Posted by: Tammy Bratton on November 16, 2008 12:29AM EST What a great game Bearcats. We are so proud of you. We are truly the champions!!!!

Posted by: Bison Fan on November 16, 2008 1:13AM EST Congrats to Douglas. They are an amazing team - they can run the ball, pass the ball and kick the ball. The Bison just didn't make it happen today. It was a heartbreaker - four Bison injured - two with broken bones. Keep all of these players in your prayers for a full recovery. No complaining from the Bison. Douglas played better ball. Officials were horrible, but that wasn't a game maker or breaker. The Bison will look forward to 2009 football. Thanks to all the players, coaches, parents, supporters and officials for a great season.

Posted by: rangerfan on November 16, 2008 9:56AM EST I need to say congrats to the glenrock herders. They absolutely dominated that game on defense. They were ready to get that championship. I thought the rangers D had a good game but had their back against the wall too many times to hold an offense like the herders down. Nice job glenrock, and we will see you in september next year for a little rematch down in the PIT!!

Posted by: Ted 2A fan on November 16, 2008 10:10AM EST I would like to thank TCT West and RT in Sheridan for televising the games they did. I was unable to get to any of the games but was able to watch 2 of them. I do have a question for Patrick, will the games next year be done in 1 day or 2 ? Also, has it been talked about televising all of these games ? One day , giving 3 hours per game, starts at 8 am and ends at 11 pm. The east won it all this year. It is a funny thing the way that goes. Last year 3 west teams.

Posted by: Matt on November 16, 2008 12:02PM EST Sorry I couldn't make the short drive to Burlington to see the 1A game. Sounded like a good game.

Posted by: Bayley on November 16, 2008 2:09PM EST Good game to Buffalo and Douglas. We played really good. We both had good sportsmenship. Good game!

Posted by: Herder fan on November 16, 2008 3:09PM EST Congratulations Herders. You truly did play "as one".

Posted by: Dogie Gray on November 16, 2008 6:15PM EST Well, I drove to Glenrock, & wasn't disappointed. From a mostly unbiased observer, Glenrock dominated that game. Nothing for the Rangers to be ashamed of though; what an intense game! I heard pads popping all over the field all game long! What high level of play both teams! That was fun to see! I also thought Kemmerer traveled well; nice band, guys! Ok, now on to hoops; I think the Dogies are ready to go, & make another run at that State title game! Go Dogies!!

Posted by: bearcatchampion on November 16, 2008 6:38PM EST HOW ABOUT THE BEARCATS:) TRULY A TEAM OF LEADERS. HAS IT SOAKED IN YET? :) TOTAL DOMINATION OVER THE BUFFALO BISON.

Posted by: bearcatchampion on November 16, 2008 6:46PM EST We are they champions! And nobody can take that away from us. We dominated Buffalo in every aspect of them game. What an amazing team:)

Posted by: goldgerm on November 16, 2008 9:05PM EST that was kemmerers saying two years ago...

Posted by: Coal Bowl on November 16, 2008 11:52PM EST Now that this season came to an excitting finish it is time to start dreaming about next year. I agree with sports fan earlier this week, Coach Garland and Coach Yeradi need to get together and make the "Coal Bowl" possible. Zero week is a week that WHSAA can not take away from us and this historical rivalry. Upgrade the joke the "Coal Bowl" calls a trophy and lets start playing again.

Posted by: rangerfan on November 17, 2008 12:04AM EST goldgerm, I think you are referring to "as one". You are right. That was on the wrist bands kemmerer wore in 2005 when they went undefeated. Must be a powerful saying :)

Posted by: bearcatsnumbe1 on November 17, 2008 2:00AM EST Message to the Buffalo Bison: It wasn't a fluke that we beat you in the regular season, it was straight out we were and are the better team. We are tired of hearing how great buffalo is and about your so called dynasty, sorry to say its our turn for the best dynasty wyoming has ever seen. We are the best, and no matter what anyone says we out played the bison every down and fought for every inch. To the Bearcats: Thanks for the great season boys, I loved playing side by side with each and everyone of you. We walked on that field knowing we would dominate, and we did so. We also walked on that field as brothers, and came of that field as eternal brothers. Love you boys thanks for the great memories:) sad to see it go.

Posted by: HS Sports Fan on November 17, 2008 8:24AM EST Patrick - How long before we get to discuss basketball and your picks. Sounds like the Buffalo ballers will have to rely on a lot of youth this year. From what I hear their only two returning starters were the two players with broken bones. Let's pray for a speedy recovery for both.

Posted by: Wrestling Fan on November 17, 2008 10:27AM EST Congrats to Douglas, no one could beat you that day, what a well played game! Also congrats to Glenrock! Converse County "Best Football County in Wyoming 2008". I think a coulpe of first evers occured here this weekend 1) Both Douglas and Glenrock winning state football titles in the same year 2) Douglas won state titles in all 3 of its boys fall sports-Football, Cross Country, Golf. Not sure but I don't think any school with three or more boys fall sports has ever won all of them. AWESOME!!!

Posted by: waybig on November 17, 2008 10:32AM EST Which campus won the state championship at Gillettte? Was in the north campus or the south campus?

Posted by: camelfan on November 17, 2008 10:51AM EST Thank goodness we don't have to hear the whining and bickering between Buffalo and Douglas any more. They need to move on. Grow up. We are the best!

