Friday’s game between Lyman and Greybull will kick off one hour earlier than scheduled. The game will start at 3 p.m., not 4 p.m. as previously scheduled. The game is in Lyman. Thanks to Lyman coach Ted Holmstrom for the heads up.
–patrick
A couple changes to the site that I need to share:
All-state teams: Two changes were made to the all-state listings. First, the 1975 team has been updated and changed. Formerly, the 1975 team I had listed was the UPI team, not the team from the Wyoming Coaches Association. I choose to list WCA teams when I have both available. I finally got my hands on the WCA list from 1975, thanks to Cheyenne East all-stater Kevin Lepore, and now the 1975 teams listed are the WCA teams. Thaks Kevin!
I also corrected a name on the 1998 Class 4A all-state team. John Rounds’ name has been fixed. Thanks to John for letting me know!
Coaches Project: Updates for Buffalo. Click here to see what I still need for the Coaches Project. Thanks to Buffalo AD Shad Spilski for the help!
–patrick
Come the postseason, your regular season doesn’t matter.
Two schools are grateful for this for two very different reasons.
Burns is grateful its three consecutive losses to start the season are a thing of the past. Glenrock is grateful its loss to Burns — its first loss of the season — can probably remain as just a blip on the radar.
Right now, Burns may be the hottest team (pun not intended) coming out of the 2A East, thanks in part to its 22-14 upset of the previously undefeated Herders on Friday. And even though the Broncs can’t gain anything higher than the No. 4 seed and will have to travel to top-ranked Lovell in the first round of the playoffs, Friday night helped prove the Broncs are up for just such a challenge.
For the Broncs, the start of the season — losses to Lusk, Big Horn and Newcastle in Weeks 1-3 — may have provided more inspiration than desperation. Since then, Burns has won four in a row, none bigger than the victory over Glenrock, a team that came to Burns riding the crest of a six-game winning streak.
For Glenrock, the loss really doesn’t change all that much. With victories over Big Horn and Newcastle, the two teams the Herders are now tied for atop the league standings, Glenrock still controls its own playoff destiny. If the Herders beat Moorcroft at home next week, they are still on line to be the top seed from the East and have all the benefits that come with such a seed.
Burns, though, has all the benefits that come with confidence. Glenrock learned that the hard way on Friday.
Second mad props to Lingle, which knocked off Pine Bluffs 16-13 to make a big mess of things in the 1A East. The Doggers needed this victory to keep any realistic chance of a playoff berth alive. Lingle must have felt that, because the Doggers eked out the victory at home and, in doing so, may have just saved their season. Lingle has to play conference champ Southeast in Week 8, but if the Doggers can keep the momentum moving in the right direction, they may squeeze their way back into postseason play.
Third mad props to Cheyenne East, 21-13 victors over Evanston in a game that secured a first-round home playoff game for the Thunderbirds. Playing at home in the playoffs is a nice luxury to have, and knowing that the team you beat to get there may be your first-round opponent may give East enough of an endge to go deep into the playoff bracket this year. Of course, we all remember what happened to Evanston and East last year, right?
Fourth mad props to Hill City, S.D., which beat Sundance.
As for the rest of the week? I guess the biggest thing that Week 7 gives us is a more accurate picture of what matters in Week 8. I’ve listed the playoff seeding scenarios in the post below this one. Already, 14 teams have been eliminated from postseason consideration and 16 teams already know where they will be seeded for the postseason (prior to the six-man games scheduled for Saturday). Only two top seeds (3A West and 2A East) are not yet certain. That means the biggest moving and shaking will happen in the middle and bottom seeds, especially at the bottom of 4A, the middle of the 3A East and the bottom of the 2A and 1A 11-man West. …
I watched the Snake River-Midwest game on Friday night and came away impressed with both teams — Midwest for keeping it close (game was tied 33-33 at halftime) and Snake River for opening it up in the second half (35 straight points in the third quarter). Snake River’s still the favorite, but teams like Midwest and Dubois are going to make sure the Rattlers work hard for another title. …
The most interesting score of the night: Thermopolis 44, Mountain View 33. I picked Thermop to win, but didn’t see the teams combining for 77 points. …
Another Lusk game, another shutout. That makes it four in a row. …
From the “weird scores” department comes Central’s 11-7 victory over Rock Springs. The only other time in state history that score has been achieved was when Burns beat Lusk by that score in 1990. …
What else caught your attention? Let me know by saying something below.
This week: 27-4 (87 percent). This season: 193-45 (81 percent).
–patrick
Playoff seeding scenarios entering the final week of the regular season:
Class 4A
Natrona: In as No. 1 seed.
Sheridan: In as No. 2 seed.
Gillette: In as No. 3 seed.
Cheyenne East: In as No. 4 seed.
Evanston: In. No. 5 seed with a win OR Cheyenne Central loss. No. 6 seed with a loss AND Cheyenne Central win.
