Maybe there is something to the triple option.
Maybe, in a place like Wyoming, where the wind routinely transports small children, Volkswagens and cows across three counties, it’s best to consistently keep the ball out of the air.
Right, Kelly Walsh?
The Trojans once again proved the viability of the triple option in the first round of the 4A football playoffs on Friday, as quarterback Lucas Nolan ran for more than 200 yards as KW bopped Green River 38-20 in windy Sweetwater County.
With the victory, the Trojans became the only road team in any of the 11-man playoff brackets to win in the first round. And they took part in a trend of dominating first-round performances.
Of the 20 games in the first round, only three were decided by seven points or less. Rock Springs gave Gillette a tussle and scored late in a 27-20 loss; Worland needed a conversion in the second overtime to outlast Riverton 38-37; and Kaycee edged Ten Sleep (which played with seven players in uniform) 48-43 in six-man. Thirteen of the 20 games (updated with Cokeville’s win on Monday) were decided by at least 20 points.
Like I mentioned, the home teams had the clear advantage in the 11-man brackets, with 15 of the 16 home teams posting victories. Of course, that makes sense: The teams playing at home had better regular seasons than those that had to travel. In maintaining bracket integrity, though, the semifinal matchups are that much more straightforward — no Cinderella stories here.
This shouldn’t be too surprising, though: Last year, 19 of the 20 home teams won in the first round.
The only exception to the home-team dominance came in six-man, but that was no surprise either. As has been the case all season, the East Conference teams had control of the first round, winning all four games and sending the four West Conference teams home for the season. A West Conference team didn’t beat an East Conference team in 15 tries this season.
Looking ahead to the semifinals, a few things immediately stand out:
Sheridan’s path to the state championship now goes through the only team to beat the Broncs in the regular season — Kelly Walsh. … Worland is in the semis for the first time since 2003, when the Warriors went 11-0 and won the 4A title. Worland had lost first-round games every year since then, but broke out of that with its double-OT thriller against Riverton. … Lingle is in the semifinals for the first time since 1996. Last time the Doggers made it this far, they lost to Cokeville in the semis. Lingle will play either Cokeville or Pine Bluffs in the semis this year. … Southeast and Wind River have never played each other, but will meet in the 1A 11-man semifinals next week. … Glenrock and Kemmerer continued on their collision course for Laramie, but a pair of formidable foes — Greybull and Thermopolis, respectively — await in the semifinals. I think I’m looking forward to those games more than any other for the semis. …
How about you? Any quarterfinal moments that stuck out for you? Or any semifinal matchups you’re really looking forward to seeing? Post a comment below.
This week: 19-1 (95 percent). This season: 227-55 (80 percent).
–patrick
Agreed Patrick, 2A Semis are going to be exciting. 8-1 vs. 8-1 and 8-1 vs 9-0. haven’t had that quality of playoffs in a long time at 2A. BTW…nice call on ciderella “nobody’s fool”. Been a while and 80’s hair bands rocked!! Good luck to all. GO RANGERS!!
Oh predictions– i think Glenrock wins by 12 at home and the Rangers win by 6 over thermop. Looking to see herders/Rangers part IV at state this year at the War.