Sheridan coach Don Julian steps down after 20 seasons, nine championships

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After 20 years as a head football coach, Don Julian has stepped down as the head coach at Sheridan.

He leaves the Broncs after leading them to three consecutive state titles and, at the moment, 18 consecutive victories. He also led Sheridan to titles in 2009 and 2011.

Prior to coaching Sheridan, Julian coached at Riverton from 1993-2001, leading the Wolverines to championships in 1994, 1997, 1998 and 1999. In between Riverton and Sheridan, Julian coached at the University of Wyoming before becoming director of football operations and later an assistant athletic director at UW; he returned to the prep ranks in 2007 when he took over the Sheridan program.

Julian said he resigned to spend time with his parents on their ranch near Kemmerer, close to where Julian was raised.

His affect on the record books — as well as on the lives of the countless players who learned under his tutelage — is difficult to illustrate. But here are some examples in an attempt to do just that:

  • He has more victories (102) than any other coach in Sheridan program history. He also has more victories (63) than any other coach in Riverton program history.
  • His career total of 165 victories places him sixth all-time and third among active coaches in the state. Of the 34 Wyoming coaches with at least 90 in-state victories, Julian’s winning percentage of .789 is second only to Cokeville’s Todd Dayton.
  • His nine state championships ranks third all-time in Wyoming.
  • He led Riverton to 26 consecutive victories from 1997-99, tied for the eighth-longest streak in state history.
  • Maybe most impressively, he never had a losing season in 20 years as a head coach in Wyoming.

Julian’s retirement drew immediate attention online as numerous people paid their respect:

–patrick

Shrine Bowl head coaches named for 2018

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Marty Wrage of Greybull and McKay Young of Star Valley will be the head coaches for the 45th annual Shrine Bowl all-star football game.

Wrage will coach the North squad while Young will coach the South, Shrine Bowl executive director John Cundall said in an email release Monday.

Wrage recently finished his fourth season as the head coach at Greybull. His team finished as the Class 2A runners-up in 2016 and went 5-4 in 2017.

Young just wrapped up his second year leading Star Valley. The Braves won the Class 3A title in his first year in 2016 and finished 10-1 before losing in the 3A semifinals to eventual champ Cody in this year’s 3A playoffs.

Both coaches will be Shrine Bowl head coaches for the first time.

The game will be played June 9, 2018, in Casper. The North leads the all-time series 23-18-3. The North has won five consecutive Shrine Bowls, including last year’s 49-7 victory.

–patrick

Cheyenne Central’s Severn resigns as head coach

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Cheyenne Central head coach Drew Severn has resigned after four years as the Indians’ head coach.

The news of Severn’s resignation was reported by Jeremiah Johnke at the Wyoming Tribune Eagle in Cheyenne. Johnke said Severn — who played at the University of Wyoming from 2002-05 — resigned to take a different job in Michigan.

In his four years as head coach, Severn’s Indian teams went a combined 10-28. They reached the playoffs in his first year (2014) and last year (2017).

A replacement has not yet been named.

Severn is the third Wyoming coach to step down this offseason, joining Lander’s John Rounds and Lovell’s Doug Hazen.

–patrick

Matchups we will see for the first time in 2018

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Every year when the new schedule comes out, we typically see a few games on the schedule we’ve never seen.

In 2018, we will have six seven regular-season games that have never been played.

Two of the six seven involve Buffalo, which is moving from Class 3A to Class 2A, while two three others involve out-of-state foes.

The 2018 schedule is not necessarily complete. Schools below the Class 4A level still have opportunities to add Zero Week games, and some schools have open weeks they can fill.

The new series are:

Week 1: Yuma, Colorado, at Pine Bluffs; Southeast at Mitchell, Neb.

Week 2: Upton-Sundance at Wheatland; Star Valley at Sugar-Salem, Idaho

Week 3: Burns at Buffalo; Newcastle at Rocky Mountain

Week 5: Moorcroft at Buffalo

The longest active series scheduled to end in 2018 will be the series between Star Valley and Worland. The two programs have played each other every season since 1983. The Powell-Buffalo series, played every year since 1991, is also scheduled to end.

–patrick

Updated 8:11 a.m. Nov. 30 to reflect the addition of the Southeast-Mitchell series.

2017 Wyoming all-state, Super 25 football teams released

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The Wyoming Coaches Association has released all five classifications of all-state football teams.

Five players — Kaycee’s Mark Largent, Mountain View’s Jason Stoddard, Pine Bluffs’ Haize Fornstrom, Snake River’s J.D. Corson and Upton-Sundance’s Dawson Butts — were recognized as all-state selections for the third time.

The listings for all five classifications are on the all-state page.

+++

The Casper Star-Tribune’s Super 25 team, recognizing the top 25 players regardless of classification, was released on Friday. The team is now listed on the Super 25 page.

–patrick

Lovell’s Hazen steps away from head coaching position

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Lovell coach Doug Hazen, who led the Bulldogs to eight playoff appearances and a state championship in his nine years leading the program, has stepped down as the squad’s head coach, the Lovell Chronicle reported in its Thursday edition.

Hazen finished 62-26 in his nine years as coach. The Bulldogs went 11-0 and won the Class 2A title in 2011, Hazen’s third with the program. Lovell also finished as Class 2A runner-up in 2012.

Hazen told the Chronicle he resigned to spend more time with his young children and to devote more time to his job as principal and special education director at Lovell Middle School.

“It was a heartbreaking decision,” Hazen said to the Chronicle, “but I was at the point where I either needed to step up or step away, and I chose to spend some time away from the game of football for now.”

