Heading into this week’s schedule, I can’t escape the words of Al Michaels.
In describing the lead-up to the Miracle on Ice in 1980, he also encapsulated what it feels like could be happening on in Wyoming on Friday. If he were here, and wanted to plagiarize himself, his pregame might go like this:
“What we have at hand, the rarest of sporting events. An event that needs no buildup, no superfluous adjectives. In a regional or communal sense, I’m sure this game is being viewed with varying perspectives, but manifestly, it is a football game, Campbell County and Sheridan on a patch of turf in Sheridan, Wyoming.”
That’s the kind of drama that you can get when two undefeated teams are facing off in — at least until the playoffs — is as big as a game can get. Longtime regional rivals, both eager to prove they’re the best that Wyoming’s Class 4A has to offer, meet on a patch of turf on Friday in Sheridan.
Thus far in 2024, the Broncs and the Camels have answered every challenge, and they both enter 7-0. They have both relied on defense, with the Camels allowing just 36 points all season and the Broncs 37. Campbell County has won in a variety of fashions, from games as close as two points to winning by forfeit against a team so afraid of injury it refused to play. Sheridan has been remarkably consistent, with no team coming within more than 22 points of the Broncs by the time the final buzzer sounded.
If there’s an edge to be found, it’s with the Broncs and their recent history in the Energy Bowl. Sheridan has won seven straight against Campbell County, no game closer than 31 points in that span. The Camels’ last victory in the series came in 2016, the final year of Gillette’s one-high-school days; at that point, the Camels had won six straight against the Broncs and 20 of the past 24.
Sheridan, of course, comes into this weekend with Wyoming’s longest winning streak, both active and of all-time, at 38 games. Just in case the game wasn’t already intriguing enough.
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What’s scary about everything I just shared with you is that it could be repeated almost word-for-word with another game being played on a patch of grass in Lingle, where the undefeated Doggers host undefeated Pine Bluffs.
Like Sheridan and Campbell County, Lingle and Pine Bluffs are ranked Nos. 1 and 2 in the WyoPreps coaches and media poll this week. However, the Doggers and Hornets are meeting while undefeated in Week 7 for the second consecutive season.
Last year’s meeting was an all-time classic, as Lingle rallied from a 24-0 deficit to tie the game and force overtime, eventually winning 31-30 to spoil Pine Bluffs’ unbeaten season and end the Hornets’ 17-game winning streak.
This one figures to be just as interesting as they fight for the top spot from the 1A nine-man East in the playoff bracket and a chance to stay at home in the first two rounds of the playoffs (always with the caveat that, hey, lose the first one of those and you don’t have to worry about the second).
They have both been scary efficient, with Lingle winning by an average score of 55-12 and Pine Bluffs winning by an average of 56-7. Actually, Pine Bluffs’ average scoring edge is much closer than one point, with the actual averages being Pine Bluffs with 55.7 and Lingle with 55.4; just a two-point conversion (or safety) over the course of a season is all that separates them right now.
No unnecessary buildup, no superfluous adjectives.
Four undefeated teams, two games.
Let’s see what miracles unfold.
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You don’t have to be undefeated to be playing in an interesting game, though. Some that deserve a bit of extra-special attention heading into the final two weeks of the regular season:
The 3A East has quickly become the conference of parity, and any of the top four teams could be a sleeper playoff spoiler. That makes this week’s round of games, with Douglas visiting Buffalo and Riverton stopping by Torrington, both intriguing and important. That’s a good combo to have for a football game. …
Tongue River has had its focus and mental toughness challenged more than any other team this season. The Elk Fire has rightly taken a bunch of the team’s attention. When the Eagles play Big Horn this week in a regional rivalry game, expect high intensity but also high empathy for two neighbors who have been through more than just football this season. …
Also in the 2A East, two teams with the best turnaround stories of 2024 will play each other as Newcastle hosts Burns in a game that’s been shifted to Saturday. Both teams are in good position to make the playoffs at 4-1 in 2A East play, and this week’s winner has a really, really, really solid shot at hosting a playoff game — something Burns has done just twice since winning the 2A title in 2008 and something Newcastle hasn’t done since 2014. …
Neighbors Riverside and Burlington are both still unbeaten in Class 1A six-man North Conference play. They’ll also meet up this week in a game with huge playoff implications and (even bigger?) regional bragging rights. …
Class 1A six-man has some big make-or-break games this week with Dubois hosting Farson and Kaycee hosting Hulett. Six-man’s mid-ranks have been a ton more competitive this season, so watch for both of these games; anything could happen, and that’s what makes it fun.
