Vista Ridge has budding star in sophomore QB Brayden Dorman
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (BVM) — Jason Cauley has coached high school football in several states and worked with all kinds of future high-level college football players at his various stops. But when he arrived at Vista Ridge last year, he found a player unlike anyone he’s coached before.
“I’ve coached some really good athletes and I’ve coached some really good quarterbacks, but I’ve never had a young man like Brayden Dorman,” Cauley said. “At this stage he’s the best I’ve ever coached. Even at 15 years old he’s the best I’ve ever coached and I know where he can go.”
Dorman is only a sophomore, but that likely wouldn’t be someone’s first guess. The Wolves’ 6-foot-4, 185-pound gunslinger not only has athletic skills beyond his years, he also has the smarts that a coach could typically only hope to see from an established senior quarterback.
“As a coach, you like for there to be room for coaching and there is with Brayden, but sometimes he just picks on things that most 15-year-old kids don’t pick up on,” Cauley said. “It’s like, ‘I guess we don’t have to teach him that. I guess we don’t have to tell him that.’”
It was that unique ability to learn quickly that helped Dorman earn the starting QB spot for Vista Ridge during his freshman season, which was also Cauley’s first with the Wolves. Cauley, whose previous job was in Scottsdale, Ariz., was hired by Vista Ridge in late May of 2019. Two weeks prior to leaving Arizona, he uploaded his playbook to the Wolves’ team Hudl page.
By the time Cauley arrived in Colorado Springs, Dorman already knew the playbook, and Cauley knew he had something special in Dorman.
“He didn’t know the signals that went with it and he didn’t know a lot of nuances, but he knew every route combination, what it was called, the depth and where the receiver should break and stick and he was out there as a 14-year-old directing incoming seniors and juniors and leading the way and putting in the offense before I was even here last year,” Cauley said. “That was my first impression of Brayden. I was like, ‘Man, we’ve got something special.’”
By the end of his freshman season in which he threw for 1,900 yards and 13 TDs, Dorman already had enough on film to garner the attention of Power 5 college football programs, including Iowa State, which was the first school to make Dorman an official offer. But the Cyclones certainly won’t be the last.
“It’s really relieving to know the hard work has paid off just to get that first offer,” Dorman said. “But I know I’m not done yet. I’ve got to keep working harder and harder and hopefully some more will come.”
Dorman, who’s the No. 15-ranked Pro Style QB in the nation for the Class of 2023 by QB Hit List, has already thrown for 1,013 yards and 14 TDs through his first three games of his sophomore year for Vista Ridge, and he’s attracting interest from many other Power 5 programs. And he’s not only helping himself as he continues to draw the attention of colleges.
“It’s great for my teammates as well,” Dorman said. “With that Power 5 offer from Iowa State, there’s going to be a lot of coaches at games to watch and that gives exposure to my teammates. That gives them an opportunity to show these coaches what they have. The attention is really good for my team and I’m really glad I can help with that.”
Dorman helps the Wolves in multiple ways. Among them are his ability to lead at a young age and take on the responsibilities that come with being a leader. Those attributes gave Cauley confidence that he could count on Dorman to quickly grasp another new offense in his second year of high school. Prior to this season, Cauley always ran a zone-read style of offense which mimics that of Rich Rodriguez, a former head coach of West Virginia, Michigan and Arizona. But Cauley decided that it was time to install an offense that would truly take advantage of Dorman’s strengths.
Cauley played one season under Dana Holgerson at Mississippi College where Cauley was introduced to Holgerson’s brand of the air raid offense which he later took to West Virginia and now uses as the head coach of Houston. Cauley saw that style as a perfect fit for Dorman.
“This offseason I was thinking, ‘Man, we’ve got all of these weapons on the outside and we’ve probably got the best QB in the state, we need to play into his hands,’” Cauley said. “(Dorman) immediately learned it. … Going to a drop back where he has four or five options every time and the progressions he will go through and he’s smart enough to read them, we just saw a fit for him. He took off with it.”
As Dorman grows as a player, he’ll continue to make more of a name for himself, but he’ll also likely make Vista Ridge a state title contender eventually. The Wolves were 5-5 last year which Dorman called a “learning experience.” Vista Ridge is off to a 2-1 start this fall and Dorman’s expectations are already starting to grow.
“I really believe that we can go and win a state championship this year,” Dorman said. “I know we can do that if we work hard and put in enough effort in practice. I’m really confident that our team can put up some really good numbers and go all the way to state.”
Cauley is confident that the numbers Dorman will put up over his final three seasons will be better than anyone in school history.
“I see him crushing the all-time passing records,” Cauley said, “but we want more than records. We want championships. We want rings too. But he can get us there. If anyone is going to get us there, it’s going to be the type of player that Brayden is and the type of mentality and character he has.”
And if anyone is going to leave their mark in the school history books while also making a name for himself and his team on a national level, it seems likely that it would be Dorman.
“We knew that through Brayden our school was going to get a lot of attention over the next three years and it’s already started,” Cauley said. “It’s been a fun ride and it’s probably going to get more fun with him.”
