This Week in Mullen Football
Mustangs to wrap up their season on Thursday against Arapahoe at LPSS; some fans will be allowed in the stands and Mullen hopes to end 2020 with a victory.
WEEK 7: Vs. Arapahoe Warriors
WHEN: Thursday, Kickoff 7 p.m.
WHERE: Littleton Public Schools Stadium, 199 E. Littleton Blvd., Littleton 80121
Status: 5A Nonleague; Mullen is in the Jefferson County League, Arapahoe the Centennial League
Records: Mullen 1-4; Arapahoe 3-3
Head coaches: Jeremy Bennett, first year with Mullen; Rod Sherman, 4th year with Arapahoe
History: They haven’t met since 2013. Arapahoe won the most-recent meetings, in 2012 and 2013, by a combined eight points; Mullen took the previous four, dating back to 2008, by an aggregate 120 points. And here’s an oddity relevant to Colorado -- the two schools are in the Centennial League in every other sport.
Mullen Players to Watch:
No., Player, Yr., Pos., Ht., Wt.
2, C.J. Smith, Sr., RB-DB, 5-foot-9, 195 pounds
4, Connor Warren, Jr., WR-ILB, 6-1, 205
11, Jaxon Heil, Jr., SS-RB, 5-9, 190
18, Ryan Schmitt, Sr., DE, 6-6, 245
21, Kyle Krebs, Jr., RB-DB, 6-1, 190
33, Blake Palladino, Fr., QB, 6-2, 185
68, Hayden Woodruff, So., T-G, 6-4, 300
Last week: Mullen lost 21-9 to Fruita Monument and Arapahoe beat Smoky Hill 49-34.
Notable: This will be Mullen’s 875th game since first playing in 1936. The Mustangs are 590-266-18 in their history with eight state titles as well as seven Parochial state championships, the first in 1945. …
The Mustangs are trying to snap a three-game skid in which they have been outscored 95-33. … In his three appearances, Palladino is 23-of-41 for 230 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. … Krebs (310 yards) and Smith (265) head Mullen rushers. … Warren (13) and Krebs (12) lead Mustangs receivers in catches. … High-end kicker Aidan Lehman, a senior, is 5-of-5 in PATs and 5-of-6 in field goals, with the one miss coming against Columbine and from 61 yards. He’s also the team leader in scoring with 20 points. …
On defense, Heil heads all Mullen tacklers with 54, followed by Warren (43) and Ismael Aceves (40). …
Arapahoe’s Sherman has a considerable track record. While at Valor Christian, he was an assistant as the Eagles won four consecutive titles, including in 4A, and as head coach he led the Eagles to three titles as well as a 57-11 record. … There also will be a familiar face on the opposite sideline -- one of Arapahoe’s assistants is Britt Gusmus, a former Cherry Creek multi-sport star who also teaches at Mullen. Gusmus coaches Warrior quarterbacks and heads their junior varsity….
Even with the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic raging in Colorado, Arapahoe County is permitting 150 fans in the stands. Bennett said Arapahoe was very good about splitting the crowd at LPSS, which only has stands on one side, so a lucky 75 Mustangs followers may be on hand. … Mullen’s previous two games had zero fans. … The Mustangs began the season with a COVID-19 problem, so their matchup in the opener against Legend was a no-contest. And Fruita Monument was a replacement last week for the Mustangs after Lakewood was quarantined. …
Here’s a link to view the game -- http://Livestream.com/loclyzmedia
Coachspeak from Bennett:
“Obviously, (the Warriors are) a well-coached team and their coaching staff has tasted the highest levels of success in the state of Colorado, so they’ll be prepared, even for a short week. They have a really good defense and they may struggle up front a bit, but they’re athletic and they adjust to schemes really well, and they run to the ball.
“This is us looking in the mirror, essentially …
“We’re excited about going against a multiple-front offense, not a system offense. We just have to elevate our game and execute, and not miss opportunities. That’s what is beating Mullen football -- missed opportunities.”
Week 6 5A Scores
Centennial League
Arapahoe 49, Smoky Hill 34
Cherokee Trail 34, Overland 0
Jefferson County League
Pomona 14, Columbine 11
Ralston Valley 35, Arvada West 7
North League
Legacy 14, Rocky Mountain 7
Nonleague
Doherty 42, Liberty 0
Fairview 49, Castle View 36
Fruita Monument 21, Mullen 9
Grandview 41, Horizon 14
CLASS 5A PLAYOFFS
Preliminaries
In bracket order
Regis Jesuit vs. Cherry Creek, Fri., 4 p.m., Stutler Bowl
Eaglecrest vs. Pomona, Fri., 5 p.m., Valor Stadium
Cherokee Trail vs. Valor Christian, Thu., 6 p.m., Valor Stadium
Fairview vs. Legend, Sat., 2:30 p.m., EchoPark Automotive Stadium
Extra games
(Teams that didn’t make the playoffs were given an extra game)
THURSDAY
Arvada West vs. Standley Lake, 6 p.m.
Arapahoe vs. Mullen, 7 p.m.
Highlands Ranch vs. Castle View, 7 p.m.
FRIDAY
Doherty vs. Overland, 7:30 p.m.
Cherokee Trail vs. Overland, 7 p.m.
SATURDAY
ThunderRidge vs. Lakewood, 4 p.m.
Twitter: Neil H. Devlin, Mullen SID @neildevlin
John Leyba, Mullen Sports Photographer @presto89
Mullen High School @mullenmustang
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