Posted by: murrykins on November 17, 2008 11:23AM EST I think you all would have enjoyed seeing the game in Burlington, especially if you like to see a couple good defenses go at it. the Huskies made two or three mistakes and Southeast took advantage of it while really making none of their own. The cyclones kept Burlington from taking advantage of the wind,there were some darn close tries,and that really was the story of the game. There were some tremendous hitting in this game, more than once we saw people shaking thier head going back to the huddle and from a fans perspective it was a great game to watch. Defense wins championships and even with some tougher schedules, I wouldn't be a bit surprised to see these two teams go at it again on Jonah Field in 2009. Congratulations to Southeast and also to Burlington. Great game!!! See you at the WAR.

Posted by: bigDaddy on November 17, 2008 11:35AM EST First to Douglas congrats, we played the first game of the year and then we played Buffalo later, I really thought Buffalo had that one, you proved me wrong and I'm happy to admit it and happy for the outcome, good job. Congratulations Glenrock, what a team. Kemmerer, you have a great team and coaching staff, the game on Saturday adds some credence to a thought of mine, if the last two championships were played in Glenrock and this one in Kemmerer, the results may have been flip flopped. Now before everybody jumps on me, hear me out. I’m not making excuses, Kemmerer was awesome and deserved the championships, they won the games and both towns have enjoyed amazing success over the last 4 years but, the traveling team hasn't looked good by any stretch of the imagination, at the other team’s home. I think that crazy bus ride and not sleeping in your own bed has more to do with the outcomes than most think. I know Glenrock was a better team than they showed in '05 and '07 and I know that Kemmerer was a better team than the team that played on Saturday. With my previous logic it makes Coach Bullington's and Southeast’s victory and how close the Gillette / Green River game was, all the more impressive. Coach Howard, keep up the good work down there in GR. Congrats to Burns too. They beat Big Horn, a perennial good team. Good luck next year to the teams who move to what is next year’s version of 2A. Can't believe this year’s done, on to wrestling...

Posted by: Vogel # 7 on November 17, 2008 12:46PM EST The game on saturday was a great game from both teams. Buffalo is a very good team and the hit like trucks. I have personaly played with Long and Gibbs in Las Vegas for a football camp and they are great athletes and good guys, and I'm glad i got to know them. I would also like to thank all the Douglas fans around the state for the support through out the years. Also thanks to the senior class for always playing as a group of brothers and not as individuals. Thanks again and good luck to the bearcats next year lets get a another state title.

Posted by: bigDaddy on November 17, 2008 12:58PM EST wrestling fan - wow, that is impressive, I would have to think that Bob Bath's wrestlers have to be favored to be right there also, don't know anything about the basketball team but this could be an amazing year for that group of seniors.

Posted by: tmillerwyo on November 17, 2008 1:13PM EST I went to Burlington and watched another SE championship. SE looked good running the veer, and they played their typical aggressive team defense. 1A will be tougher next year, but SE should still be solid and be able to compete at a high level (with their current coaching staff and high participation numbers). Congratulations to another Bullington QB leading SE to a 3-peat -- like their assistant coach Crockett did in the SP:). I wished I could have seen the Douglas game, also. Well next year I'll be taking a couple days off and going to Laramie. PS Patrick, I believe SE is 29-3 over the last 3 years, because the game with Midwest was cancelled before the season.

Posted by: quality young man! on November 17, 2008 1:24PM EST Congrats to all the champions! Job well done! Just read the srticle from Sunday's trib about the 4a title game. I have to say that Tyler Gibbs from Buffalo seems to e a great young man! his feats on the pitch and football field speak for themselves, but the way Tyler handles himself is incredible. I vividly remember talking to him after the gae in JH last fall and was impressed then. Now, after reading the article and a couple of his quotes right after a loss he seems to be the real deal! tyler you should be proud of yourself, and thank you for representing wyoming and our youth so well. I think you are on track to do amazing things in your life! Congrats and good luck in soccer.

Posted by: Anonymous on November 17, 2008 1:28PM EST Congrats to all the Champions!! Four out of the five home teams won the game---Congrats to Southeast and to the BEST coaching staff in the state! Look what they have done in the last 10-12 years----pretty impressive!! WE are the best!!

Posted by: bearcatchampion on November 17, 2008 2:30PM EST it truly was our year!! we won the title with offense, defense, and special teams. it was a great team effort!

Posted by: pateracklemonface@ChickenSamich on November 17, 2008 2:40PM EST Now that we dominated in the fall sports,(including 4A State football champs) its time to dominate the winter sports, (including wrestling and basketball)

Posted by: Patrick Schmiedt on November 17, 2008 3:25PM EST tmiller, 30-3. You're forgetting the Laramie JV game, which made up for Midwest. --patrick

Posted by: rangerfan on November 17, 2008 3:33PM EST bigDaddy, interesting observation on the titles between kemmerer and glenrock. I hope next year we can find out on a neutral field at the WAR. Don't know if the two will dominate as both lose great senior classes, but both should be competitive. Who does everybody see coming out next year as 2A challengers for the crown. As for me, I am sticking with the RANGERS. Should have 7 or 8 seniors of which 6 saw signigicant time. Some decent underclassmen as well.

Posted by: Kevin Williams on November 17, 2008 3:37PM EST What a great day Saturday was. I attended the game in Glenrock (shortest drive for me) and thoroughly enjoyed the way both teams played the game...hard hitting, clean and with respect to the opponent. From the sounds of those of you who saw other games, it sounds the same way. I think it will be nice next year to have all of us in one place so that we can all enjoy the best that all 10 teams bring to the table, rather than make a choice like we all had to this year.

