Cherry Creek and Fairview played a thrilling, messy masterpiece of a football game Saturday afternoon at the Stutler Bowl.
When the 3-hour, 28-minute craziness ended, top-ranked and undefeated Creek was still standing, riding the exquisite talents of senior running back Jayden Fox to a 49-28 victory in the Class 5A quarterfinals.
The Bruins (12-0) will host rival Valor (10-2) in next week’s semifinals. Fifth-seeded Valor escaped with a 31-30 victory over No. 4 Legend on Saturday.
Fox, who’s headed to UNLV after decommitting from UConn, ran for 258 yards and four touchdowns on just 12 carries — an average of 21.5 yards per carry. He also caught three passes for 77 yards. Never mind that Fox had two touchdowns called back because of penalties. After his first four touches, Fox had 103 yards and two touchdowns.
“It’s an absolute blessing to be on his team and be able to hand the ball off to him for these last four years,” said senior quarterback and Louisiana Tech commit Brady Vodicka. “Every time I hand off to him, it seems like he makes an incredible play. People think he’s small (5-foot-11, 178 pounds) and that he can’t do all of this, but he proves people wrong. He’s got a dog mentality and doesn’t let anything stop him. He’s a fighter.”
Fox’s most brilliant run came with just under 9 minutes left in the second quarter. On his 64-yard TD jaunt, he pulled off two 360-degree spins and stiff-armed a would-be tackler to the turf.
“He’s been in this offense for four years, and he came in about 145 pounds,” Creek coach Dave Logan said. “But you could tell, even back then, that he was special. He’s got great vision, he’s got great acceleration, and he’s tough. To me, he’s the best back in our state. We ride him.”
Vodicka put on a show of his own, completing 12 of 15 passes for 298 yards and three touchdowns, including a 76-yard TD bomb to senior wide receiver Max Lovett to put the Bruins ahead 14-7 late in the first quarter. Lovett finished with three catches for 142 yards and two TDs.
Creek needed every bit of its firepower because Fairview’s explosive offense was rarely contained. Elusive junior quarterback Ki Ellison was sensational, and his scrambling and ability to throw on the run left Creek’s big defensive linemen gasping for breath in the second half.
Ellison’s main target was senior wide receiver Toray Davis. The duo connected for eight catches and 179 yards. The most stunning was Davis’ diving, 45-yard catch at Creek’s 1-yard line to set up a TD plunge by senior Peyton Pacheco to pull Fairview within a touchdown midway through the second half.
“Listen, that’s as good a passing attack as we’ve seen in this state in a long, long time,” Logan said. “Their quarterback is a phenomenal player. And (Davis) is every bit the guy who’s going to visit the University of Texas this weekend. Fairview has got some dudes, so we knew it would be this kind of game. I’m proud of our team.”
Plus, the Knights converted three onside kicks — subsequently converting two into touchdown drives — leaving Logan to admit that his team “must clean things up.”
“We need to be so much better in so many different areas,” Logan said. “They onside kicked three times and got all three. That’s not good. I saw it last year in Dallas, and it almost cost us a win against Highland Park. That’s something we have to get fixed, and we will.”
Cherry Creek put the game away for good in the middle of the fourth quarter. Senior defensive back Jake Kim picked off a Davis pass at the Knights’ 33-yard line, and two plays later, Vodicka hooked up with senior tight end Ty Goettsche for a 29-yard TD pass down the sidelines.
“I knew it was a one-on-one matchup, so I pressed on the coverage and once the ball was in the air, I knew it was mine,” Kim said of this pick. “But man, their quarterback is a dog. Our D-line has been known all season for getting pressure, but this was the longest I had to guard (receivers).”
Fairview came out throwing haymakers, dazing the Bruins in the early going. The Knights opened the game with a seven-play, 80-yard drive, highlighted by Ellison’s slant pass to Davis that turned into a 44-yard gain. One play later, Ellison threw a strike to senior Sabi Ruttgers in the back of the end zone.
Fairview shocked Creek with a subsequent onside kick, which Tommy Bauer recovered at the Creek 35. Fairview should have been up 14-0, but Ellison’s pass to a wide-open receiver was dropped in the end zone.
Despite all the talent and acrobatic plays on the field, the game was marred by overzealous officiating. There were 26 penalty flags thrown and four touchdowns wiped out, three for Cherry Creek and one for Fairview.
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