Cheyenne Central: In. No. 5 seed with a win AND Evanston loss. No. 6 seed with a loss OR Evanston win.
Kelly Walsh, Laramie, Rock Springs: The No. 7 and 8 seeds and the first team out. No teams guaranteed in or out.
All three do same thing: If all three win OR all three lose, Rock Springs is No. 7 seed, Laramie is No. 8 seed.
Two of three teams win: If Kelly Walsh and Laramie win and Rock Springs loses, Laramie is N0. 7 seed and KW is No. 8 seed. If Laramie and Rock Springs win and Kelly Walsh loses, Rock Springs is No. 7 seed and Laramie is No. 8 seed. If Kelly Walsh and Rock Springs win and Laramie loses, Kelly Walsh is No. 7 seed and Rock Springs is No. 8 seed.
Two of three teams lose: If Rock Springs wins and Kelly Walsh and Laramie lose, Rock Springs is No. 7 seed and Laramie is No. 8 seed. If Kelly Walsh wins and Laramie and Rock Springs lose, Kelly Walsh is No. 7 seed and Rock Springs is No. 8 seed. If Laramie wins and Kelly Walsh and Rock Springs lose, Laramie is No. 7 seed and Kelly Walsh is No. 8 seed.
Cheyenne South: Out.
Class 3A
East Conference (corrected from earlier post)
Douglas: In as No. 1 seed.
Lander: In. No. 2 seed with win. No. 3 seed with loss AND Buffalo loss. Tie with Buffalo and Riverton for 2-3-4 seeds with loss AND Buffalo win (coin flip to break).
Buffalo: In. No. 3 seed with win AND Lander win. Tie with Riverton and Lander for 2-3-4 seeds with win AND Riverton win (coin flip to break). No. 3 seed with loss AND Riverton loss AND Torrington loss. No. 4 seed with loss AND Riverton loss AND Torrington win. No. 4 seed with loss AND Riverton win.
Riverton: In. No. 2 seed with win AND Buffalo loss. Tie with Buffalo and Lander for 2-3-4 seeds with win AND Buffalo win (coin flip to break). No. 4 seed with loss.
Rawlins/Torrington: Out.
West Conference
Green River: In. No. 1 seed with win. No. 2 seed with loss AND Star Valley loss. Tie with Powell and Star Valley for 1-2-3 seeds with loss AND Star Valley win (coin flip to break).
Powell: In. No. 1 seed with win AND Star Valley loss. Tie with Green River and Star Valley for 1-2-3 seeds with win AND Star Valley win (coin flip to break). No. 3 seed with loss.
Star Valley: In. No. 2 seed with win AND Green River win. Tie with Green River and Powell for 1-2-3 seeds with win AND Green River loss (coin flip to break). No. 2 seed with loss AND Powell loss. No. 3 seed with loss AND Powell win.
Cody and Worland: In with win. Out with loss. They play each other. Winner is No. 4 seed.
Jackson: Out.
Class 2A
East Conference
Glenrock: In. No. 1 seed with win. No. 2 seed with loss.
Newcastle: In. No. 1 seed with win AND Glenrock loss. No. 2 seed with win AND Glenrock win. No. 3 seed with loss.
Big Horn: In. No. 1 seed with win AND Glenrock loss. No. 2 seed with win AND Glenrock win. No. 3 seed with loss.
Burns: In as No. 4 seed.
Moorcroft, Wright, Wheatland: Out.
West Conference
Lovell: In as No. 1 seed.
Lyman: In. No. 2 seed with win. No. 3 seed with loss.
Greybull: Neither in nor out. No. 2 seed with win. No. 3 seed with loss AND Kemmerer loss. No. 4 seed with loss AND Kemmerer win AND Thermopolis loss. Tie with Kemmerer and Thermopolis for 3-4-5 seeds with loss AND Kemmerer win AND Thermopolis win (play-in contest to break). Cannot be eliminated in Week 8 play, only in a play-in contest.
Thermopolis: Neither in nor out. No. 4 seed with win AND Greybull win OR with win AND Greybull loss AND Kemmerer loss. Tie with Greybull and Kemmerer for 3-4-5 seeds with win AND Kemmerer win AND Greybull loss (play-in contest to break). No. 4 seed with loss AND Kemmerer loss. Eliminated with loss AND Kemmerer win.
Kemmerer: Neither in nor out. No. 3 seed with win AND Greybull loss AND Thermopolis loss. No. 4 seed with win AND Greybull win AND Thermopolis loss. Eliminated with win AND Greybull win AND Thermopolis win. Eliminated with loss.
Mountain View, Big Piney, Pinedale: Out.
Class 1A
East Conference
Southeast: In as No. 1 seed.
Lusk: In as No. 2 seed.
