Game balls for Fort Collins in Class 5A First Round playoffs

The Fort Collins Lambkins were the conference winners in the Class 5A Metro 1 League and were rewarded with the No. 16 seed and a home playoff game with the Chaparral Wolverines. What started out as a close game early turned when Fort Collins found its rhythm from the second quarter on and pulled away for a 34-20 win to advance in the Class 5A state playoffs. With the win, the Lambkins will travel to play No. 1 seed Valor Christian next week. There were a number of standout performances that helped Fort Collins grab the playoff win, and those players received a game ball from Prep Redzone Colorado for their performance. Here are those players that shined in the win. <h3><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="22709" first="Dorion" last="McGarity"], 2022, 5’10, 175, WR/DB</strong></h3> The big plays on offense from Fort Collins came from McGarity. He is a true speedster on the outside from his wide receiver spot. It showed on the first offensive snap when he simply ran past the cornerback on a go route, caught a pass in stride and scored a touchdown from 65 yards out. He later used his speed to break free from a corner and go on another long run after the catch for another 65-yard touchdown reception in the second half. He even showed the willingness to dive for a deep pass reception in the second half. The speed will also allow Fort Collins to throw short passes to him and allow him to run after the catch for big plays. Speed and good hands makes for a big-play wide receiver, and he plans to stay close to home and play for Colorado State, where he announced his commitment to back in August. <h3><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="41289" first="Louden" last="Harger"], 2022, 5’10, 160, WR/DB/K</strong></h3> There were some key special teams plays that helped Fort Collins get the win, and most came from Harger. The first was a fake field goal where Harger, the kicker, ran back out on the field looking like he was coming to kick it, but instead stopped and lined up like a wide receiver for the trickeration that resulted in a touchdown grab. But when he was called on to kick, he showed a big, powerful leg. He tried a field goal from around 50 yards that had the distance but just missed wide of the uprights, but he did convert from 37 yards a little bit later. And most of his kickoffs were sent into the end zone for a touchback. His play on special teams was key, but Harger is also an athletic, versatile player who can help in the passing game as well as stop the pass from the secondary. <h3><strong>Max Ley, 2022, 5’8, 170, TE/DE/LB</strong></h3> Ley was active up front on the defensive side of the ball. He plays with a high motor and found his way to the football a number of times. His motor allowed him to force a fumble late in the fourth quarter that helped sealed the win. He showed some creative moves to get past lineman and apply some pressure against the pass. While he may be undersized, his motor allows him to make many plays and take on different challengers standing in his way. <h3><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="58962" first="Max" last="Jones"], 2022, 6’0, 180, RB/DB</strong></h3> With the lead in the second half, Fort Collins was able to run out a lot of time and score some late touchdowns with Jones. He found the hole and did not hesitate to run through it, and when he reached the second level, he did a good job knowing where to run to get extra yardage. He showed a great jump cut in the hole that allowed him to break free for a touchdown run in the fourth quarter. When a team holds a lead late, you want someone you can rely on to get yards, move the sticks and kill time on the clock, and Jones did just that with a big second half.