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Here is a quick look at playoff possibilities entering the second-to-last week of the season. So far, 16 teams have solidified one of the 40 available playoff positions, while only five teams are mathematically eliminated. A conference-by-conference look:
Class 4A
In: Campbell County, Sheridan, Cheyenne East, Natrona.
Well positioned: Kelly Walsh, Rock Springs.
On the bubble: Laramie, Thunder Basin, Cheyenne Central.
Need help: Cheyenne South.
Class 3A East
In: Torrington, Douglas.
Well positioned: Riverton.
On the bubble: Buffalo.
Need help: Lander, Rawlins.
Class 3A West
In: Star Valley.
Well positioned: Cody, Evanston.
On the bubble: Powell, Jackson.
Need help: Green River.
Class 2A East
In: Big Horn.
Well positioned: Newcastle, Burns.
On the bubble: Wheatland, Upton-Sundance.
Need help: Moorcroft, Tongue River.
Out: Glenrock.
Class 2A West
In: Mountain View.
Well positioned: Cokeville, Lovell.
On the bubble: Worland, Kemmerer, Thermopolis.
Out: Pinedale, Lyman.
Class 1A nine-man East
In: Lingle, Pine Bluffs.
On the bubble: Saratoga, Southeast, Lusk.
Need help: Wright.
Out: Guernsey.
Class 1A nine-man West
In: Big Piney.
Well positioned: Shoshoni, Greybull.
On the bubble: Rocky Mountain Wind River.
Out: Wyoming Indian.
Class 1A six-man North
In: Burlington, Riverside.
Well positioned: Midwest.
On the bubble: Meeteetse, Kaycee, Hulett.
Out: Ten Sleep.
Class 1A six-man South
In: Encampment, Snake River.
Well positioned: Farson.
On the bubble: Dubois, Hanna.
Need help: Casper Christian.
Several conference’s top seeds could be decided this week. However, Sheridan, Star Valley, Big Horn, Mountain View, Pine Bluffs and Riverside can win their conference’s top seed in the playoffs with a victory and no other help this week.
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Picks. I bold them so they stand out. No one has complained about the method yet, so I’ll keep rolling with it. I only get complaints about the choices, not the method, so I guess that’s one less thing to worry about.
Friday
Class 4A
Campbell County at Sheridan
Cheyenne East at Rock Springs
Kelly Walsh at Cheyenne Central
Natrona at Cheyenne South
Thunder Basin at Laramie
Class 3A
Douglas at Buffalo
Green River at Cody
Jackson at Powell
Rawlins at Lander
Riverton at Torrington
Star Valley at Evanston
Class 2A
Glenrock at Upton-Sundance
Lovell at Kemmerer
Lyman at Pinedale
Mountain View at Thermopolis
Tongue River at Big Horn
Wheatland at Moorcroft
Worland at Cokeville
Class 1A nine-man
Pine Bluffs at Lingle
Rocky Mountain at Shoshoni
Southeast at Saratoga
Wright at Wyoming Indian
Class 1A six-man
Encampment at Hanna
Midwest at Meeteetse
Riverside at Burlington
Interstate
Big Piney at Rich County, Utah
Saturday
Class 2A
Burns at Newcastle
Class 1A nine-man
Wind River at Greybull
Class 1A six-man
Farson at Dubois
Hulett at Kaycee
Snake River at Casper Christian
Ten Sleep at St. Stephens
Lusk picks up a forfeit victory against Guernsey-Sunrise this week. For a full schedule including kickoff times, click here.
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Here are the results of my picks from last week and this season:
Last week: 28-3 (90 percent). This season: 158-43 (79 percent).
What are you looking for out of the last two weeks of the regular season? Leave a comment here, or hit me up on the Facebook page or on Twitter.
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–patrick