A replacement has not yet been named. Lovell assistant coach Bob Weber also resigned after seven years, the Chronicle reported.

–patrick

Rounds resigns as Lander head coach

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County 10 is reporting that John Rounds has resigned as Lander’s head coach.

Rounds resigned after four years as the Tigers’ head coach. He helped take the team to a playoff appearance in 2016; however, in the past four years, Lander is 2-31.

Lander went 1-7 last year. The Class 3A Tigers’ only victory came against Class 2A Thermopolis.

A replacement has not yet been named.

–patrick

2018 Wyoming high school football schedules released

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The biggest changes to the 2018 Wyoming high school football schedules were prompted by one move.

Buffalo, which opted up to Class 3A last year, will move to Class 2A in 2018. Worland will move from the 3A West to the 3A East to give the 12-school 3A classification equal conferences with six teams apiece. Buffalo will be in the 2A East, giving each 2A conference seven teams.

That shift brought about numerous changes to the 2018 schedules in the 3A, 2A and 1A 11-man ranks. The WHSAA released the schedules to schools today at the statewide scheduling meeting in Casper.

In 2017, the WHSAA scheduled only the conference games, leaving nonconference scheduling up to the schools. This year, however, committees met in Casper in the first week of November to help develop nonconference schedules in addition to conference schedules.

WHSAA Associate Commissioner Trevor Wilson said via email that schools will be allowed to schedule nonconference games in their open weeks but won’t be allowed to change the nonconference schedules set earlier this month and posted below. Some holes in the schedules still exist, including the first week for several six-man schools and open weeks for a handful of schools in other weeks.

Star Valley and Farson both appear to be hurt the most by the new schedule — they are the only two teams in the state to have a schedule of three home games and five road games. Both squads could add a home game in Zero Week, though.

As usual, schools outside of 4A have Zero Week open and can schedule a game, jamboree or scrimmage in that week.

The 2018 4A schedule is a mirror of the 2017 schedule. Conferences in 1A 11-man and 1A six-man will remain unchanged.

Here is the schedule, first by week and then by school:

Week 0 (Friday, Aug. 24)
Class 4A
Cheyenne East at Gillette
Laramie at Kelly Walsh
Natrona at Cheyenne South
Sheridan at Rock Springs
Thunder Basin at Cheyenne Central
Schedule TBD: All non-4A schools

Week 1 (Friday, Aug. 31)
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Sheridan
Kelly Walsh at Cheyenne East
Natrona at Gillette
Rock Springs at Laramie
Thunder Basin at Cheyenne South
Class 3A
Lander at Green River
Powell at Worland
Rawlins at Evanston
Riverton at Cody
Class 2A
Lyman at Pinedale
Wheatland at Newcastle
Class 1A 11-man
Upton-Sundance at Lusk
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at Kaycee
Dubois at Midwest
Farson at Guernsey-Sunrise
Hanna vs. St. Stephens (location TBD)
Interclass
Big Piney at Shoshoni
Burns at Wright
Douglas at Buffalo
Greybull at Rocky Mountain
Kemmerer at Saratoga
Mountain View at Cokeville
Thermopolis at Big Horn
Tongue River at Moorcroft
Torrington at Glenrock
Wind River at Lovell
Interstate
Jackson at Bear Lake, Idaho
Preston, Idaho, at Star Valley
Southeast at Mitchell, Neb.
Yuma, Colo., at Pine Bluffs
Schedule TBD: Hulett, Lingle, Meeteetse, NSI, Riverside, Rock River, Snake River, Ten Sleep, Wyoming Indian.

Week 2 (Friday, Sept. 7)
Class 4A
Cheyenne East at Thunder Basin
Cheyenne South at Kelly Walsh
Gillette at Laramie
Rock Springs at Cheyenne Central
Sheridan at Natrona
Class 3A
Evanston at Riverton
Lander at Powell
Rawlins at Green River
Worland at Cody
Class 2A
Big Piney at Mountain View
Buffalo at Thermopolis
Glenrock at Newcastle
Lyman at Kemmerer
Moorcroft at Burns
Class 1A 11-man
Lusk at Tongue River
Saratoga at Southeast
Rocky Mountain at Wind River (nonconference)
Wright at Pine Bluffs
Class 1A six-man
Dubois at Riverside
Guernsey-Sunrise at Hulett
Hanna at Midwest
Rock River at Kaycee
NSI at Lingle
St. Stephens at Meeteetse
Snake River at Burlington
Ten Sleep at Farson
Interclass
Big Horn at Greybull
Lovell at Shoshoni
Pinedale at Jackson
Upton-Sundance at Wheatland
Interstate
Douglas at Hot Springs, S.D.
Gering, Neb., at Torrington
Star Valley at Sugar-Salem, Idaho
Schedule TBD: Cokeville, Wyoming Indian.

Week 3 (Friday, Sept. 14)
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Gillette
Cheyenne South at Cheyenne East
Kelly Walsh at Rock Springs
Laramie at Natrona
Thunder Basin at Sheridan
Class 3A
Cody at Rawlins
Evanston at Lander
Green River at Torrington
Jackson at Worland
Powell at Riverton
Star Valley at Douglas
Class 2A
Burns at Buffalo
Glenrock at Wheatland
Greybull at Big Piney
Kemmerer at Pinedale
Mountain View at Lovell
Thermopolis at Moorcroft
Class 1A 11-man
Big Horn at Wright
Pine Bluffs at Southeast
Tongue River at Upton-Sundance
Wind River at Lusk
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at St. Stephens
Farson at Dubois
Kaycee at Guernsey-Sunrise
Hulett at Hanna
Lingle at Rock River
Meeteetse at Snake River
Midwest at NSI
Riverside at Ten Sleep
Interclass
Cokeville at Lyman
Newcastle at Rocky Mountain
Schedule TBD: Saratoga, Shoshoni, Wyoming Indian.