Lingle: Neither in nor out. No. 3 seed with win OR with loss AND Sundance loss. Tie with Pine Bluffs and Sundance for 3-4-5 seeds with loss AND Sundance win (play-in contest to break). Cannot be eliminated in Week 8 play, only in play-in contest.
Pine Bluffs: Neither in nor out. Has a Week 8 bye. No. 4 seed with Lingle win OR Sundance loss. Tie with Lingle and Sundance for 3-4-5 seeds with Lingle loss AND Sundance win (play-in contest to break). Cannot be eliminated in Week 8 play, only in play-in contest.
Sundance: Neither in nor out. Tie with Pine Bluffs and Lingle for 3-4-5 seeds with win AND Lingle loss (play-in contest to break). Eliminated with loss OR with Lingle victory.
Upton, Normative Services: Out.
West Conference
Cokeville: In as No. 1 seed.
Riverside: In as No. 2 seed.
Burlington/Shoshoni/Saratoga/Wind River: A total of 16 scenarios exist with seven possible outcomes. With Burlington win, Burlington is No. 3 seed UNLESS Saratoga loss AND Shoshoni win; in those cases Shoshoni is 3 seed and Burlington is 4 seed no matter what Wind River does. In all cases where Burlington is No. 3 seed due to a victory, Saratoga is No. 4 seed. Wind River is eliminated in all cases of Burlington victory.
With Burlington loss, things become more complicated. With Burlington loss AND Saratoga win, Saratoga is No. 3 seed and Shoshoni is No. 4 seed in all cases. With Burlington loss AND Saratoga loss AND Shoshoni win, Shoshoni is No. 3 seed and Burlington is No. 4 seed (in case of Wind River loss) OR Wind River is No. 4 seed (in case of Wind River victory). With Burlington loss AND Saratoga loss AND Shoshoni loss AND Wind River win, Wind River is No. 3 seed and Burlington, Saratoga and Shoshoni tie for 4-5-6 seeds (three-team play-in contest to break). With Burlington loss AND Saratoga loss AND Shoshoni loss AND Wind River loss, Burlington, Saratoga and Shoshoni tie for 3-4-5 seeds (three-team play-in contest to break).
Rocky Mountain, Wyoming Indian: Out.
Class 1A six-man
North Conference
Dubois: In as No. 1 seed.
Kaycee: In as No. 2 seed.
Ten Sleep: In as No. 3 seed.
Hulett and Meeteetse: Play each other in Week 8; winner is No. 4 seed, loser is eliminated.
South Conference
Snake River: In as No. 1 seed.
Midwest: In as No. 2 seed.
Hanna: In as No. 3 seed.
Farson: In as No. 4 seed.
Guernsey: Out.
Hopefully this clears up some confusion before we enter the final week of the season….
–patrick
Six-man football was designed for schools like Midwest.
Since winning the Class B title in 1979, success was always limited at the 11-man level for the Oilers; the school’s second and last state championship, in 1991, came at the nine-man level.
Between 1992 and 2007, the Oilers won just 22 percent of their games, going 26-91. The only winning season in that stretch came in 2002, when Midwest finished 4-3 after abandoning its varsity season due to low numbers and playing a hodgepodge schedule of JV squads and Meeteetse. Of those 26 victories, nine came against the junior varsity or sophomore teams from other schools, meaning that in 17 years of play, Midwest beat varsity teams from other schools a grand total of 17 times.
All that changed in 2008, when Midwest adopted six-man football. In the three-plus years that the Oilers have been playing six-man full-time, they have 16 victories against varsity teams from other schools — just one victory short of the total of the previous 17 seasons combined.
In 2008, the Oilers played a makeshift schedule of six-man games and went 5-4, including victories in their final four games of the season. That momentum carried over into 2009, when the state sanctioned six-man football, as Midwest won its first six games of the season and eventually reached the state semifinals.
After a 4-5 season in 2010, Midwest is back on a roll again this season. Since losing to Dubois 49-20 in Week 1, the Oilers have won five games in a row — all by at least 37 points — heading into Friday night’s game with Snake River, which kicks off at 6 p.m. Friday in Midwest.
Therein lies the rub. Six-man football was designed for schools like Snake River, too.
The Rattlers are the defending state champions. They finished 10-0 last year, winning big most of the time and winning the state title game by 55 points. They’re 6-0 this year and have won every game by at least 39 points. That 16-game winning streak is the longest in the state right now. The only time the Rattlers have played the Oilers, the Rattlers won — 68-19 in Baggs in last year’s regular-season finale.
All this from a school that, prior to 2009, last fielded a football team in 1958.
Thus far, Snake River has proven to be the class of six-man football this season. They’ll probably win the state championship in November in Laramie. They’ll probably make it 20 in a row with that victory. They’ll probably win on Friday and wrap up six-man’s South Conference championship in doing so. I’m picking the Rattlers to win Friday.
