Gridders one win from title game

Next up: Rematch with Grizzlies

The Greybull Buffs are one win away from reaching their first state championship game since 2016 after a dominant quarterfinal performance Friday night against Lusk.

The Buffs generated more than 400 rushing yards and forced five Lusk turnovers as they rolled to a 57-14 win, improving to 9-0 in the process.

The team can pull into a tie with the 1960 championship squad for most wins in a season by beating Rocky Mountain later this week. 

The winner advances to face either Pine Bluffs or Lingle-Fort Laramie in the 1 p.m. game Saturday, Nov. 15 at War Memorial Stadium in Laramie.

“It’ll be another Big Horn County brawl, just like always when we face one another,” said Coach Jeremy Pouska. “As some of the kids said (after the Lusk game), we’re looking forward to Rocky ... they’re standing in our way.”

The Buffs didn’t get off to a fast start against Lusk, but Yandel Hernandez gave them an early spark, registering a sack on a fourth-down play to snuff out the Tigers’ first drive.

Caden Hunt took it from there.  The senior quarterback gained 41 yards on his first carry. After a penalty, he ran for another 25 to stake the Buffs to an early lead.  

Lusk responded with a touchdown of its own when Hudson Leimser hit Nathan Miller on a pass covering 73 yards. With the conversion, the Tigers moved in front 8-7.

But it was all Greybull after that. The Buffs reeled off 50 straight points while blanking the Tigers until mop-up time.  ‘

Hunt finished with three touchdowns, Caiden Sorenson two, and Bennett Sanford, Jesse Brown and Anthony Chacon each had one, with Chacon’s coming on a pass from Cord Edeler.

Greybull finished with 434 yards of offense to Lusk’s 326.

Pouska spread around the post-game love, saying, “Both running backs, Jesse and Bennett, ran extremely hard, refusing to go down.  A lot of those plays, I thought would go for 10- to 12-yard pickups, but they turned them into 30- or 40-yard gains.

“Caiden (Sorenson) had a fantastic run toward the end of the game and Caden (Hunt) ran the offense extremely well, making all the right reads. Our lines, both sides, played really well, and our defense provided some big plays (in the form of) fumble recoveries and interceptions. There was a lot to like about the way we played.”

Semifinals

To reach Laramie, the Buffs will need to get past their longtime rival in Rocky Mountain. The two teams will meet Friday at 6 p.m. on the Buffs’ home field.

It’ll be a rematch of their Oct. 10 game, which the Buffs won 22-14. 

“Rocky did a great job preparing for our run game, but we missed a few assignments, too,” Pouska said of the first encounter. “I know we’ve come a long way since we played them as far as assignments go.

“We also know that they’re going to lean on (quarterback) Mason Moss and (running back) Triffen Jolley. We just have to do our jobs and be prepared to make the right reads.”

The keys to success — winning at the line of scrimmage, limiting mistakes, etc. — don’t change in the playoffs.  “We also need to know going into this that they are capable of putting points on the board, so just because they score, it doesn’t take us out of anything,” said Pouska. “And when we score, we have to keep going, knowing that that there’s 48 minutes of football. We have to play just as hard, beginning to end.”

Pouska said he isn’t ready for the season to end, calling it “one we’ll always remember. It’s been huge for the community. We appreciate all their support for our program, but also for Wyatt (Didrickson).”

 A standout on last year’s team, Didrickson is battling a different opponent this fall. His ongoing fight against cancer inspired more than half the team to shave their heads prior to last week’s game. 

Lusk 8   0   0   6 — 14

Greybull  7 22 14 14 — 57

RUSHING — Lusk 36-165; Greybull 39-417 (Bennett Sanford 15-194, Jesse Brown 10-95, Caiden Sorenson 6-71, Caden Hunt 5-69, Mason Richardson 1-5, Jax Miller 1-4, Alan Burgos 1-(-4)).

PASSING — Lusk 8-of-22 for 161 yards; Greybull 4-of-8 for 17 yards.

RECEIVING — Anthony Chacon 1-12, Cord Edeler 1-3, Sanford 1-3, Jax Miller 1-(-1).

DEFENSIVE STANDOUTS — Bennett Sanford and Caiden Sorenson led, each with 27 points.  Sanford had 3 solo tackles, 4 assisted tackles, 2 tackles for loss and 3 interceptions. Sorenson was credited with 5 solos, 11 assists, 1 TFL and 1 fumble recovery.  Yandel Hernandez had 17 points (5 solos, 2 assists, 3 TFLs, 2 sacks). Clayton Didrickson had 15 (3 solos, 8 assists, 1 TFL and Carter Peasley had 11 (2 solo, 5 assists, 2 TFLs).