Week 4 (Friday, Sept. 21)
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Laramie
Cheyenne South at Rock Springs
Gillette at Thunder Basin
Natrona at Cheyenne East
Sheridan at Kelly Walsh
Class 3A
Cody at Jackson
Green River at Star Valley
Powell at Evanston
Rawlins at Douglas
Riverton at Worland
Torrington at Lander
Class 2A
Buffalo at Glenrock
Kemmerer at Big Piney
Lovell at Lyman
Newcastle at Moorcroft
Pinedale at Greybull
Thermopolis at Mountain View
Wheatland at Burns
Class 1A 11-man
Pine Bluffs at Tongue River
Saratoga at Rocky Mountain
Shoshoni at Cokeville
Southeast at Lusk
Upton-Sundance at Big Horn
Wyoming Indian at Wind River
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at Meeteetse
Farson at Riverside
Guernsey-Sunrise at NSI
Hanna at Lingle
Rock River at Hulett
Midwest at Kaycee
St. Stephens at Snake River
Ten Sleep at Dubois
Schedule TBD: Wright.

Week 5 (Friday, Sept. 28)
Class 4A
Kelly Walsh at Cheyenne Central
Laramie at Cheyenne East
Rock Springs at Gillette
Sheridan at Cheyenne South
Thunder Basin at Natrona
Class 3A
Douglas at Torrington
Evanston at Cody
Jackson at Green River
Lander at Riverton
Star Valley at Powell
Worland at Rawlins
Class 2A
Big Piney at Lovell
Burns at Glenrock
Greybull at Kemmerer
Mountain View at Pinedale
Moorcroft at Buffalo
Wheatland at Thermopolis
Class 1A 11-man
Big Horn at Pine Bluffs
Cokeville at Wyoming Indian
Rocky Mountain at Shoshoni
Tongue River at Southeast
Upton-Sundance at Wright
Wind River at Saratoga
Class 1A six-man
Dubois at Burlington
Kaycee at Hulett
Lingle at Midwest
Meeteetse at Farson
NSI at Hanna
Rock River at Guernsey-Sunrise
Snake River at Riverside
Ten Sleep at St. Stephens
Interclass
Lusk at Newcastle
Schedule TBD: Lyman

Week 6 (Friday, Oct. 5)
Class 4A
Cheyenne East at Cheyenne Central
Cheyenne South at Laramie
Gillette at Sheridan
Natrona at Kelly Walsh
Rock Springs at Thunder Basin
Class 3A
Cody at Powell
Green River at Evanston
Rawlins at Lander
Riverton at Torrington
Star Valley at Jackson
Worland at Douglas
Class 2A
Big Piney at Pinedale
Buffalo at Wheatland
Glenrock at Kemmerer
Lovell at Greybull
Lyman at Mountain View
Thermopolis at Newcastle
Class 1A 11-man
Big Horn at Tongue River
Rocky Mountain at Cokeville
Saratoga at Wyoming Indian
Shoshoni at Wind River
Southeast at Upton-Sundance
Wright at Lusk
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at Ten Sleep
Dubois at St. Stephens
Hanna at Rock River
Hulett at NSI
Lingle at Kaycee
Midwest at Guernsey-Sunrise
Riverside at Meeteetse
Snake River at Farson
Interclass
Pine Bluffs at Burns
Schedule TBD: Moorcroft.

Week 7 (Friday, Oct. 12)
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Natrona
Cheyenne East at Rock Springs
Gillette at Cheyenne South
Laramie at Sheridan
Thunder Basin at Kelly Walsh
Class 3A
Cody at Star Valley
Evanston at Jackson
Lander at Douglas
Powell at Green River
Riverton at Rawlins
Torrington at Worland
Class 2A
Buffalo at Big Piney
Glenrock at Thermopolis
Greybull at Lyman
Kemmerer at Mountain View
Newcastle at Burns
Pinedale at Lovell
Wheatland at Moorcroft
Class 1A 11-man
Lusk at Big Horn
Pine Bluffs at Upton-Sundance
Saratoga at Cokeville
Wind River at Rocky Mountain
Wright at Southeast
Wyoming Indian at Shoshoni
Class 1A six-man
Farson at Burlington
Guernsey-Sunrise at Lingle
Kaycee at Hanna
Meeteetse at Dubois
Midwest at Hulett
NSI at Rock River
St. Stephens at Riverside
Ten Sleep at Snake River
Schedule TBD: Tongue River

Week 8 (Friday, Oct. 19)
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Cheyenne South
Kelly Walsh at Gillette
Laramie at Thunder Basin
Natrona at Rock Springs
Sheridan at Cheyenne East
Class 3A
Douglas at Riverton
Green River at Cody
Jackson at Powell
Star Valley at Evanston
Torrington at Rawlins
Worland at Lander
Class 2A
Burns at Thermopolis
Glenrock at Moorcroft
Lovell at Kemmerer
Lyman at Big Piney
Mountain View at Greybull
Newcastle at Buffalo
Pinedale at Wheatland
Class 1A 11-man
Cokeville at Wind River
Lusk at Pine Bluffs
Rocky Mountain at Wyoming Indian
Shoshoni at Saratoga
Southeast at Big Horn
Tongue River at Wright
Class 1A six-man
Farson at St. Stephens
Guernsey-Sunrise at Hanna
Hulett at Lingle
Kaycee at NSI
Meeteetse at Ten Sleep
Riverside at Burlington
Rock River at Midwest
Snake River at Dubois
Schedule TBD: Upton-Sundance