Posted by: Mike on November 17, 2008 6:56PM EST rangerfan, Mt. View returns the entire O-line next year....that's always the key place to start.

Posted by: K on November 17, 2008 7:35PM EST Does anyone know if Foto-Sport or other photographers were taking photos of the Kemmerer Glenrock game? Foto-Sport takes photos for most state events, but if they were there, they haven't posted any photos yet.

Posted by: gtown on November 17, 2008 9:01PM EST bearcatsnumber1- not trying to take away from your accomplishments and your season, you were a great team. But I think in order to be considered a dynasty you should probably win more than just one year. Buffalo has a great program and is in the championship just about every year.

Posted by: Gridiron on November 17, 2008 9:59PM EST Patrick, I appreciated your comments about the pride jacks the Rangers did after the game. I think players take on the image of their program and more so their coach. Shawn Rogers is such a class act, I wish I could have played for him in my day. Many people don't realize how many hours he puts in as a high school coach in preparation. I don't quite agree with bigDaddy about the travel. I know it is inconvenient, but I don't think the outcomes would have changed if the locations were changed. The better football team won each of these three championships. This was the first away championship game I have attended and man was it fun. We had a tailgate party at the Glenrock town park before the game, and it was great to see how many people traveled to the game. I know the feeling won't be the same at Jonah Field. To feel the hometown atmosphere was awesome, even if it wasn't our hometown. I would give up seeing the other games to keep the hometown feel. Both definitely have their advantages. One final question I'd like to know is if Glenrock has any wrestlers this year. As tough as that football team looked, there has to be some wrestlers on that team. Glenrock fans, give me some names to watch for this year in wrestling if there are any.

Posted by: Ranea on November 17, 2008 11:31PM EST gtown, a very good point.

Posted by: Herder #63 on November 17, 2008 11:53PM EST First off, Gridiron asked for some wrestler names, and here they are: Casey Hoskinson and Devin Collins. Both are starting guards for the herders and awesome wrestlers. Secondly, i cannot say how much i like to play the championships at home. It is kinda cool that they are going to Laramie next year, but the community support that a team gets when they get to play the game at home is really amazing. I hope they don't keep them in Laramie too long. Another thing-Patrick-i found this on accident, and thought you might want to see it. FootballPower ranked the Glenrock Herders #3 in the entire nation for small schools! Kinda cool, huh? just thought you might want to check it out here.

Posted by: bearcatsnumber1 on November 18, 2008 1:51AM EST To GTOWN - I don't know if i would start talking about football gtown because until your football team runs a real offense and not an offense that shows you have no talent unless you have nine guys blocking you need to respect a team that can actually play football the real way. I also said it was time for our dynasty not meaning now but to start one would be a great thing.

Posted by: rangerfan on November 18, 2008 10:00AM EST Mike, definitely right about the line. If you have the big boys up front even an average skill position crew can succeed. View is looking to improve then. Anyone else? What do we see on the east side. How about Pinedale? I think Big piney will be much improved from this year.

Posted by: bigDaddy on November 18, 2008 10:38AM EST rangerfan & gridiron - thank you for taking my comments as I meant them, like I said '05 & '07 K town teams were incredible, but I'm sure this past Saturday's team was better than they showed. I just wondered if they met somewhere in the middle if all 3 games wouldn't have been close games. The problem for you guys though is Laramie is even further down the road (or is it?), Glenrock will go down the morning of, and warm up and play. 2 - 3 hour drive instead of 6 or 7. It looks like 15-20 kids out for wrestling and most were football players, 2 notables are - D. Collins (d-end) will wrestle at 189, C. Hoskinson (linbacker/gaurd) will wrestle 215

Posted by: Kevin Williams on November 18, 2008 11:05AM EST Gridiron: It had to be nice to tailgate in the park and get together with others who followed the Rangers to Converse County. I think something like that could be pulled off in Laramie as well...probably in the parking lot or the Tailgate Park at the War. I'm sure you and the other fans had it preplanned and publicized in Kemmerer so you could meet. The same planning could take place next year. By the way, which is a further drive from Uinta County, Laramie or Glenrock?

Posted by: 6X on November 18, 2008 11:07AM EST waybig, In response to your inquery on which gillette campus won the football title, it was the high school football team as a whole. However, the trophy will probably go in North campus, and we are currently adding on to the South Campus trophy case to make room for our upcoming wrestling title.

Posted by: bigDaddy on November 18, 2008 11:21AM EST bearcatsnumber1 - I have the most respect for Douglas and I have many freinds there, but if you are suggesting that Glenrock doesn't have a real offense you need to answer some questions, was it illegal? did they cheat? Nine people blocking? that must have been a bad play because the "offense" is designed that 10 people block and one runs it, oh and then scores a touchdown. I might point out that the offense in question ran over Douglas early, beat them 26-14 and went on to average nearly 400 yards rushing per game and went 11-0. If it's not a real offense how come nobody could stop it, including the 2 big 4A teams they played? Sounds like sour grapes to me.

Posted by: Bronc Supporter on November 18, 2008 11:31AM EST I just wanted to say Congrats to the Burns Broncs. What a season. Also wanted to say how cool it is to be a part of Wyoming Athletics. On Saturday before the game there was 4-6 inches of snow on the field. There were snow blowers and power brooms and about 30 people running snow shovels all helping clear the field of snow. The point I want to make is that some of these people running shovels were from Big Horn. Only in Wyoming would this occur. There was a job that needed done and everyone just pitched in and got it done. It was very neat to see. Good job Rams you had a great season too.

