Copyright Boulder Daily Camera
ERIE — If there was concern about Erie after it lost two of its final three games in the regular season, at least some of that was alleviated in the Tigers’ strong opening performance in the Class 5A playoffs. On a chilly Friday night at Tiger Stadium, the defense dominated and the fourth quarter was decisive in No. 12 Erie’s 20-3 win over No. 21 Regis Jesuit. Quarterback Jack Arnold threw and ran for a score in a span of 3 1/2 minutes early in the final frame for the Tigers (7-4), turning a 7-3 game into a comfortable three-score lead. On a pivotal fourth down on the last play of the third, Arnold connected with Braylon Toliver, who’d missed the past two weeks with an injury, before hitting a well-covered Owen Collard for a 1-yard score with 11:08 remaining. A minute later, Tyler Muir hauled in his first interception of the season to put Erie in plus field position and Arnold followed with a short plunge to ice things. “Time and time again, our defense put us in position to win, making big momentum plays,” Arnold said. “We just went out there as an offense and built on it. You can’t ask for much more than (allowing) three points and getting the ball on the 50-yard line every single time.” It’s not to say Round 1 was a cakewalk. Because if ever there was a dangerous 21 seed in a 24-team field, Regis Jesuit seemed perfectly cast. The Raiders were ranked seventh-best in 5A team by coaches in CHSAA’s preseason poll — one spot ahead of the Tigers. Of course, grading teams before games is almost as irrelevant as the state’s current postseason ranking system (which will be replaced by MaxPreps’ starting next school year). By the conclusion of football’s regular season, Regis Jesuit limped into the playoffs at just 4-6. But taking into account they beat No. 10 Mullen — a team Erie lost against — and four of their five in-state losses were to one the eight 5A teams that received a first-round bye — the other was at the hands of No. 17 Fountain-Fort Carson, which beat 16-seed Cherokee Trail 14-7 in Round 1 — Erie knew this wouldn’t be easy. “Shout out to Regis,” Muir said. “They’re a great team. They battled hard. They definitely shouldn’t have been 21, but I’m glad we got to face them.” And the Tigers felt like they got to face them with the healthiest lineup they’ve had since August. Along with Toliver’s return, backup quarterback Colt Heil played for the first time since early October and made a big impact with his legs, including scoring the go-ahead touchdown in the second quarter. “Everybody fights with it, so you don’t want to make an excuse. However, (injuries) were definitely affecting us,” Erie coach Jeff Giger said. “So, I think it was exciting for the kids that, hey, alright, we get to finally go play and have all our horses.” Before Heil’s TD in the second, Regis kicker Jack Manthey was true on a long field goal to put Regis Jesuit (4-7) ahead in the first. But that’s about as good as it would be for kickers on this night. In the final minute before halftime, the teams traded misses as Manthey’s try was blocked by Lincoln Hageman and Erie’s Noah Brisnehan boot clanked the crossbar. Erie will travel to No. 5 Valor Christian next week.