Schedules by team
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central: vs. Thunder Basin; at Sheridan; vs. Rock Springs; at Gillette; at Laramie; vs. Kelly Walsh; vs. Cheyenne East; at Natrona; at Cheyenne South.
Cheyenne East: at Gillette; vs. Kelly Walsh; at Thunder Basin; vs. Cheyenne South; vs. Natrona; vs. Laramie; at Cheyenne Central; at Rock Springs; vs. Sheridan.
Cheyenne South: vs. Natrona; vs. Thunder Basin; at Kelly Walsh; at Cheyenne East; at Rock Springs; vs. Sheridan; at Laramie; vs. Gillette; vs. Cheyenne Central.
Gillette: vs. Cheyenne East; vs. Natrona; at Laramie; vs. Cheyenne Central; at Thunder Basin; vs. Rock Springs; at Sheridan; at Cheyenne South; vs. Kelly Walsh.
Kelly Walsh: vs. Laramie; at Cheyenne East; vs. Cheyenne South; at Rock Springs; vs. Sheridan; at Cheyenne Central; vs. Natrona; vs. Thunder Basin; at Gillette.
Laramie: at Kelly Walsh; vs. Rock Springs; vs. Gillette; at Natrona; vs. Cheyenne Central; at Cheyenne East; vs. Cheyenne South; at Sheridan; at Thunder Basin.
Natrona: at Cheyenne South; at Gillette; vs. Sheridan; vs. Laramie; at Cheyenne East; vs. Thunder Basin; at Kelly Walsh; vs. Cheyenne Central; at Rock Springs.
Rock Springs: vs. Sheridan; at Laramie; at Cheyenne Central; vs. Kelly Walsh; vs. Cheyenne South; at Gillette; at Thunder Basin; vs. Cheyenne East; vs. Natrona.
Sheridan: at Rock Springs; vs. Cheyenne Central; at Natrona; vs. Thunder Basin; at Kelly Walsh; at Cheyenne South; vs. Gillette; vs. Laramie; at Cheyenne East.
Thunder Basin: at Cheyenne Central; at Cheyenne South; vs. Cheyenne East; at Sheridan; vs. Gillette; at Natrona; vs. Rock Springs; at Kelly Walsh; vs. Laramie.

Class 3A East
Douglas: at Buffalo; at Hot Springs, S.D.; vs. Star Valley; vs. Rawlins; at Torrington; vs. Worland; vs. Lander; at Riverton.
Lander: at Green River; at Powell; vs. Evanston; vs. Torrington; at Riverton; vs. Rawlins; at Douglas; vs. Worland.
Rawlins: at Evanston; at Green River; vs. Cody; at Douglas; vs. Worland; at Lander; vs. Riverton; vs. Torrington.
Riverton: at Cody; vs. Evanston; vs. Powell; at Worland; vs. Lander; at Torrington; at Rawlins; vs. Douglas.
Torrington: at Glenrock; vs. Gering, Neb.; vs. Green River; at Lander; vs. Douglas; vs. Riverton; at Worland; at Rawlins.
Worland: vs. Powell; at Cody; vs. Jackson; vs. Riverton; at Rawlins; at Douglas; vs. Torrington; at Lander.

Class 3A West
Cody: vs. Riverton; vs. Worland; at Rawlins; at Jackson; vs. Evanston; at Powell; at Star Valley; vs. Green River.
Evanston: vs. Rawlins; at Riverton; at Lander; vs. Powell; at Cody; vs. Green River; at Jackson; vs. Star Valley.
Green River: vs. Lander; vs. Rawlins; at Torrington; at Star Valley; vs. Jackson; at Evanston; vs. Powell; at Cody.
Jackson: at Bear Lake, Idaho; vs. Pinedale; at Worland; vs. Cody; at Green River; vs. Star Valley; vs. Evanston; at Powell.
Powell: at Worland; vs. Lander; at Riverton; at Evanston; vs. Star Valley; vs. Cody; at Green River; vs. Jackson.
Star Valley: vs. Preston, Idaho; at Sugar-Salem, Idaho; at Douglas; vs. Green River; at Powell; at Jackson; vs. Cody; at Evanston.

Class 2A East
Buffalo: vs. Douglas; at Thermopolis; vs. Burns; at Glenrock; vs. Moorcroft; at Wheatland; at Big Piney; vs. Newcastle.
Burns: at Wright; vs. Moorcroft; at Buffalo; vs. Wheatland; at Glenrock; vs. Pine Bluffs; vs. Newcastle; at Thermopolis.
Glenrock: vs. Torrington; at Newcastle; at Wheatland; vs. Buffalo; vs. Burns; at Kemmerer; at Thermopolis; vs. Moorcroft.
Moorcroft: vs. Tongue River; at Burns; vs. Thermopolis; vs. Newcastle; at Buffalo; TBD; vs. Wheatland; at Glenrock.
Newcastle: vs. Wheatland; vs. Glenrock; at Rocky Mountain; at Moorcroft; vs. Lusk; vs. Thermopolis; at Burns; at Buffalo.
Thermopolis: at Big Horn; vs. Buffalo; at Moorcroft; at Mountain View; vs. Wheatland; at Newcastle; vs. Glenrock; vs. Burns.
Wheatland: at Newcastle; vs. Upton-Sundance; vs. Glenrock; at Burns; at Thermopolis; vs. Buffalo; at Moorcroft; vs. Pinedale.