But that doesn’t change the fact that, for schools like Midwest, Snake River and the other eight schools in the classification, six-man is the right fit. Six-man football was designed for schools like these. Now that they finally have the chance to play it full-time, or play it at all, we can see how true that actually is.
Here are the rest of my Week 7 picks, with projected winners in bold and projected upset-makers in the regular type:
Thursday
Class 4A
Evanston at Cheyenne East: Maybe this is the week Evanston finally wins a close game. 7 p.m. (CE 14-9)
Class 2A
Lyman at Pinedale: The Eagles have been rolling all season long. No reason for that trend to stop now. 6 p.m. (Pin 38-28)
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Rock Springs: I’m really impressed with what Rock Springs did last week. But I’m also really impressed with what Central did last week. 7 p.m. (CC 40-18-4)
Gillette at Cheyenne South: Back-to-back trips to Cheyenne for the Camels. Last one didn’t go too well. This one should be better. 7 p.m. (First meeting)
Kelly Walsh at Sheridan: Sheridan has won five in a row, but the past couple years KW has given Sheridan some trouble, especially in games in Sheridan. 7 p.m. (She 27-21)
Laramie at Natrona: Here’s a number for you: Laramie gave up 35 points last week. Natrona has given up 35 points all season. 7 p.m. (NC 43-34-1)
Class 3A
Cody at Powell: It’s always a donnybrook when these two old rivals meet, but Powell has two advantages: they have a better record so far this season and they’re playing at home. 7 p.m. (Cod 59-47-4)
Douglas at Riverton: The Bearcats can’t overlook the Wolverines, who have been good enough to cause problems for some really strong teams. 7 p.m. (Riv 19-10-1)
Green River at Star Valley: By far the game of the week in 3A this week, this game will have a huge say in determining which team earns the West Conference championship. Both teams are on fire right now and neither one wants to see that momentum slowed. Coin flip. 7 p.m. (SV 32-30-5)
Jackson at Worland: This one is basically a must-win for both squads if they want to maintain any hope of making the playoffs. 6 p.m. (Wor 18-10)
Lander at Rawlins: These Tigers are the real deal. They proved that last week. 7 p.m. (tied 26-26-1)
Torrington at Buffalo: How will the Bison react after last week’s devastating loss? Oh, fine — if they want to go to the playoffs, that is. 6 p.m. (Tor 19-15)
Class 2A
Big Piney at Greybull: The Buffs suffered a tough loss last week. The winless Punchers should provide Greybull a nice confidence booster. 7 p.m. (BP 5-3)
Glenrock at Burns: Burns has experienced a nice turnaround in the second half of the season. Glenrock hasn’t had to turn anything around all season. Advantage Herders. 7 p.m. (Glk 4-1)
Kemmerer at Lovell: The Rangers’ big victory last week doesn’t change the fact that Lovell is Lovell, and Lovell is probably the best team in 2A right now. 6 p.m. (Kem 14-11)
Mountain View at Thermopolis: In the middle of the 2A West, this game is as big as it gets. The winner gets to keep thinking about the postseason; the loser is all but finished after Week 8, barring something really weird. As is tradition, I take the home team when I can’t decide between what looks like two even teams on paper…. 7 p.m. (The 6-5)
Newcastle at Wheatland: Just like Mountain View-Thermopolis, this game may be a make-or-break game in the East. At this point, Wheatland needs this game more desperately than Newcastle does, but desperation treads mighty close to panic sometimes. 7 p.m. (Whe 20-19-2)
Wright at Moorcroft: The Wolves have been quietly improving every week. Now it’s just a matter of putting it all together. 1 p.m. (Wri 15-10)
Class 1A 11-man
Normative Services at Lusk: The only question here is if the Tigers can continue their streak of shutouts to four. 7 p.m. (Lus 2-0)
Pine Bluffs at Lingle: The Doggers could create a big jumble for the third and fourth playoff spots in the East if they can beat the Hornets. I see this game as a toss-up, but I’m picking Pine Bluffs because I really don’t want to spend all the time I’m going to have to spend working on tiebreaker scenarios if Lingle does win this one. 7:30 p.m. (Lin 34-22-2)
Rocky Mountain at Burlington: The Huskies just keep losing the close ones. The law of averages has to catch up with them sometime. 2 p.m. (RM 12-3)
Shoshoni at Saratoga: Call me crazy, but there’s something I like about the Panthers at home in a game that looks like it may be decided by a field goal or extra point or safety. 3 p.m. (Sar 7-4)
Southeast at Upton: Katie bar the door, trouble’s a-comin’ north. The Cyclones just never seem to regress from week to week; they always get better. 7 p.m. (SE 6-1)
Wind River at Cokeville: Speaking of always getting better, let’s not forget Cokeville. The Panthers have outscored their 1A West opponents 240-13. Yikes. 2 p.m. (Cok 14-5)
Wyoming Indian at Riverside: The Rebels have the inside track to a home playoff game and don’t want to blow that chance. 7 p.m. (Rsd 8-1)
Class 1A six-man
Hanna at Farson: This game is all about playoff seeding, even though a win here probably only affects where the winner will go in the first round of the playoffs. 2 p.m. (Han 8-2)
Interstate
Sundance at Hill City, S.D.: The Bulldogs’ mojo was pinched back a bit last week by Lusk, but Sundance should rebound strong in South Dakota. 6:30 p.m. (Sun 11-4)
Saturday
Class 1A six-man
Guernsey at Meeteetse: A lot of pride is on the line here in a game between two winless teams. 1 p.m. (Met 1-0)
Hulett at Dubois: Hulett has played well in spurts this season; Dubois has played well consistently all season long. 1 p.m. (Hul 2-0)
Kaycee at Ten Sleep: Wanna play your first-round game at home? Or on the road? 2 p.m. (Kay 2-1)
Open: Big Horn.
