, and a touchdown in the final two minutes from Nigel Bristow gave the Vikings the title. (The 2006 title game win, a 14-12 victory also over Cokeville at Cokeville, helped lend legitimacy to the Vikings’ title-game run, as well. But the 2004 game was the bigger win.)
Heartbreaker: The Vikings just couldn’t catch a break in the mid-1970s. In 1975, the top-ranked Vikings lost to third-ranked Saratoga, a team Guernsey-Sunrise beat 16-12 earlier in the season, 20-6 on the final day of the regular season. The loss kept the Vikings out of the playoffs. Then, a year later, the Vikings went 9-0 and reached the Class B state championship game, only to get thumped by Lyman 28-12.

Guernsey-Sunrise team page.
Guernsey team page.

NFF names 2010-11 award finalists

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The Wyoming Chapter of the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame has named 12 high school football players as finalists for its annual scholarship awards.

The Wyoming Chapter will award its scholarships during its banquet, set for 5 p.m. March 19 at the Hilton Garden Inn and UW Conference Center in Laramie. The winners are then in the running for the NFF’s national awards, which will be announced this summer.

Each one of the finalists receives a $1,200 scholarship. One overall winner will be named from the finalists, with that scholar-athlete receiving an additional $1,200 scholarship.

The chapter also named 10 special award winners, who will also be honored at the banquet. Tickets are $40 and are available by contacting chapter President Mike Schutte at (970) 484-2797 or MShootee@gmail.com. The banquet usually sells out, so people are encouraged to purchase tickets early.

The winners are listed below:

SPECIAL AWARD WINNERS
Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football: Frank Gambino, Casper.
Greatest UW Football Fans: Paul Rechard, Laramie, and Doug Campbell, Saratoga.
Greatest High School Football Fans: Rita Moore, Evanston, and Clyde and Joan Cundall, Douglas.
Ox Zellner Football Official Career Achievement: John Bard, Laramie.
Football Coach Career Achievement: Jim Wiseman, Torrington (posthumous).
Keith & Joyce Bloom Scholar-Athlete Courage Award: Jacob Hepp, Buffalo, and Derek Bacon, Pine Bluffs.

SCHOLAR-ATHLETE FINALISTS
University of Wyoming: Chris Prosinski and Dax Crum.
High school: Sean Rietveld, Snake River; Shawn Straub, Kaycee; Jessee Wilson, Rocky Mountain; Beau Petersen, Cokeville; Holden Fauber, Wright; Ryan Haefele, Wright; Trent Boner, Douglas; Hayden Barker, Douglas; Mitch Espeland, Douglas; Lucas Rowley, Natrona County; Dawson Osborn, Sheridan; Jim Shellenberger, Natrona County.

SCHOLAR-ATHLETE NOMINEES
Big Horn: Michael Klepperich.
Buffalo: Jacob Hepp, Hayden Kessler, Dave Long.
Burns: Ryler Lerwick.
Cheyenne Central: Josh Borm.
Cokeville: Beau Petersen.
Douglas: Hayden Barker, Gary Bolinger, Trent Boner, Mitch Espeland, Paul Foy, Joe Lake, Justin Melton, Baylor Sieg.
Cheyenne East: Aaron Boyd, Cole Brooks, Zachary Ellender, Michael Galicia, Jeremiah Hunter, Jordan Williams.
Evanston: Jack Lambert.
Gillette: Cody Barber, Riley Bousa, Jake Gill, Drake Kelley.
Glenrock: Matthew Widiker.
Green River: Jacob Flores.
Greybull: Clay Cundall, Dillon McCoy.
Kaycee: Shawn Straub.
Lander: Mitchell Cooper.
Meeteetse: Travis Guthrie.
Natrona County: Chase Cimburek, Jordan Dick, Cole Montgomery, Lucas Rowley, Jim Shellenberger, Kyle Vinich.
Newcastle: Jeremy Beehler, Trey Sylte.
Pine Bluffs: Derek Bacon, Eric Bond, Blayne Gilbert.
Pinedale: Ezra Brown, Stratton Brown, Kenneth Reed.
Rawlins: Jared Craig.
Riverside: Ben Anson.
Rock Springs: Michael Granthom, Zack Rosette.
Rocky Mountain: Jessee Wilson.
Saratoga: Ransom Gates.
Sheridan: Dawson Osborn, Alex Welch.
Shoshoni: Zedekiah Mills.
Snake River: Sean Rietveld.
Star Valley: Logan Abrams.
Sundance: Reed Moore.
Ten Sleep: Scott Erdahl.
Thermopolis: Mitch Syverson.
Wheatland: Ward Anderson, Tyrell Garton, Quinn Zimmerman.
Wright: Holden Fauber, Ryan Haefele.

–patrick