Unbeaten ‘underdog’ Loveland claims second Colorado state title in three years
LOVELAND, Colo. (BVM) — A high school football team is not typically viewed as an underdog when it begins the postseason without a loss. But that was the case with the undefeated Loveland Indians.
“We definitely played the underdog role,” Loveland head coach Jeff Mauck said. “We didn’t feel internally that we were the underdogs, but from an outside perspective, we knew that most people weren’t giving us much of a chance to beat Dakota Ridge or Palmer Ridge.”
The Indians (9-0) finished the regular season 6-0, but they were given the No. 4 seed for Colorado’s Class 4A playoffs. No. 1 Dakota Ridge appeared to be on a mission to win its first-ever state championship and No. 2 Palmer Ridge also dominated its competition throughout a shortened regular season and into the playoffs. After beating Broomfield 28-7 in the first round, Loveland had to get through both in order to claim its second state title in the past three years, starting with the top-seeded Eagles, who had scored 55 points per game and allowed only 66 points total heading into the state semifinal clash.
“We felt that our advantage was the fact that we had been in some tight games,” Mauck said, “and our style of play kind of lends to a lot of those situations. We really kept talking about putting them in uncomfortable situations and once we got in an uncomfortable situation, making them try to respond. That was our whole plan going into the final two weeks, playing the underdog role but not really thinking that we were an underdog.”
After upsetting Dakota Ridge in a tight affair, 20-14, Loveland found itself in a much more lopsided title game against Palmer Ridge. The Bears proved to be no match for the Indians, who dominated on both sides of the ball in a 42-6 victory. Relying on their consistently strong ground attack, the Indians overpowered Palmer Ridge, and it was senior running back Zack Rakowsky leading the way as he had all season.
Named the title game’s Most Outstanding Player, Rakowsky scored three touchdowns, totaled 183 yards and also intercepted two passes on defense. He finished his senior season with 1,393 rushing yards and a team-high 19 rushing TDs as the most impactful part of a Loveland rushing attack that Mauck describes as a “four-headed monster” which also includes sophomore quarterback Garrett Harstad (642 yards, 10 TDs), junior wide receiver Tyson Williams (386 yards) and senior running back Joe Killian (367 yards).
“Every one of those guys wants the ball,” Mauck said. “Zack, in particular, he’s just special. He’s got a giant chip on his shoulder trying to prove to everybody else that he is as good as we know he is. I think that plays out each week. We go into each week trying to say, ‘Hey, we’re going to prove he’s the best player on the football field’ and then at the same time we’ve got other guys who I think want the ball as much or more than him.”
Even more impressive than Loveland’s ground game was the performance of its defense down the stretch. The Indians managed to hold both Dakota Ridge and Palmer Ridge to their lowest point total in a game this season. Mauck said his defense improved every week, which set the team up for success even if it wasn’t necessarily the favorite in the biggest games of the season.
“They were able to grow each week and it’s like the challenges laid out for us perfectly so we felt like we were working our way up the scale all the way to those last two games,” Mauck said. “They’re both very good teams (Dakota Ridge and Palmer Ridge). They both had a lot of potential threats, but our defense came together. They played great ball. I think that last week, really playing the underdog role, they wanted to prove that they could hang with all of those guys.”
And prove themselves, they did.