Class 2A West
Big Piney: at Shoshoni; at Mountain View; vs. Greybull; vs. Kemmerer; at Lovell; at Pinedale; vs. Buffalo; vs. Lyman.
Greybull: at Rocky Mountain; vs. Big Horn; at Big Piney; vs. Pinedale; at Kemmerer; vs. Lovell; at Lyman; vs. Mountain View.
Kemmerer: at Saratoga; vs. Lyman; at Pinedale; at Big Piney; vs. Greybull; vs. Glenrock; at Mountain View; vs. Lovell.
Lovell: vs. Wind River; at Shoshoni; vs. Mountain View; at Lyman; vs. Big Piney; at Greybull; vs. Pinedale; at Kemmerer.
Lyman: at Pinedale; at Kemmerer; vs. Cokeville; vs. Lovell; TBD; at Mountain View; vs. Greybull; at Big Piney.
Mountain View: at Cokeville; vs. Big Piney; at Lovell; vs. Thermopolis; at Pinedale; vs. Lyman; vs. Kemmerer; at Greybull.
Pinedale: vs. Lyman; at Jackson; vs. Kemmerer; at Greybull; vs. Mountain View; vs. Big Piney; at Lovell; at Wheatland.

Class 1A 11-man East
Big Horn: vs. Thermopolis; at Greybull; at Wright; vs. Upton-Sundance; at Pine Bluffs; at Tongue River; vs. Lusk; vs. Southeast.
Lusk: vs. Upton-Sundance; at Tongue River; vs. Wind River; vs. Southeast; at Newcastle; vs. Wright; at Big Horn; at Pine Bluffs.
Pine Bluffs: vs. Yuma, Colo.; vs. Wright; at Southeast; at Tongue River; vs. Big Horn; at Burns; at Upton-Sundance; vs. Lusk.
Southeast: at Mitchell, Neb.; vs. Saratoga; vs. Pine Bluffs; at Lusk; vs. Tongue River; at Upton-Sundance; vs. Wright; at Big Horn.
Tongue River: at Moorcroft; vs. Lusk; at Upton-Sundance; vs. Pine Bluffs; at Southeast; vs. Big Horn; TBD; at Wright.
Upton-Sundance: at Lusk; at Wheatland; vs. Tongue River; at Big Horn; at Wright; vs. Southeast; vs. Pine Bluffs; TBD.
Wright: vs. Burns; at Pine Bluffs; vs. Big Horn; TBD; vs. Upton-Sundance; at Lusk; at Southeast; vs. Tongue River.

Class 1A 11-man West
Cokeville: vs. Mountain View; TBD; at Lyman; vs. Shoshoni; at Wyoming Indian; vs. Rocky Mountain; vs. Saratoga; at Wind River.
Rocky Mountain: vs. Greybull; at Wind River (nonconference); vs. Newcastle; vs. Saratoga; at Shoshoni; at Cokeville; vs. Wind River; at Wyoming Indian.
Saratoga: vs. Kemmerer; at Southeast; TBD; at Rocky Mountain; vs. Wind River; at Wyoming Indian; at Cokeville; vs. Shoshoni.
Shoshoni: vs. Big Piney; vs. Lovell; TBD; at Cokeville; vs. Rocky Mountain; at Wind River; vs. Wyoming Indian; at Saratoga.
Wind River: at Lovell; vs. Rocky Mountain; at Lusk; vs. Wyoming Indian; at Saratoga; vs. Shoshoni; at Rocky Mountain; vs. Cokeville.
Wyoming Indian: TBD; TBD; TBD; at Wind River; vs. Cokeville; vs. Saratoga; at Shoshoni; vs. Rocky Mountain.

Class 1A six-man East
Guernsey-Sunrise: vs. Farson; at Hulett; vs. Kaycee; at NSI; vs. Rock River; vs. Midwest; at Lingle; at Hanna.
Hanna: vs. St. Stephens (location TBD); at Midwest; vs. Hulett; at Lingle; vs. NSI; at Rock River; vs. Kaycee; vs. Guernsey-Sunrise.
Hulett: TBD; vs. Guernsey-Sunrise; at Hanna; vs. Rock River; vs. Kaycee; at NSI; vs. Midwest; at Lingle.
Kaycee: vs. Burlington; vs. Rock River; at Guernsey-Sunrise; vs. Midwest; at Hulett; vs. Lingle; at Hanna; at NSI.
Lingle: TBD; vs. NSI; at Rock River; vs. Hanna; at Midwest; at Kaycee; vs. Guernsey-Sunrise; vs. Hulett.
Midwest: vs. Dubois; vs. Hanna; at NSI; at Kaycee; vs. Lingle; at Guernsey-Sunrise; at Hulett; vs. Rock River.
NSI: TBD; at Lingle; vs. Midwest; vs. Guernsey-Sunrise; at Hanna; vs. Hulett; at Rock River; vs. Kaycee.
Rock River: TBD; at Kaycee; vs. Lingle; at Hulett; at Guernsey-Sunrise; vs. Hanna; vs. NSI; at Midwest.