I have said this a few times on this blog, but every once and a while it bears repeating: I love it when I miss picks. When a team I pick against finds a way to win, I get excited. The most boring sport is one that’s predictable. Being wrong 20-25% of the time is what keeps me interested in Wyoming high school football week after week, year after year.
What do you think? You know how we roll by now. If you have something to say, you should say it below.
–patrick
Big Horn has canceled its game this week with the Natrona sophomores, Big Horn AD Christy Wright said in an email Monday. The game was originally scheduled for Friday in Casper. Big Horn will keep the week open to rest and heal players.
–patrick
I recently conducted an interview with K2 Radio on the upcoming release of my book. The book, still untitled, will be more reference than narrative, but will string together pieces of storytelling as i try to dissect how we as a state reached the point where high school football is at today.
Click here to see the story, and check this blog for more updates on the book, including its release (hopefully soon after the completion of the 2011 season).
–patrick
The Wyoming Shrine Bowl raised $32,000 in 2011, money that has been donated to the Shriners Hospital for Children in Salt Lake City, the Shrine Bowl’s board of directors announced today. The North team defeated the South 34-28 in the game, which was played last June in Casper.
The 2012 game will be played June 9 at Cheney Alumni Field in Casper.
–patrick
All season long, Class 4A football has had a clear, demonstrable order. Until Friday.
That’s when Rock Springs and Cheyenne Central showed just how interesting the playoffs might become.
Rock Springs rebounded from last week’s demoralizing loss to Kelly Walsh and not only beat Cheyenne East, the Tigers handled the Thunderbirds quite easily. The final score, 27-6, showed just how much the Tigers wanted to (a) make the playoffs, (b) show the rest of 4A they should be taken as a serious contender, and (c) prove last week was an aberration, not a trend. It’s the first time all season a “top six” 4A team (East, Central, Gillette, Sheridan, Natrona, Evanston) has lost to a “bottom four” (Rock Springs, Kelly Walsh, Laramie, South), and in doing so the Tigers Tunguskaed the whole idea of a “top six” and a “bottom four.”
And unsung Cheyenne Central, the team that all season long has been at the bottom of the “top six,” knocked frontrunner Gillette off its tack with a 41-33 victory. The Camels, like Rock Springs, were coming off a rough loss last week, but the Energy Bowl hangover plus the long trip to Cheyenne — as well as an Indian team playing with renewed purpose — proved to be too much for the Camels to overcome. With the playoffs just a couple weeks away, the 4A bracket suddenly looks a lot less predictable.
Third mad props to Lander, which pulled off a big victory at home by knocking off perennial power Buffalo 14-7. The Tigers — who last week were lambasted 45-7 by Douglas — rebounded from that loss in dramatic fashion and beat Buffalo in a low-scoring, hard-fought defensive affair, a game the Bison typically win. With losses to Douglas and Lander, Buffalo’s run of eight consecutive years of hosting a first-round playoff game appears to be over. And it looks like it may be Lander that takes that spot for its own.
Fourth mad props to Burns, which outscored Wheatland 19-0 in the second half to knock off the Bulldogs 36-29. The victory is great for Burns, a team that started the season 0-3 but is now right back in the playoff hunt with three consecutive victories. This is the Burns team we expected to see when the season started. But the loss may be even worse for Wheatland than the victory is important to Burns. After last week’s fourth-quarter collapse against Big Horn, Wheatland has now lost two conference games in a row — and three of four — heading into a crucial game next week against Newcastle. Even a victory against the Dogies might not be enough for Wheatland; even Raquel may not be able to salvage a playoff spot for the Bulldogs. Especially after what happened Friday.
