Lutheran football stair-stepped its way through the Class 3A playoffs over the past three seasons, going from the quarterfinals in 2020 to the semifinals in 2021 before falling in the championship last year to Roosevelt.
The Lions believe they can take that final step this fall, with a 25-man senior class carrying the expectation that this team can be the one to win the school’s first state football championship.
“We understand what it took to get here, so these players want to be the team that gets over the hump,” Lutheran head coach Stephen Robbins said. “They understand what it takes, and to finish off the job. We expect to be there on Dec. 2. It won’t be a feeling of, ‘Oh wow we made it.’ We expect to be there and I believe that mindset will help them.”
Lutheran’s headlined by senior quarterback Ryken Daugaard and senior wideout/safety Joe Ciccio, while up front, the Lions look more like the size of a competitive 4A team with what Robbins calls “the biggest team we’ve ever had.”
Robbins’ squad was motivated by last season’s title loss all offseason; his team was in the weight room on Dec. 4, the day after falling to Roosevelt 34-24 in the championship at the CSU-Pueblo ThunderBowl. The game featured four lead changes as Roosevelt, which finished 14-0, erased an early 10-0 deficit to win.
“It comes down to the trenches,” Robbins said. “Roosevelt was a phenomenal team (in the trenches). That’s where we could’ve been better, and been stronger up front in that game. If we can do that this year, we can go all the way.”
Coach Lane Wasinger’s Rough Riders are a co-title favorite this year as well, as Roosevelt returns senior running back Xavier Ramirez and senior quarterback Bronco Hartson for a program that’s reached the state championship round two of the past three seasons.
The Lions believe their size matches up well against Roosevelt this fall, as well as other Class 3A contenders such as Green Mountain and Durango, both of whom were semifinalists last year. Lutheran stacked its pre-conference schedule to prepare for a playoff run, opening the season Friday against (another) Lutheran in St. Peters, Missouri, before taking on Mead, Discovery Canyon, Pueblo East and Montrose.
With Daugaard again leading the Lions’ high-powered offense, which averaged 424.7 yards and 34.9 points per game in 2022, Lutheran believes it’s going to be hard for other teams to keep up.
“We’re going to keep going with our tempo offense, because we can destroy defenses and wear them out with it,” Daugaard said. “We’ve had a taste of (success). Now, we want the ring.”
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