Class 1A six-man West
Burlington: at Kaycee; vs. Snake River; at St. Stephens; at Meeteetse; vs. Dubois; at Ten Sleep; vs. Farson; vs. Riverside.
Dubois: at Midwest; at Riverside; vs. Farson; vs. Ten Sleep; at Burlington; at St. Stephens; vs. Meeteetse; vs. Snake River.
Farson: at Guernsey-Sunrise; vs. Ten Sleep; at Dubois; at Riverside; vs. Meeteetse; vs. Snake River; at Burlington; at St. Stephens.
Meeteetse: TBD; vs. St. Stephens; at Snake River; vs. Burlington; at Farson; vs. Riverside; at Dubois; at Ten Sleep.
Riverside: TBD; vs. Dubois; at Ten Sleep; vs. Farson; vs. Snake River; at Meeteetse; vs. St. Stephens; at Burlington.
St. Stephens: vs. Hanna (location TBD); at Meeteetse; vs. Burlington; at Snake River; vs. Ten Sleep; vs. Dubois; at Riverside; vs. Farson.
Snake River: TBD; at Burlington; vs. Meeteetse; vs. St Stephens; at Riverside; at Farson; vs. Ten Sleep; at Dubois.
Ten Sleep: TBD; at Farson; vs. Riverside; at Dubois; at St. Stephens; vs. Burlington; at Snake River; vs. Meeteetse.

–patrick

2017 Wyoming high school football season wrap-up

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Sheridan, Cody, Mountain View, Pine Bluffs and Kaycee are your 2017 state champions. When we think about the 2017 season, we’ll probably start there.

We won’t finish there, though.

One of the beauties of having the state’s football history compiled in one place is that it allows me (and us) to track records that, prior to the beginning of research on this site in 2004 and the launch of the site in 2005, were really difficult to authenticate. No more. So here are some highlights — beyond the champions — of 2017:

Scoring records

Two teams set overall season scoring records in 2017.

Natrona, with 545 points, notched more points than any other in the state’s 11-man history. The Mustangs’ mark topped the previous record of 539, set by Gillette in 2015.

Meanwhile, Kaycee, which averaged 70.7 points per game, set the state’s all-time record for average points per game. The old record of 68.27 points per game was set by Meeteetse in 2015. Also, Kaycee’s 707 total points is good enough for third all-time.

Class 4A champion Sheridan finished the season with 527 points, good enough for fourth all-time in the 11-man ranks.

On the other side, some teams set records they’d rather not. Gillette allowed 570 points this season, the most ever given up in an 11-man season and the fourth-most regardless of game style (six-, eight-, nine- or 11-man). The old 11-man record, 521, was set by Cheyenne South in its inaugural season in 2011. Jackson allowed 436 points this season, the eighth-highest mark in the state’s 11-man history, while St. Stephens allowed 576 points, second-most all-time regardless of style.

Normative Services and St. Stephens finished second and third, respectively, in most average points allowed per game. NSI allowed 78 points per game this season, while St. Stephens allowed 72 ppg. Gillette’s 63.33 points allowed per game was the third-most ever in an 11-man season.

For single-game scoring, the 62-44 game between Green River and Jackson on Oct. 13 is tied for 10th all-time for combined points (106) in an 11-man game. Also, Kaycee’s 77 points against Meeteetse in the first round of the six-man quarterfinals on Oct. 27 is eighth-most for points by a single team in a playoff game.

See the scoring records here.

Streaks

The most notable streak in 2017 is Kaycee’s winning streak, which now rests at 30 games entering 2018. Many outlets reported that Kaycee’s streak was 31 consecutive games, counting a forfeit loss from Rock River in the tallies. However, historically, this site and most media outlets do not regard a canceled season — as Rock River’s was this year — as a series of eight forfeits (for example, see Tongue River 2011). Instead, the games are simply removed from the schedule, and that team’s opponents either schedule replacement games (as Meeteetse, Hanna, Lingle and others did with their Rock River week this season) or leave it as a bye. Kaycee left the week open, and therefore their final season tally for 2017 will be listed as 10-0 and the winning streak at 30.

Cokeville notched its 30th consecutive winning season and its 32nd consecutive non-losing season, increasing its state records in both categories.

Laramie, meanwhile, had its 17th consecutive losing season, second all-time to Newcastle’s 22 consecutive losing seasons from 1984-2005. Rawlins ended its streak of consecutive losing seasons this year at 16.

Gillette’s scoring streak ended at 136 games this year, leaving Snake River at 85 consecutive games as the team with the longest active scoring streak. The Rattlers’ streak is tied for 12th-longest all-time.

See the streaks records here.

Coaching

Natrona coach Steve Harshman moved into third place all-time among the state’s coaches in victories. With 190 victories in Wyoming, Harshman passed John Deti Jr. for third place. He trails former Laramie coach John Deti Sr. (205 victories) and current Cokeville coach Todd Dayton (who extended his state record to 315 victories).

Sheridan coach Don Julian moved into sixth-place all-time on the same list. Julian now has 165 victories in his Wyoming career.

Of active Wyoming coaches, Dayton, Harshman, Julian, Southeast’s Mark Bullington (138 victories) and Glenrock’s Ray Kumpula (127) have more than 100 victories. Douglas’ Jay Rhoades will enter 2018 with 95 victories at Douglas and will be the only active coach with a chance to enter the Wyoming 100-victory club in 2018.

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I nailed more than half my picks last week. But that means I whiffed on almost half. My season and career totals:

Last week: 3-2 (60 percent). This season: 259-46 (85 percent — my best season yet!). 13-year total: 3,089-772 (80 percent).