Posted by: Herder103 on November 18, 2008 11:43AM EST bearcatsnumber1: Why does everybody attack the double wing. I think your coach said the same thing on KKTY after you lost to us the during the regular season. What is wrong with it??? I still don't get the idea of Douglas not respecting Glenrock, even though we beat you the last two years. Just becasue the spread offenses are the Craze right now, doesn't mean they will be in 5 years. Who knows maybe coach Rhoades leaves and you have a coach come in and run the double wing, and have success. Are you going to say the same thing then???? One more thing: Hasn't Glenrock had more success than Douglas since 2000 no matter what offense they run? 3 state Championships(2002/2003/2008), 2 runners up(2005/2007), 2 semi-final appearances(2001/2006), 1 quarter-final appearance(2000), and 1 year not making the playoffs(2004.) Five years running a pro-style offense and four years running the double wing. No one from Glenrock doubted your accomplishment from saturday. Can't Converse County just get along and enjoy the feeling of being state champions.

Posted by: Erik on November 18, 2008 1:30PM EST Congrats to the Camels a nice win.. I think it is funny how people still complain like little girls about Gillette's two campus. Face it we win because we pride ourselves on outworking and the other teams. Don't be mad at us because we out work in things. Just try to compete with us next time. Make us better! Green River will be tough again next year. Their QB is awesome and fun to watch. What a great kid to have on your side! We will be watching out for you again next year G.R. !!

Posted by: powderpro on November 18, 2008 2:50PM EST Broncfan, I witnessed the same thing. Burns deserved the win, the better team. Big Horn is holding their heads high, unfortuntately the Seniors were there two straight and came out empty. Congratulations to the Burns Broncs, just wish the game was closer to Sheridan County, lol.

Posted by: Mike on November 18, 2008 3:52PM EST Herder....the only ones that question the double-wing are people that don't understand hard nose, smash mouth football. He can talk about it not being a real offense, but I challenge him to find a spread coach that has racked up #'s like Don Markham.....the originator of the offense. When I was at Lyman we had him fly out twice and the man is incredible. Rather than try to take advantage of the #'s in or out of the box as the spread offense does....the double wing puts more people at the point of attack than the defense can get there just by understanding the simple fact that the offense knows where the ball is going and the D doesn't. When the D's starting cheating to beat the pullers to the point of attack that's when the reverses and trap plays go big. People can say what they want about the offense, but I believe when it's ran correctly it's nearly impossible to stop as I think has been proven in the 3a ranks. Lyman, Kemmerer, and Glenrock have all won state titles with the offense since 1999. I believe that is six titles for the double wing in a ten year period if I'm not mistaken.....not too bad.

Posted by: Herder103 on November 18, 2008 5:13PM EST Thanks for the support. Lyman kicked Glenrocks rear in the 1st round of the playoffs in 1999. That was a heck of team, Mike. Didn't Mt. View burn their school emblem in your field that year? Anyway thanks man, at least the Herd isnt alone in their beliefs

Posted by: Turpin on November 18, 2008 5:22PM EST Herder103 I couldn't agree more....Douglas and Glenrock need to get past the bad blood. FYI the Douglas fans went crazy when they announced the scores of the 3A championship game. Was it the same in Glenrock??

Posted by: Mike on November 18, 2008 5:48PM EST So, just to beat a dead horse a little more.....Last Saturday I had the privelege of watching the Utah 1a, and 2a state championship games at the Neutral site of Timpview High School in Provo, Utah. I wanted to let the people here in Wyoming that don't believe fans will travel to Laramie next year know that the stands were packed to capacity for these 4 teams. This stadium is made up of one side about the size of Natrona's stadium and another side that I would guess holds about 3000. The 4 teams playing were Manti....about 90 minutes from Provo, North Summit....about 75 minutes from Provo, North Sevier....about 3 hours from Provo, and Kanab....about 6 hours from Provo and the fans came just as they always do. I have trouble believing that Wyoming fans aren't as enthusiastic about their high school athletes as Utah. The atmosphere was electric and these schools were all in the 190 to 500 student range. I had to yell for my friend and son sitting right next to me to even hear what I was saying. Next November "The War," will be the place to be if you are a true high school football fan in Wyoming.

Posted by: BIG GUY on November 18, 2008 7:02PM EST The Gillette Green River game was a good one! I thought the difference was the in the play of the Qbacks! While Martinez came into the game on a "high" he was contained very well by the Gillette Defense...... He is only a 150# and looked fragile..... ie: Fumbles, and blocked punt that was costly. Hats off to Gillette for not only containing him, but for totally shutting him down. Gillette looked faster, bigger, and the score wasn't as close as it appeared...... Gillette defense was awesome! They totally shut down Green River by getting to the Qback in a hurry! NICE............

Posted by: Herderalum on November 18, 2008 7:04PM EST Erik. The reason people complain about Gillette is they twist the system to get a better teams. That’s why so many people celebrate when Gillette looses at any thing. Imagine if both the Casper schools combined to make one team or Cheyenne for that matter then where would your work ethic theory be. When they would be able to draw on the tallent from teams that are always in the running to make a super team.