Fifth mad props to Wind River, which kept its playoff hopes alive by beating Burlington 19-13. As I explained earlier this week, every victory is important in the wild, wild 1A West, but this one was especially critical for the Cougars. A loss would have knocked Wind River down to 1-4 in conference play; now, the Cougars are 2-3, tied with Saratoga and Burlington for the fourth and final playoff spot in the west. The Cougars now have to find a way to keep the momentum going as they face their two biggest tests of the season the next two weeks: conference frontrunner Cokeville on the road next week and second-place Riverside at home in Week 8.
Sixth mad props to Pinedale, which picked up its first victory of the season by beating Big Piney 28-20. Obviously, this game was not going to affect the playoff race all that much. Both teams came in winless. But the release and relief the Wranglers gained by beating their cross-county rivals should do a lot for the mentality of the team. The Punchers had beaten the Wranglers in 11 of their past 12 meetings, so to get this victory means a lot to the folks in the northern half of Sublette County — even if it’s the only victory of the season. (By the way, with games against Greybull and Lovell coming up the next two weeks, the Punchers are now staring down the gunbarrel of a winless season. If Big Piney loses those two games, it will be the school’s first winless season since 1969, a 42-year span.)
Saturday edit: Seventh mad props to Kemmerer, which put itself into the thick of the 2A West Conference playoff race by beating Greybull 21-14 on Saturday in Kemmerer. The Rangers had a less-than-impressive resume entering Saturday’s contest, with the team’s lone conference victories coming against winless Big Piney and winless-until-beating-Big Piney-this-week Pinedale and two big losses to Lyman and Thermopolis. Nevertheless, the Rangers are now 3-2 in conference play and can secure a playoff spot in the next two weeks. To do that, though, Kemmerer has to keep the momentum rolling against two of the conference’s better teams: Lovell in Lovell next Friday and Mountain View in Kemmerer to close out the regular season. It’s a tough task, but the Rangers proved Saturday that it’s a task they may just be able to accomplish.
Other stuff I noticed this week:
Buffalo, Kemmerer and Mountain View: The only three teams in the state that have neither won two games in a row nor lost two games in a row. They’ve perfectly alternated wins and losses all season. … Saturday edit: So much for Kemmerer. The Rangers’ win-loss alternating ended with their big victory over Greybull. …
Since losing to Southeast three weeks ago, Lusk has notched three consecutive shutouts. Up next for the Tigers: home dates against Normative Services and Upton to close the regular season. …
I mentioned this early Friday on Twitter, but the fact that two games ended up as 66-6 finals on Friday (both six-man games, Dubois over Hanna and Snake River over Kaycee) was quite unusual. Prior to Friday, the 66-6 final had only been achieved four other times in state history: Powell over Basin in 1940, Wheatland over Newcastle in 1988, Custer/Melstone MT over Meeteetse in 2003 and Midwest over Farson 2010. In addition, Ten Sleep also beat the Riverside JV 66-6 in Zero Week this season. …
I neglected to mention this last week, but I figured better late than never: The Sheridan Broncs’ 38-14 victory over Gillette last week was the 500th victory in Sheridan program history, according to my tallies. The Broncs are just the third program in the state to crack the 500-victory barrier, joining Cheyenne Central and Natrona. Central and Natrona both started the 2011 season with 529 victories. … I also neglected to mention that Sheridan’s 28-0 victory over Rock Springs two weeks ago was coach Don Julian’s 100th career victory as a head coach, spanning his time at both Riverton and Sheridan. Congratulations are (over)due to Don on the achievement.
Here is a quick look at what the playoffs would look like if the season ended today, using current standings and not projections; tiebreakers explained in parentheses:
4A: (8) Laramie at (1) Natrona; (5) Cheyenne East/Evanston at (4) Cheyenne East/Evanston; (6) Cheyenne Central at (3) Gillette; (7) Rock Springs at (2) Sheridan (Rock Springs over Kelly Walsh and Laramie due to win over East; Laramie over KW due to head-to-head win)
3A: (4W) Cody at (1E) Douglas; (3E) Riverton at (2W) Green River; (3W) Powell at (2E) Lander; (4E) Buffalo at (1W) Star Valley (Buffalo over Torrington due to win over Riverton; Star Valley over Green River due to win over Powell)
2A: (4W) Greybull at (1E) Glenrock; (3E) Newcastle at (2W) Lyman; (3W) Kemmerer at (2E) Big Horn; (4E) Burns at (1W) Lovell (Big Horn over Newcastle due to win over Wheatland; Kemmerer over Greybull due to head-to-head win)
1A 11-man: (4W) Wind River at (1E) Southeast; (3E) Pine Bluffs at (2W) Riverside; (3W) Shoshoni at (2E) Lusk; (4E) Lingle at (1W) Cokeville (Wind River over Burlington and Saratoga due to win over Rocky Mountain)
1A six-man: (4S) Hanna at (1N) Dubois; (3N) Kaycee/Ten Sleep at (2S) Snake River; (3S) Farson at (2N) Kaycee/Ten Sleep; (4N) Hulett/Meeteetse at (1S) Midwest (Midwest over Snake River due to win over Farson)
Obviously, these seedings aren’t final and games in weeks 7-8 will prove to be critical for both qualifying and seeding. At this point, no team has cemented its seed yet, although some teams have already qualified.