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A couple quick reminders as I close out the books on 2017:

First, wyoming-basketball.com is a site you should know exists. And you should check it out. It’s full of cool info on the state’s hoops history.

Second, if you like the work I’ve done, consider a page sponsorship. $20 secures a page for an entire year. It also means a lot to me, personally. My sponsors are awesome and allow me to operate the site without paying for it out of my own pocket.

Third, and finally, we’re not done. All-state and all-conference teams will be released this week, as will the Casper Star-Tribune’s Super 25 team. I may have some individual records to post. The 2018 schedules will be out soon. We’ll probably see some new coaches in the state by the time the 2018 season starts. We’ll have the National Football Foundation banquet and awards; we’ll have the Shrine Bowl; we’ll have other stuff. I’ll be here for all of it. Thanks again for reading and supporting the site.

–patrick

2017 title game picks: Simply put, it’s gonna be an awesome weekend

by ⋅ 1 Comment

Class 2A, noon Friday
Mountain View Buffalos (1W, 8-2) vs. Glenrock Herders (1E, 9-1)
Series record: Mountain View leads 8-5.
Last meeting/last playoff meeting: Glenrock beat Mountain View 37-0 in a 2A quarterfinal game on Oct. 30, 2015, in Glenrock.
State championships: Mountain View four, most recently in 2014. … Glenrock eight, most recently in 2008.
Previous title game record: Mountain View, 4-6. … Glenrock, 6-5.
The path to Laramie: Mountain View beat Thermopolis in the quarterfinals and Wheatland in the semifinals by identical 45-0 scores. … Glenrock blasted Lovell 61-6 in the quarterfinals and held off Big Piney 30-27 in the semifinals.
The case for the Buffalos: Let’s throw out Mountain View’s loss to Greybull in Week 8, which happened after the Buffalos had already secured the top seed from the West. Since Week 3, without the Greybull game, the Buffalos have outscored their opponents 284-6, including 90-0 in the playoffs. No team in 2A is hotter than Mountain View, and nothing in the playoffs has given anyone any reason to doubt their capability to win it all.
The case for the Herders: The Herders have won seven straight, and they’ve already had their playoff scare — last week’s 30-27 thriller against Big Piney. That loss should help focus the squad. Also, everyone knows what the Herders will do on offense: run. Tucker Bopp and Ian Arnold will get the bulk of the carries, and the Herders dare you to stop them. So far, even in the Herders’ one loss, no one has done that.
The pick: This one will be billed as a battle between Glenrock’s top-ranked offense against Mountain View’s top-ranked defense. In cases like this, it’s almost always the other matchup that wins the game — and I like what I see from the Buffalos’ offense. Maybe there’s a game-winning drive in it. … Mountain View 26, Glenrock 22.

Class 3A, 3 p.m. Friday
Cody Broncs (3W, 6-3) vs. Torrington Trailblazers (1E, 9-1)
Series record: Cody leads 5-3
Last meeting: Cody beat Torrington 47-0 on Sept. 17, 2010, in Torrington.
Last playoff meeting: Cody beat Torrington 19-6 in a 3A quarterfinal game on Oct. 30, 2009, in Cody.
State championships: Cody four, most recently in 2014. … Torrington three, most recently in 1990.
Previous title game record: Cody, 4-5. … Torrington, 2-9.
The path to Laramie: Cody won two road games, beating Buffalo 27-0 in the quarters and West top seed and two-time defending champ Star Valley 31-21 in the semifinals. … Torrington beat up on Worland 46-21 in the first round and squeaked past Green River 17-13 in the semifinals.
The case for the Broncs: Cody’s here for one reason: defense. No one has scored more than 22 points against the Broncs all season — and that was Jackson who scored 22 in a big blowout loss. So if Cody heads back to Park County with the first-place trophy, it will have to hold Torrington’s versatile offense in check. Ian Crawford and Matthew Skinner, Cody’s sack leaders, will be key in that effort.
The case for the Trailblazers: Torrington’s offensive flexibility is about as good as it gets at the 3A level, with the team’s running and passing yards pretty close to even. Bryan Lemmon’s legs and Breyden Biven’s arm give the ‘Blazers options most teams don’t have. Oh, and Torrington is getting about double the yards and more than triple the points of their opponents. Not a bad ratio.
The pick: When a team pulls a big upset like Cody pulled last week against top-ranked Star Valley, one of two things usually happens: The winning team carries that momentum into the following week and keeps on winning, or that team can’t keep up the emotion from that victory and gets absolutely thumped the following week. I’m really tempted to pick Cody to keep the momentum, and I think it’ll be a close one. Still… … Torrington 30, Cody 24.

Class 1A six-man, 10 a.m. Saturday
Farson Pronghorns (1W, 9-1) vs. Kaycee Buckaroos (1E, 9-0)
Series record: Kaycee leads 4-0
Last meeting/last playoff meeting: Kaycee beat Farson 41-30 in the 1A six-man title game on Nov. 11, 2016, in Laramie.
State championships: Farson none. … Kaycee two, most recently in 2016.
Previous title game record: Farson, 0-1. … Kaycee, 2-1.
The path to Laramie: Farson thumped Guernsey 73-24 in the first round and exacted revenge on Snake River 50-32 in the semifinals. … Kaycee destroyed Meeteetse 77-0 in the quarterfinals and survived a challenge from Burlington 47-38 in the semifinals.
The case for the Pronghorns: As noted by one of this site’s readers last week, the Pronghorns were under the weather for their only loss of the season in Week 8 to Snake River. The turnaround Farson showed last week proved that they’re ready for the challenge Kaycee will throw their way. Juniors Lain Mitchelson and Clancy Gines are a nice 1-2 punch, but a host of supporting players have turned the Pronghorns into a true team.
The case for the Buckaroos: One pair of stats shows just how dominant Kaycee has been this season: The Buckaroos average 11.2 yards per play on offense and allow just 2.6 yards per play on defense. Read that stat again, and think about it. Both are tops in six-man. With a senior class that has more players (nine) than some entire six-man teams, and the momentum of 29 consecutive victories and two consecutive state championships behind them, Kaycee is setting a standard for all six-man teams for years to come… if they win on Saturday.
The pick: Farson has a great team this year. Kaycee has one of the greatest six-man teams the state has ever seen. … Kaycee 60, Farson 44.

