Buffs polish off 5-2 regular season

Face Pine Bluffs in playoff opener

Lucas Bolzer rushed for five touchdowns and Caden Hunt added three more to power the Greybull Buffs to a 64-14 win over Wyoming Indian Friday afternoon in Ethete.

The Buffs finished the regular season with a 5-3 overall record and among a pack of three Class 1A West Conference teams with just a single loss in league play.

The other two, Shoshoni and Big Piney, will host playoff games later this week while the Buffs, as the No. 3 seed from the West, must travel to Big Piney for a 2 p.m. game on Friday.

“We’re ready to take care of business — whether it’s at home or away,” said Coach Jeremy Pouska. “It would have been nice to have a first round home playoff game.  I think it would have set the tone and instilled some confidence in the guys

“But I’m confident we can get the job done, whether it’s at home or on the road.”

The Buffs had no trouble with the Chiefs, scoring double digits in every quarter on their way to the 50-point win.  

The Buffs averaged more than 10 yards per carry, finishing with 337 rushing yards on 33 attempts.  Through the air, Caden Hunt and Cord Edeler combined to complete 4-of-10 for 95 yards.

Bolzer, a senior, led the rushing corps with 187 yards on 17 carries.

“We did what we’ve been doing all year — playing pretty mistake free on offense,” said Pouska.”

Greybull defenders swarmed the Chiefs, accumulating eight sacks, forcing four fumbles (two of which were recovered) and intercepting a pass.

This week

The Buffs would be making plans to host a playoff game this week had Saturday’s Big Piney-Shoshoni game produced a different outcome.

A Big Piney win or loss by seven points or less would have given the Buffs the No. 2 seed.  Instead, Shoshoni catapulted past both the Buffs and the Punchers into the No. 1 seed from the West.

The Hornets have lost just once, falling to top-ranked Lingle-Fort Laramie in a 30-27 thriller on Oct. 18.  They have the most prolific passing attack in the classification, averaging 174 yards per game through the first seven weeks.

Pine Bluffs also leads the state in team defense, limiting opponents to an average of 10.6 points per game.

“They’ve been ranked all year, most of that time as the No. 2 team, and they’ve shown why on the field,” said Pouska.  “They rely heavily on the pass, so that is something we have to work on dialing in to shut down.”

For the Buffs to be successful, the formula involves controlling the ball and controlling the time of possession.

“The last time we saw them was at camp over the summer,” said Pouska. “We matched up pretty evenly then.  Each team has improved as the season has progressed.

“I’m hoping we play assignment sound football on our side.”

With a win, the Buffs would advance to the semifinals and a Nov. 8 matchup against either Shoshoni or Saratoga.

Greybull     14 18 19 13 — 64

Wyo. Indian  0   0   0 14 — 14

G — Lucas Bolzer 1-yard run (Steele Davis kick)

G — Caden Hunt 10-yard run (Davis kick)

G — Hunt 1-yard run (kick failed)

G — Bolzer 5-yard run (conversion failed)

G — Bolzer 16-yard run (failed failed)

G — Bolzer 5-yard run (kick failed)

G — Bolzer 25-yard run (Davis kick)

G — Hunt 15-yard run (kick failed)

G — Mason Richardson 29-yard run (Davis kick)

G — Richardson 45-yard pass from Cord Edeler (kick failed)

RUSHING — Greybull 33-337 (Lucas Bolzer 17-187, Caden Hunt 7-55, Wyatt Didrickson 5-50, Mason Richardson 1-29).

PASSING — Greybull 4-of-10 for 95 yards (Caden Hunt 3-of-6 for 50 yards, Cord Edeler 1-of-4 for 45 yards).

RECEIVING — Mason Richardson 1-45, Yandel Hernandez 2-40.

DEFENSIVE STANDOUTS — Yandel Hernandez led with 29 points (3 assisted tackles, 8 solo tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 3 sacks), followed by William Harlow with 11 (1 assisted, 2 solo, 2  tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble) and Lucas Bolzer with 11 (1 assisted, 3 solo, 1 tackle for loss, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble).