MEEKER | Since 2020 the Cowboys have met the Buena Vista Demons on the field five times, and this is the first time they have come home with a win, and they dominated.
“This was a great bus ride to be on,” commented head coach Andy Coryell.
The Cowboys opened the game with possession, easily driving down the field and putting up the first points in the game. The Demons were unable to match, punting the ball and the Cowboys marched right back into the end zone.
The final score was 42-14 with the only offensive touchdown by the Demons coming late in the game when the majority of the varsity had already been pulled.
“You have to be physical to go deep into the playoffs and be competitive,” said Coryell, “Buena Vista is a well-coached team that is very physical and a great way to prepare for what is ahead.”
The offensive numbers are a little different from weeks past with only 131 yards combined rushing from eight Cowboys. Clay Crawford, who has led the team in all but one game this year, did so again, rushing for 59 yards against the Demons. Cade Blunt had 29, Said Rodriguez 21, and Xavier Leblanc 17. Crawford added return yards for a game total of 104.
The main Meeker attack came through the air. Once again the offensive line of Tate Kerchel, Teagan Sheridan, Noah LeBlanc, Judd Harvey and Jacob Simonson got it done. They allowed zero touches on quarterback Ryan Sullivan and gave him time in the pocket to throw for 164 yards. Jace Mobley was the lead receiver, who fended off strong Demon coverage to come up with 67 yards and six points.
The Cowboys moved the ball down the field with the combined attack, but not without penalty.
“We had a few big penalties, but that is what is so great about having a team of mostly seniors, they are able to brush it off and continue to play the game, knowing it is not the end,” commented Coryell.
The Cowboys went to the locker room at the half with a 21-7 lead.
Big stops defensively were a total team effort, by Harvey running down Caleb Camp at the seven-yard line, and quarterback sacks by Clatterbaugh, Jake Blazon and Hayden Shults, had the momentum in the Cowboys’ favor.
The Cowboys have been surprised by the Demons in the past, up 14 points only to lose in overtime or at the buzzer numerous times.
This game was different, Clatterbaugh caused two fumbles, the first coming in the first half and recovered by LeBlanc and a second fumble at the second half kick-off that was picked up and run into the end zone by Blunt. Blunt finished the afternoon scoring two touchdowns, the other as a rushing touchdown, 69 all-purpose yards.
The defensive line took the honors for the first time this year leading in tackles when Shults led the team with 13 tackles, Clatterbaugh had 12, and team tackle leader and middle linebacker Harvey had 11. The three combined for six tackles for loss. Harvey is fourth in the state in tackles and leads the league, Clatterbaugh is seventh in the state.
Other stat leaders are Crawford who leads the league in touchdowns and is in the top 15 for rushing yards, Rodriquez who is top two in the league for kick return, and Mobley who is second in the league receiving and ninth in the state, and Blazon has kicked for over 1,525 yards and leads the league and is top four in the state, and Sullivan who is top 13 in the state for passing.
Meeker now begins its preparation for Gunnison, the final home game in regular season, kick off is scheduled for 6 p.m., and senior or parents night will be at 5:50 p.m.
“The quarterback for Gunnison is better than what we saw in Buena Vista,” commented Coryell. “We have to have our pass coverage ready to go for this game.”
Gunnison lost to Buena Vista this year 17-6 and has not yet played the second-strongest team after Meeker, North Fork. They did beat Cedaredge last weekend 38-14.
There is only one ranking that matters and that is the CHSAA seeding index, which is a combined score of MaxPreps and CHSAA RPI. Both the seeding index and CHSAA RPI are updated every hour, whereas MaxPreps is updated Mondays and Thursdays. This week the Cowboys have fluctuated between 2-3, moving up 1-3.
This week’s Gunnison game is a league championship title.
In JV action on Monday, the Cowboys took on Roaring Fork, a team that dropped its varsity team in week one of the regular season, leaving a gap in the Cowboy’s schedule. It was an exciting game to the end when a last-second field goal clinched the game for the Cowboys and they beat the Rams 9-8.