Class 1A 11-man, 1 p.m. Saturday
Big Horn Rams (2E, 9-1) vs. Pine Bluffs Hornets (1E, 10-0)
Series record: Tied 1-1
Last meeting: Pine Bluffs beat Big Horn 22-21 in overtime on Sept. 15 in Big Horn.
Last playoff meeting: Big Horn beat Pine Bluffs 41-14 in a 2A semifinal on Oct. 31, 2003, in Big Horn.
State championships: Big Horn five, most recently in 2016. … Pine Bluffs one, in 2016.
Previous title game record: Big Horn, 5-9. … Pine Bluffs, 1-3.
The path to Laramie: Big Horn topped Wind River 51-0 in the first round and edged past Cokeville 12-7 in the semifinals. … Pine Bluffs shut out Saratoga 58-0 in the quarterfinals and topped Upton-Sundance 14-7 in the semifinals.
The case for the Rams: We don’t need to look any further than last week. Cokeville had one of its best teams in school history, and even that Panther team couldn’t get past the Rams. With running back Kade Eisele, quarterback Quinn McCafferty and one of 1A’s best lines, Big Horn has by far 1A’s best offense. And the defense has been solid, with a lot of opposing teams scoring their points in garbage time.
The case for the Hornets: Let’s lay out the facts: Pine Bluffs is undefeated. It is a defending state champion. And it already beat Big Horn once this year, in Big Horn, in overtime. The mix of skills the Hornets have is all but unparalleled at 1A, with talent in the backfield (Isaiah Montanes, Haize Fornstrom), on the edges (Andrew Fornstrom, Ishmael Depaulitte) and up front (Hunter Jeffres, Wyatt Fornstrom, James and John Merryfield, Brad Shmidl). What more can you ask for?
The pick: The question here isn’t who won the last game. It’s who’s improved more since that last game. I think the Rams flip the result from the last meeting, but dang if the Hornets don’t make it difficult — and maybe make the Rams go for two late in the game to secure the win. … Big Horn 14, Pine Bluffs 13.

Class 4A, 4 p.m. Saturday
Natrona Mustangs (2, 10-1) vs. Sheridan Broncs (1, 11-0)
Series record: Natrona leads 56-46-6
Last meeting: Sheridan beat Natrona 37-34 in overtime on Sept. 8 in Sheridan.
Last playoff meeting: Sheridan beat Natrona 56-28 in the 4A championship on Nov. 12, 2016, in Laramie.
State championships: Natrona 17, most recently in 2014. … Sheridan 25, most recently in 2016.
Previous title game record: Natrona, 10-6. … Sheridan, 15-6.
The path to Laramie: Natrona beat Laramie 44-7 in the quarterfinals and shut out Cheyenne East 44-0 in the semis. … Sheridan posted a 54-7 victory against Cheyenne Central in the quarterfinals and beat Kelly Walsh 28-7 in the semifinals.
The case for the Mustangs: How many schools — ever — can claim to have both the top rusher and the top passer in a classification? But that’s what Natrona has in running back Brett Brenton and quarterback Jesse Harshman. The defense is rock-solid and ranked second in Class 4A in yards per game. And moreover, most of this year’s contributors were also key on last year’s title-game run. Deep, experienced, versatile and unintimidated: The Mustangs are primed for a championship.
The case for the Broncs: How can you go against a team that is undefeated and going for its third consecutive 4A championship? Sheridan is on a run that hasn’t been seen since… well, since Sheridan made its run of four straight titles in 1990-93. The offense, like Natrona, is versatile, and the defense is opportunistic. The Aaron (or is it Airin’?) duo of quarterback Aaron Woodward and receiver Aaron Sessions gives the Broncs quick-strike capabilities, and lineman Blayne Baker, a UW commit, may be the state’s best player. 
The pick: These two programs have met in seven previous title games (1933, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1996, 2010, 2016) and three de-facto state title games in years without playoffs (1939, 1952 and 1957). And they met last year. This isn’t new. Much like the 1A 11-man title game, this game pits an undefeated team against a one-loss team with a regular-season game that went into overtime. They’re familiar with each other as two programs can possibly be. It simply boils down to who can execute their plans better. Two of the state’s best coaching staffs — not just the head coaches, but everyone from the top down — will have their guys ready to go. This could be one for the ages. … Sheridan 36, Natrona 32.

Here’s how my picks went last week… which just goes to show that my picks aren’t always perfect and should be taken with a grain of pepper (because salt is for chumps).

Last week: 7-3 (70 percent). This season: 256-44 (85 percent).

We are here! The last week of the 2017 season. Who are your picks for the five title game winners? Leave a comment with your picks, and I can almost guarantee that no matter who wins and who loses, we’re going to have a great time seeing how these games play out on Friday and Saturday. Can’t wait!

–patrick