Posted by: wyomaverick on November 18, 2008 7:39PM EST Herderalum, Check out the attached link to the WHSAA website that shows Gillette is not even the biggest school in our great state and only 59 students smaller than East and 59 bigger than Central. I am not from Gillette! http://www.whsaa.org/WHSAAinformation/2007-2009ADMS.pdf

Posted by: BiGd on November 18, 2008 8:53PM EST Does the linebacker from buffalo... Iberlin? Does he wrestle?

Posted by: gtown on November 18, 2008 9:37PM EST Herderalum- Cheyenne and Casper are both WAY bigger then gillette, so of course if they had one team they would dominate. And they are not even the biggest in the state. Btw bearcatsnumber1- I am not even from Glenrock I am from Gillette, and when a 3A school such as them beats you guys, you probably shouldn't complain about why the beat you, just take the loss and go on.

Posted by: Bison Fan For Life on November 18, 2008 9:55PM EST Iberlin does not wrestle. Although he and everyone else know that he has great potential to win a state championship at 215, he is taking this season off and has already began to prepare himself for football at the next level.

Posted by: bigDaddy on November 18, 2008 10:20PM EST Turpin - Yes everybody that I know from Glenrock was rooting for Douglas, the only thing that could have been better last Saturday is opening the Jackalope bowl down there around Natural Bridge. Both teams would have been home and we could have watched both games.

Posted by: SoutheastAlum on November 19, 2008 12:31AM EST Patrick and tmiller you can not say that the team was 30-3, last years team was 21-1 this year team was 0-0, they started over with all new kids taking charge. Coach Bullington is a great Coach, but the next 5 years will be a test of there own. I believe southeast will be ok next year but a four peat is not going to happen

Posted by: eaglefan on November 19, 2008 11:18AM EST Mike Walk, I think the complaint with the double-wing, from a parent of kids playing and a spectator...it is as exciting to watch as paint drying! Coaches who run it must not be capable of being creative and handling a more complex offense. IMO Did you try it for the Monticello Buckaroos?

Posted by: Anonymous on November 19, 2008 12:50PM EST To all those ignorant people who think gillette should have two schools do your research. We are not even the biggest school in the state we are third how about we put a third school in casper both of their schools are bigger than gillette. Gillette High school has 1300 kids total. Fact. Plus quit complaining we build all of your facilities.

Posted by: mm on November 19, 2008 2:24PM EST herder 103 you guys are in 3A. hold it now

Posted by: Gillette on November 19, 2008 3:01PM EST This is for all you ignorant people. You need to do some research. We do not have enough sutdent population to go to two schools. Before we get a second high school how about Casper gets a third high school because we are smaller than both Casper schools. So before you open your mouth look at student population for Gillette compared to the rest of the schools in the state.

Posted by: bigDaddy on November 19, 2008 3:23PM EST anonymous - I'm not sure where you're getting your numbers, but according to the WHSAA you are the second biggest school. East 2197, Gillette 2160, Central 2081, NC 1898, KW 1549. This is where I did my research. http://www.whsaa.org/WHSAAinformation/2007-2009ADMS.pdf

Posted by: Big Orange on November 19, 2008 3:26PM EST I think WHSAA has Gillette's enrollment as 2,148 grades 9-12, making it the 2nd largest in the state. Casper schools (NC) 1,856 and (KW) 1,589 are 4th and 5th largest in the state. I think Jonah fields are building some of our facilities too. Thanks a lot!!

Posted by: gtown on November 19, 2008 3:31PM EST I don't see why everyone is dissing on the double wing. Green River runs it, Glenrock runs it, Kemmerer(SP?) runs it. All those teams made it to their championships so obviously it works pretty good. And about it being boring, Green River ran a triple reverse against us in the chamionship! how boring is that.

Posted by: GW on November 19, 2008 3:32PM EST Anonymous, Casper is probably getting another high school in the next few years. As far as 1300 students 9-12? better do your own research and what are you talking about you build all our facilities?

Posted by: bigDaddy on November 19, 2008 3:33PM EST eaglefan - how can averaging 400 yards rushing and dominating an opponent be boring? and, if you think the double wing is an easy offense to run, I disagree with you, if everyone isn't right where they are supposed to be and if they don't do their job the whole thing falls apart. There is alot more to it than running a back through a hole with a couple of blockers. Besides I'll take the championships.

Posted by: Herder103 on November 19, 2008 3:49PM EST I realize we are in 3A(well 2A next year). My point was that Glenrock has beaten Douglas (4A) the last couple of years, and had success the last 9 years no matter what offense they run. Also how can it be called a simple offense when there is more influence blocking, than in any other offense. I also don't think having 3 1,000 yard rushers (and 50 rushing TDs) in the same year, is an example of watching paint dry. They have to be creative, when trying to devise a gameplan to beat 10 or all 11 players in the box. Anyway i'm done defending a great offense which has had success at many different levels. Oh and one more thing, since when is it a coaches responsibility to keep the fans entertained? I thought the idea was to win and develop kids into adults

Posted by: WYOCOACH on November 19, 2008 4:08PM EST To Gillette & Anonymous, According to WHSAA ADM figures, Gillette has a daily average of 2159 students?? If you're not big enough to support 2 high schools, why did you build another campus? You are plenty big enough for 2 schools. If you split to 2 schools, your population for the 2 would put you right in the middle of the rest of the 4A schools. You are not smaller than both of the Casper schools, and only smaller than East. Where do you get your figures from. Maybe you shouldn't be so quick to call others ignorant when you don't seem to have all the correct answers.

