As the Reds round the corner of week one of playoffs, they have quite the target on their back.  Eaton has made it through the regular season undefeated and hopes to take this record all the way to the State Championship game.  Eaton battled Berthoud away on Saturday, Oct 30 resulting in a dominating score of 38-7.  

According to Head Coach Zac Lemon, the season has gone“as expected.  We had high expectations coming in.  A lot of people around the state expected us to be number one and expected us to be this successful, so it really doesn’t come as a surprise.” 

Eaton started week one of the regular season with a bi-week resulting in their first game being in week two of the football season.  Before school even began, the Reds battled the Sterling Tigers.  The Reds proved their dominance with a final score of 63-0.  Week three brought the Reds to Elizabeth resulting in another victory of 31-7.  Week four was no less disappointing with Eaton beating the Platte Valley Broncos 32-0.  

“I am proud of our depth.  I love that we have number twos and number threes on the depth chart that can really contribute.  We have depth from seniors all the way down to freshmen and guys that have stepped up in injury situations,” Coach Lemon said.  

The Reds celebrated their Homecoming football game with a dominating finish of 50-7 over Faith Christian for week five.  As the target on Eaton’s back grew larger, they battled The Academy on week six winning 42-6 followed by their rival, Resurrection Christian, for week seven.  This rivalry game resulted in a close game with an end score of 10-6.  

Ryder True (23) said, “It’s always a big rivalry between us and Resurrection, and it’s always a good game.  We both always have a talented team which makes it a good game every year.”

Week eight brought the Reds to University for another close game.  Eaton finished the night defeating the Bulldogs 27-20.  The following week, Severance came to Eaton for another Reds shutout of 31-0.  The battle between the Reds and the Berthoud Spartans was no less disappointing for week ten ending in another Eaton win.    

24 points were put on the scoreboard in the first half, and 14 points were put up in the second half.  Ryan Dirksen (22) led the offense in all-purpose yards with 157 yards of rushing.  Dirksen also led the Reds with two touchdowns followed by True, Walker Martin (23), and Carlos Munoz (25) scoring one touchdown each leading to the Red victory. 

After getting his first touchdown of his high school varsity career, Munoz said, “I was super happy.  It was such a good thing to experience and just everyone’s support really made me happy.”  Munoz plays outside line-backer and running back.  

In the first quarter, senior kicker, Jose Lopez (22), put an extra three points on the scoreboard with a successful field goal.  Lopez also had five successful PAT attempts throughout the game.  

Lopez’s advice for upcoming football players is, “Have a good time while playing and never say you want to be done because it will go by fast.  It is a good thing to play for the four years that you have.”

True led the Reds on defense with 13 tackles followed by Dirksen with 11, Morgan Tribbett (23) with six, and Cort Sanger (23) and Trent Salberg (23) with five each.  Dirksen and Jacob Webster (23) each had two sacks against the Spartans.  Dirk Duncan (22) turned the ball over to the Reds in the second quarter with his interception.  

Round one of the 2021 2A playoffs will bring Kent Denver to Eaton.  Coach Lemon said, “I am really relieved going into the playoffs and excited to have finished the regular season like we had expected to. Now it is a relief to come into the playoff atmosphere.  I love playoff preparation and the playoff attitude.  It is really exciting.” 

As the 2021 State Championships are quickly approaching, many football players are excited for their chance to get through playoffs and one step closer to another state championship.  With their undefeated season record and prior State Championship, Eaton is ready to end the season on the best note possible.  The Reds are hoping to be back-to-back champions, and with their record, their dreams just might come true.