Rain, shine, or snow, Frederick Football knows how to put on a good show. This past Friday, the Frederick varsity football team took on the Northfield Nighthawks in the first round of the Colorado 4A playoffs, taking the victory with a final score of 32-14.
After a rather dominant season with a record of 7-3, Frederick Football finished the regular season ranked 15th in 4A division and were set to face Northfield, ranked 18th, at 6pm on Friday evening. Earlier in the week, the theme for the Rowdy crowd was set, players ready to go, but then the snow started on Thursday night and wasn’t supposed to stop till Saturday.
While this caused most playoff games in the area to be canceled, it didn’t stop Frederick from competing. The game was rescheduled to 4pm on Friday night, allowing the game to go on and the Rowdy Crowd to cheer on their team.
The Frederick offense started strong, holding onto the ball through the wet conditions. With 1:50 left in the first quarter, Gavin Ishmael took the snap, handing it off to running back Tristen Dean who scored the first points of the game.
Deciding to go for the two-point conversion, Frederick brought the score to 8-0 at the end of the first.
The beginning of the second quarter saw many strong defensive plays, with Frederick bringing down the Northfield offense.
The Northfield Nighthawks scored their first points of the night off of a 3rd & 4, but the Frederick defense did stop the Nighthawks from making their two-point conversion to end the first quarter.
At the end of the first half, Frederick had the ball on the 1-yard line, ready to score again.
Gavin took the snap and carried the ball over the line himself, bringing the game to 16-0 for Frederick after another successful two-point conversion.
With only a few seconds left in the first half, Frederick was at 2nd & 10, hoping to take advantage of their last chance to score in the first half.
Gavin took the snap and started running, carrying the ball down the field, breaking three tackles for a gain of 30 yards.
“[The play] felt incredible! At that moment, I was feeling like nothing was going to stop me from getting that first down for my team. Afterwards, seeing the team’s reaction and watching their morale lift, it meant everything to me,” Gavin expressed in a post-game interview.
For this first round of the playoffs, the halftime show was one that viewers won’t forget: the shovelers.
Due to the amount of snow that was continuously falling, the football program brought together a group of dedicated parents and district athletic staff who helped clear the lines. This was a theme throughout the entire game, but at halftime they had a little more fun with it.
When the clock for the first half ran out, the shovelers took the field. Starting on the outside lines, they began their race. As the crowd and the commentators cheered them on, Dr. Fox and the district athletic advisor raced through the end zone, determined to claim the win.
The race was close, but Dr. Fox managed to take the Frederick victory.
The start of the second half was a little slow, with the Frederick defense keeping Northfield at bay. However, about five minutes in, Northfield went onto their second scoring drive of the evening, jumping over the defensive line from the one-yard line and then successfully completing a two-point conversion.
As the second half clock ticked down, Frederick got another touchdown accompanied by a two-point conversion.
But they weren’t done scoring yet. To seal the win for Frederick, in the last five minutes of the first round of the 4A State playoffs, Gavin handed off the ball to Sonny Delpizzo to score the final touchdown of the night.
To finish the game, Frederick scored the last points of the game with yet another two-point conversion.
By the end of the game, snow had started to accumulate on the ground, making the stadium feel like a mini-winter wonderland that was full of excited players, enthusiastic students, and proud parents.
When the clock ran out, all of Frederick erupted with cheers. Frederick students rushed the field, smiles plastered on their faces as snowflakes continued to fall.
Players started penguin sliding on the snow, joined by several of their classmates. Hailey Pollard, a junior who braved the cold, said, “It was a really magical experience! Seeing the snow fall, hearing the booth blast Christmas music, and watching the game was a lot of fun!”
Frederick will play in the second round of the playoffs on Saturday, November 16 at 1:00 p.m. The game will be in Montrose as they take on the Montrose RedHawks, who are ranked 2 in the division.
Head Coach Lloyd said, “Our team is looking forward to the challenge this week. Once you are in the playoffs, every team we face will be a tough opponent, and we need to embrace the challenges of an away game and all of the obstacles that we will have to overcome on a long road trip to Montrose.”
Our Frederick football team has had an amazing season, and they hope to keep bringing that energy and mentality into the next round of the 4A division playoffs.
If you didn’t get a chance to watch the first playoff game and want to get caught up before their next game, visit the Golden Eagles Broadcast Network on YouTube.