Posted by: Go Pokes on November 19, 2008 4:59PM EST anoonymous and Gillette: here is a little research for ya. Cheyenne is going to have 3 schools, and if you take the population in high school they have right now and divide it by those three schools, each school would have 1426 kids. A third high school in Casper would average out to 1149 kids per school. Splitting the 2160 kids you have in school (according to the WHSAA website, not the 1300 you claim to have) would average out to 1080 per school. Add Rock Springs at 1277, Laramie at 1076, Sheridan at 1011, and Evanston at 905, and all of the sudden, you have a pretty level playing field for 4A. There would be a lot more parity in that level like there is in a lot of the other levels.

Posted by: Anonymous on November 19, 2008 5:27PM EST yes a 4 peat is going to happen------we are just that good!!!!

Posted by: I flow freely on November 19, 2008 6:38PM EST For all of you who have complained about Gillette and its success look at your own answers. Right now Gillette is at 2159 ADM, Cheyenne East is at 2196, Cheyenne Central is at 2080, NC at 1897 and KW 1548. You can talk about when Cheyenne Gets South high school and When Casper gets a 3rd high school, but what Is relevant is right now. Are you seriously saying that Cheyenne needs to combine and have 4276 students in order to compete with Gillette. Or that Casper needs to combine and have 3445 students in order to compete with Gillette. give me a break. South high school is on the way for sure. Casper is looking at a third high school and for your information Gillette is looking at a second high school in the future also just like Casper. the fact of the matter is that gillette created a south building when predictions were calling for us to be the largest high school by more than 600-750 students than the casper and cheyenne schools. If those predictions came to pass the plan was to make the south campus a 2nd high school. that was almost 10 years ago. That population growth never took place and so the rational to split into 2 schools when we are fairly close to the other top 4 schools never became a reality. It boils down to Gillette has good athletes, coaches, administrators and community members who support their kids in activities!!

Posted by: tmillerwyo on November 19, 2008 7:20PM EST Will SE 4-peat? Maybe yes, maybe not. But that's a pretty good goal to work towards. Championships are won when skill, hard work and little luck come together. If SE thinks they're going to walk over everyone next year because they 3-peated, then they won't get a 4-peat (but that's the coaches' job to prevent over-confidence from happening). What I saw this year from SE was a good solid team (with a bunch of good kids) even though they may have had no individual stand-outs (like Stephan Easton or Jake Edmonds). They graduated 7 seniors (who they'll miss), but should have another solid team next year.

Posted by: Rangerfan on November 19, 2008 8:01PM EST eaglefan, You keep that exciting offense of yours, we will keep ours. While your on the edge of your seat with all of your excitement we will be making more room in our trophy case. Our boys played a lot of "exciting" offenses that had less than a 150 total yards for the game. 3 and out!! Yep thats the kind of excitement I want for our program. GO RANGERS!!!

Posted by: lightning on November 19, 2008 8:27PM EST I was really not that suprised to see the Burns-Big Horn game be so lopsided. I expected Burns to run the ball better then they did but Burns has had an outstanding athletic Defense all year long and offensively they have a lot of weapons. Congrats to the Broncs for their first title in 25 years!

Posted by: gtown on November 19, 2008 8:35PM EST Just so everyone is clear the 2159 is grades 9-12, just thought there was some confusion there.

Posted by: Patrick Schmiedt on November 19, 2008 8:47PM EST To answer a couple questions posed here.... Ted 2A fan: There has been brief discussion about televising all the state football championships now that they are in one place. I don't know what the discussion has been like, but yes the discussion has begun. Herder #63: Great site. Thanks for passing it on. There are several other ratings sites out there (i.e. Massey and MaxPreps) so it's interesting to see how each one of them varies. Thanks for pointing me to this one! The tailgate question: One of the perks Laramie has advertised/offered for War Memorial is the opening of Tailgate Park during championship games. So there's that perk, too, for next year. The enrollment question: There is a huge difference between in-building enrollment, 9-12 enrollment and ADM figures. Remember that the WHSAA's projected ADM figures (the ones used for reclass) are projected enrollments based on how big the elementary and junior high classes are right now, not on the current enrollments in the high schools or anything like that. And keep in mind the WHSAA uses 9-12 enrollments for reclass, which is not necessarily the same as the in-building enrollment. I've brought the topic up here several times, but the bottom line for Gillette is that until Cheyenne builds another and until Casper builds another, there's no reason for Gillette to even think about splitting. The school enrollment in Gillette has been fairly steady the past 10-15 years. As has already been said here, Gillette's success stems from great community support and great youth programs, not just size. And I love the double wing. It's just as intricate as any other offense, and near perfection is required when you're a team like Glenrock and every defense you go up against knows what's coming. I just wish Buffalo ran the double wing. (You know, Buffalo wing. Hehe. OK, I'll quit now.) --patrick