There were some huge games this week — games we knew would be huge when we saw them on the schedule and games that turned out to be huge because of who won unexpectedly. What was it about this week that was so surprising, amazing or fantastic to you? Post your thoughts below.
This week: 24-7 (77 percent) (not including Saturday’s four games). This season: 166-41 (80 percent).
–patrick
Outside of Cokeville, little is certain in the Class 1A West Conference this season.
Every team has at least one conference victory, but only two of the eight teams have conference records better than .500.
If the playoffs started today, three schools (Burlington, Saratoga and Shoshoni) would be tied for two playoff spots.
One school (Rocky Mountain) has won a conference game by 50 points and lost one by 55. Another (Wind River) has its three conference losses by a combined 16 points but notched its lone league victory by a 47-point margin. Yet another (Burlington) has a combined margin of victory in its two league victories of 41 points and a combined margin of defeat in its two league losses of eight.
As mentioned, the lone exception in this league is Cokeville, which has won its conference games by scores of 48-0, 41-7, 49-0 and 55-0. The defending 1A champions are clearly the class of the conference.
Behind the Panthers, though, it’s a jumble. And that makes every game really, really exciting.
Every game means something now in the 1A West. There are absolutely no throwaways in this conference this year.
Such is the case this week, as three crucial conference games (and a Cokeville game) are lined up: Burlington at Wind River, Saratoga at Riverside and Shoshoni at Rocky Mountain.
The Burlington-Wind River game (6 p.m. Friday; series tied 7-7) is crucial for both teams; Burlington can jump to 3-2 in conference play with a victory, while Wind River, at 1-3 in league play, basically needs to win this game to keep their playoff hopes alive in this competitive conference.
Shoshoni makes the trip to Cowley to play Rocky Mountain (4 p.m. Friday; Rocky Mountain leads series 10-6) in a game that may end up deciding the playoff fate of both squads. Rocky Mountain has lost three in a row after opening the conference slate with a 56-6 victory over Wyoming Indian, while Shoshoni has lost two in a row after starting conference play with narrow victories over both Wind River (29-20) and Burlington (41-36).
Saratoga, meanwhile, goes to Basin to play Riverside (6 p.m. Friday; Riverside leads series 2-1) in what might be the most intriguing game on the schedule in any classification. The Rebels, at 3-1, are the only team besides Cokeville to have a league record better than .500. Saratoga is one of the three teams in the conference at 2-2, but the Panthers have won two games in a row, including last week’s 22-21 thriller over Wind River.
Cokeville, the dominant force in an otherwise parity-filled league, travels to Ethete to face Wyoming Indian (6 p.m. Friday; Cokeville leads series 3-0).
What sets this conference apart is its parity. And I’m not talking about the kind of parity where every game is close, but in the end you know who’s going to win and you see final league standings that read 7-0, 6-1, 5-2, 4-3, 3-4, 2-5, 1-6 and 0-7. Nope. Not this year. This year, we’re talking about real parity, where every team has a chance to beat any other team (except if you’re playing Cokeville, of course). And we may see conference standings that end up something like 7-0, 4-3, 4-3, 3-4, 3-4, 3-4, 2-5 and 2-5. That makes every game, every victory and every loss, critical. No one game will define the season, but one game may make or break a playoff dream.
This week, I will keep my choices simple: Cokeville, Riverside, Shoshoni and Burlington. But, outside of Cokeville, by no means do I make any choice in the 1A West this year with confidence. There’s just too much parity between spots two and seven.
Yet, that is what keeps me so interested in this conference this year. I find myself anticipating the 1A West games more heavily than any other games on the schedule. I can’t wait to see who wins and what the margins look like. It’s strangely enthralling to not know who will win any given week.
Maybe that’s how it should always be. Maybe we’re just lucky to have the chance to see such interesting results come from the 1A West this fall.