Posted by: Mike Walk on November 20, 2008 1:15AM EST Eagle Fan, As a matter of fact by the end of the year we were running about 50/50 no huddle spread/double wing. We averaged 361 yards a game, but only 21 points. I spent 3 weeks with the Logan high staff over the summer learning the spread system that has brought them numerous championships. I was just the O-coordinator or we would have been straight double wing, but it's hard for some coaches to believe in a system that on the surface seems so simple. As the season went on they believed more and more. I like the spread system we ran as well, but I can assure you it was no more complex than the double wing. The spread is based on reading the box and taking advantage of number in or out of the box, angles, and isolating your best athletes on their worst. The problem we had was the turnovers. The double wing is every bit as complex only different. It may not look as flashy, but outnumbering your opponent at the point of attack on every play takes precision that can only be accomplished by constant repetition and practice. To take away pitch you have to cheat and do things that are not fundamentally sound, which opens up the other parts of the offense. As far as it being boring....not for guys that love smash mouth football. It creates an opportunity to punish your opponent on offense as well as defense. I truely believe long time consuming drives like the ones produced in the double wing offense are much more demoralizing to the opponents defense than big play offenses. Turnovers in our spread offense this year killed us. I think it is very hard to perfect the spread offense in a small school when your players are expected to play both ways. In the bigger schools in Utah like Logan, the offensive players work offense while the defensive players work defense every day. Don't get me wrong....I love this system as well, because you don't call a play until the D is set but at our level we just made to many mistakes.....just my opinion, but I LOVE THE DOUBLE WING!!

Posted by: NEW2THIS on November 20, 2008 7:46AM EST Thanks Patrick!!! This topic was started to applaud the State Champions in football, not to bash Gillette and enrollment. One thing is for sure we are proud of our CAMELS state championship. Congratulations goes out to every football team across the state. From what I've read and heard it was a great season. We look forward to next year.

Posted by: bigDaddy on November 20, 2008 10:16AM EST Patrick - Buffalo wing OMG that's hilarious. There is one more thing to add to the Gillette/2 schools argument. There is an importance put on winning the championships, and expectations that they will win them more often than not. I don't think there is anything wrong with this, but if they were more worried about participation or parity or whatever they would have split 10 years ago.

Posted by: mike smith on November 20, 2008 12:14PM EST URL: http://yahoo.com When does the great super 25 team come out? How many players will not have been selected all-state? This is one thing that should probably go away or expand to a more realistic thing. Think of expanding, how many more NC or big school players could be on it since the star tribune loves local teams (Glenrock, Douglas, NC, KW).

Posted by: DH on November 20, 2008 12:43PM EST Hey Patrick, When can we expect some postings on Winter Sports? Love the Football comments but it’s over. Enjoy your championships or prepare for the next go around, but snows on the ground, balls are on the floor and mats are getting wacked....

Posted by: powderpro on November 20, 2008 1:14PM EST URL: http://mmmetzger@bresnan.net Mike, the super 25 has been selected but not printed. What is your point exactly, I am confused?

Posted by: gw on November 20, 2008 2:34PM EST some people can gripe about anything. The super 25 is a nice honor they give these kids(doesnt make it real special if they name the super 150 does it?)

Posted by: mike smith on November 20, 2008 3:12PM EST URL: http://yahoo.com My point is that last year and I am sure it goes further back, a couple of players were selected Super 25 by the Star Tribune and were not 1st team All-State players in their classification. The Super 25 just needs to go away like some of the old rivalries the state has had.

Posted by: Mike on November 20, 2008 5:23PM EST We won't all agree with every player selected to the Super 25 team, but it is a nice honor for the kids. Just because a player makes all-state in one classification or another doesn't mean he is better than a kid that is not all state in another class. I know I've had all-state players before that probably would have trouble starting on the state champion 5-a team some years, and I know there are all-state players from some bigger schools that aren't as good as some players from Kemmerer and Glenrock that didn't make all-state this year. It's supposed to be the BEST 25 players in the state regardless of class....all-state from any class is not a requirement......lay off these guys at the trib....they are just trying to highlight some great kids.

Posted by: GoOrange on November 20, 2008 5:54PM EST The Super 25 should stay, and should include non-1st team selections when appropriate. It's not a slam to not be on the super-25, it is an honor if you are selected. I'm looking forward to this year's list. Take QB, for example... Should Geiser from Lovell be on the list with his insane numbers? Will it leave off Martinez or Woodward? Good stuff.

Posted by: Kevin Williams on November 20, 2008 6:33PM EST As a former football coach who has sat through many all-state meetings (all-state teams are selected by coaches), I have seen too many deserving players left off of all-state teams and some that got on because homage was given to a team that was a conference or state champion. Therefore, I don't think that making all-state should be a requirement for being on the Super 25. After all, the media selects that team and the coaches select the various all-state teams. Each is different and unique and each an honor for the athlete selected to either one or both. Anything that gives a little positive publicity to young people in the state is a bonus. I like the Super 25 concept and as one who has nominated players for that honor before, I know that almost every coach nominates only those that he feels is deserving of such an honor. In reality, we should honor in some manner every young man who put on the helmet and pads and went out and represented his school and community, even if it just a pat on the back and a "thank you".

Posted by: Big Orange on November 20, 2008 6:51PM EST Great to see so many players honored from so many schools. Here is a thought. Why don't we honor the long snapping position? Many colleges are offering scholarships for long snappers and of course the pros have that one person who does it. How important is this position? Ask Gillette in the championship game. Ask Pittsburgh after their long snapper went down. Maybe more kids would be interested in this position if it was honored for what it does to help the team. I think we ought to consider it. Again just a thought.

Posted by: Patrick Schmiedt on November 20, 2008 8:51PM EST I won't go into too much revealing, because obviously "mike smith" doesn't want everyone to know who he really is. But "mike smith" is a football coach in Wyoming. We talked at length last year about the Super 25 selection process and obviously wasn't pleased with how it all went down. For the record, I respect his desire to stick up for his kids and I do admire his passion. To clarify: We pick the Super 25 team before coaches pick the all-state teams. We actually finalize all 25 names the Saturday of semifinals. We have no idea who the coaches will name to the all-state teams. That's up to them, and it's separate from what we do for the Super 25. However, we seek out the opinions of every coach in the state throughout the season for the Super 25 and rely heavily on their nominations to guide our decisions. That's how it works on our end. And it makes it immensely more difficult when coaches -- including "mike smith" -- nominate players for first team Super 25 that didn't even make their all-conference team this week, let alone the all-state team. It used to be, back in the day, the Super 25 was picked without the help/nominations of coaches. Recently, though, we've made their nominations a crucial tool in our selections, and this year we changed the nominating process to try and get more involvement, broader nominations and less politicking by coaches for their own kids. Within the last few years, we've also added a Super 25 second team (25 players), a Super 25 third team (50 players) and a Super 25 honorable mention to recognize more deserving players. We have heard many positive comments about the additions of the second team, third team and honorable mention to the Super 25 process. We stand by all the choices we've made and think we've picked 25 more deserving players for the first team this year. The special section will be in Friday's paper. As always, you're more than welcome to e-mail me at patrick.schmiedt@trib.com if you have any questions about the selection process, or anything else related to high school sports in Wyoming. --patrick

Posted by: CCHS Athelet on November 20, 2008 8:51PM EST Thank you Patrick Schmiedt. He is right Gillette has great support for its youth especially in sports. Sometimes some of us can go over board and get a little out of hand but there are people like that every where. The Gillette athletes work very hard and are usually well coached that is why they do so well. I play football for the Camles and we worked very hard for our state tittle as did other teams. Green River is a great team and they played one hell of a game, but you can't say Gillette is good at sports because they are so big when we aren't. We had 50 kids one our team going into the playoffs the biggest we have had going in for a long time and that was just because we had such a big senior calls that played this year. 32 went out and 28 stayed though the playoffs. That is the biggest senior class I think we have ever had. So please stop blaming our "size" for our succses in any sport.

Posted by: Herder fan on November 21, 2008 12:14AM EST Eaglefan--I am the parent of a kid playing on a double wing team and find it very exciting. Maybe you have to be a parent to understand the time and effort the kids put into learning that offense and knowing where to be at all times. Next time you watch a double wing team pay attention to the offensive line and the lead blockers (not just the backs racking up the yardage) and how well they have to work together to make that offense a success. That is exciting.

Posted by: CGoe on November 21, 2008 11:31AM EST Having our son selected to the Super 25 last year was such a honor for him and our school. It was the first time since it began that a player from Jackson made the 1st team and we had 2 make it last year. The banquet was a blast and learning about each player and why they were picked was enjoyable. Also reading about some of the history behind the Super 25 is great. Keep up the good work, you have more supporters than whinners.......

Posted by: cowboyjonz on November 21, 2008 11:42AM EST Picking the super 25 has got to be a difficult job. It appears that there are several 5a coaches who put their entire team in for consideration (look at East this year and NC last). The 4a-3a-2a and 1a coaches look like they only put their best in. That looks poorly upon those teams. It appears that same thing happens for All state. Look at the d line selection - one player averaged onlu 2.6 pts per game, with 1 unassisted tackle and 1 sac for the year, as well as your super 25 ( not 1st team). That makes a sham out of an otherwise dignified honor.

Posted by: Anonymous on November 21, 2008 11:45AM EST There is an alternate high school in gillette we dont have 2100 kids in our school

Posted by: mm on November 21, 2008 12:07PM EST Patrick i was just wondering, i didnt see a pick for offensive player of the year, defensive player of the year or coach of the year for the Super 25 or 4A

Posted by: WYOCOACH on November 21, 2008 12:43PM EST "Mike Smith" I'm not sure I agree with or understand your logic regarding the Super 25. Why does a kid have to be 1st Team All State in their division to be one of the "25". Maybe the kid is 2nd Team, but better than the 1st Teamer in another division. I coached high school football in the state long enough to understand your not always going to get all of the kids you want recognized, but you try your hardest. The Super 25 is a great thing, and if you ask any kid what team he wants to be a part of, he would probably say Super 25 the most. Sounds just like a lot of sour grapes to me. Keep up the great work Patrick.

Posted by: Patrick Schmiedt on November 21, 2008 5:50PM EST mm, For 4A, all we received was the all-state list. If they picked players and/or coaches of the year, they weren't attached to the all-state list. Looking back, it appears that 4A hasn't picked players and/or coaches of the year for the past three or four years, so the 4A coaches might not have picked them at all. I'm not sure. The Super 25 offensive and defensive POYs and coach of the year will be announced tonight at the Super 25 banquet here in Casper. There will be a story in Sunday's Star-Tribune that'll have that information. --patrick

Posted by: mm on November 21, 2008 7:23PM EST thanks patrick

Posted by: ME on November 24, 2008 12:10AM EST I would agree that you shouldn't have to be allstate to be Super 25. I would also agree that not all Allstate players are deserving. How can the 6th best running back in the state and not even a top 10 defender make All-State? Unless his dad is the coach!

Posted by: Dan Craig on November 24, 2008 4:27PM EST You have no chance to survive make your time.

Posted by: Patrick Schmiedt on November 24, 2008 8:37PM EST ha ha ha ha