Here are my other picks for the week, with my projected winners in the kind of type that makes it appear more thick than the other kinds of type on this page:
Thursday
Interclass
Scottsbluff, Neb., JV at Southeast: The Cyclones are rolling right now, although I would anticipate the Bearcat JV will give Southeast a little bit of a tussle. 6 p.m. (NA)
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne East at Rock Springs: One statistic that football nerds like to look at is points per yard. The lower the ratio, the more efficient your scoring is. Both these teams had pretty high ratios last week. Scoring when the chance presents itself will be key. 7 p.m. (CE 20-17)
Cheyenne South at Kelly Walsh: KW has too much to lose to let this one sneak up on it. 7 p.m. (First meeting)
Gillette at Cheyenne Central: The Camels probably won’t take too kindly to this losing thing; the Indians would love to make losing a trend for the purple and gold and will make it interesting. 7 p.m. (CC 23-22)
Natrona at Evanston: That’s a long road trip, but the Mustangs — especially the defense — have proven they are up for any challenge this season. 6 p.m. (NC 9-4)
Sheridan at Laramie: After a big win in the Energy Bowl, there is always concern about a letdown. If the Broncs do that, the Plainsmen have proven they have what it takes to pull off the upset. 7 p.m. (Lar 43-29)
Class 3A
Buffalo at Lander: Lander’s undefeated start came to an abrupt end last week against Douglas. Playing Buffalo the week after that just doesn’t seem fair. 7 p.m. (Buf 9-1)
Green River at Jackson: With Powell’s stunning loss last week, the Wolves may be 3A’s new team to beat. However, they have to prove they deserve that title in games like this one. 7 p.m. (GR 26-8-2)
Rawlins at Douglas: The last time Rawlins won in Douglas (2000), the Outlaws went on to win the state championship…. so if the Outlaws can somehow pull off the huge upset, go ahead and start engraving that state title trophy. Even so, I don’t think the Bearcats are keen on letting Rawlins pull off an upset that big, especially at Bearcat Stadium. 7 p.m. (Dou 19-9)
Star Valley at Cody: Looking for two squads that are improving rapidly? Look no further. The only problem is that one team will have its momentum abruptly paused once this game is done. 7 p.m. (SV 14-8)
Torrington at Riverton: The Trailblazers made up for a lot of lost time last week, but the Wolverines, especially at home, will probably be too much. 6:30 p.m. (Riv 7-6)
Worland at Powell: I’m sure the Panthers are ready to take the aggression built up by last week’s loss out on someone. 7 p.m. (Wor 39-29)
Class 2A
Glenrock at Wright: The Herders’ biggest tests are now behind them. 7 p.m. (Glk 14-2)
Lyman at Mountain View: Bridger Valley Bowl! This game has more playoff implications than it’s had since, oh, 2000. A huge game for these longtime rivals. Should be a great one, maybe the best game of the week in any class. 4 p.m. (MV 42-29)
Moorcroft at Big Horn: The Rams picked up a big victory last week over Wheatland and want to keep that momentum rolling. 1 p.m. (BH 24-20-1)
Pinedale at Big Piney: Somebody has to win this game in a matchup of two winless teams. Turnovers will probably swing this one in a game that looks close on paper. 4 p.m. (BP 54-42)
Thermopolis at Lovell: Every time a team has tried to push Lovell, the Bulldogs have pushed back. The Bobcats will push Lovell, too, but so far Lovell has responded to those challenges all season long. 7 p.m. (The 42-30)
Wheatland at Burns: As long as the Bulldogs don’t dwell too much on last week’s heartbreaker to Big Horn, they will be in good shape for a run at the postseason. 7 p.m. (tied 1-1)
Class 1A 11-man
Lusk at Sundance: Yes, the Bulldogs notched a nice victory last week against Lingle. But Lusk is not Lingle. 3 p.m. (Lus 21-3)
Normative Services at Lingle: The Doggers need this one if they want to maintain any hope of making it to the playoffs. 7:30 p.m. (Lin 3-0)
Pine Bluffs at Upton: After a couple tough losses in a row, the Hornets have a good chance to get back on track against the Bobcats. 5 p.m. (PB 3-1)
Class 1A six-man
Dubois at Hanna: It’s a rough two-week stretch for Hanna: Snake River last week, Dubois this week. Oof. 3 p.m. (Dub 11-6)
Kaycee at Snake River: It will be interesting to see if the Buckaroos can push the Rattlers a bit. So far, no one in six-man really has accomplished that feat. 2 p.m. (SR 2-1)
Saturday
Class 2A
Greybull at Kemmerer: Long trip, Saturday game… The circumstances might be there for a Kemmerer upset if the Buffs take them lightly. Even so, I think Greybull players will have their heads in the right place for this one, a game they can’t really afford to lose. 2 p.m. (Kem 6-5)
Class 1A six-man
Farson at Hulett: One number to think about in this one: 405. That’s how many miles it is from Farson to Hulett, one way. The Pronghorns may want to think about leaving on Thursday just to make sure they get there in time…. 1 p.m. (First meeting)
Midwest at Guernsey: The Oilers have not-so-quietly been putting together a solid four-game winning streak. Win this one, and it’s five in a row heading into next week’s showdown with Snake River. 3 p.m. (Gue 9-5)
Ten Sleep at Meeteetse: It would be easy for Ten Sleep to overlook Meeteetse, especially with a big game with Kaycee coming up next week. If they do, they might pay. Don’t count on it, though. 2 p.m. (TS 27-21-1)
Open: Newcastle.
So am I on the mark this week? Or is my aim a little off? Let me know what you’re expecting out of Week 6 with a comment below.
–patrick