2023 Wyoming High School Football 4A Title Game Preview [VIDEO]

The top two teams in Class 4A football square off for the state championship as Sheridan plays Cheyenne East on Saturday in Laramie.

It’s a rematch of last year’s game at War Memorial Stadium. The Broncs won that game, 34-23.

The 2023 regular season meeting was a shootout, and Sheridan prevailed in Cheyenne, 44-37, in Week 5 of the season.

This will be the third time they will meet with a championship on the line. Besides last year, they also met back in 2011. Sheridan won that game, 42-14, in Laramie.

WyoPreps had conversations with both head coaches before the game, Sheridan’s Jeff Mowry and East’s Chad Goff.

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Team Info & Series History:

Cheyenne East (10-1) – Chad Goff: 18th year as head coach; 5 state championships in school history; the most recent was in 2020 (29-15 over Thunder Basin). That game was played in Cheyenne during the Covid year when UW did not host the title games in Laramie. Three of the Thunderbirds state championships have come with Goff at the helm (2007, 2013, 2020). This is Cheyenne East’s 10th appearance in a title game. The Thunderbirds are 5-4 all-time in championship games. East is making its fourth trip to a championship game in Laramie. The T-Birds are 1-2 in their previous contest with both losses to the Broncs.

Sheridan (11-0) – Jeff Mowry: 6th year as head coach; 29 state championships in school history; they are the two-time defending 4A champions. Their first title came in 1921. In state championship games, Sheridan has a 19-7 record. This will be their 27th appearance in a championship game. The Broncs are making their 11th appearance in the Class 4A title game in Laramie. They’ve also won it all in 2009, 2011, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2021, and 2022 in Laramie. They are 8-2 all-time in championship games at War Memorial Stadium. The Broncs are going for a 3-peat, and they are the last school to accomplish that feat, from 2015 to 2017.

Sheridan leads the all-time series 33-15. They first played each other in a varsity game in 1960. In the postseason, this will be the eighth meeting between the two schools. Sheridan holds a 5-2 advantage over East. Sheridan has both victories in a title game in 2011 and last year.

Team Stats per game:

Sheridan Cheyenne East

Rush Offense = No. 1 (251 yards per game) No. 2 (213)

Pass Offense = No. 6 (128) No. 1 (257)

Total Offense = No. 2 (379) No. 1 (470)

Scoring Offense = No. 1 (52.5 pts per game) No. 2 (51.2)

Rush Defense = No. 1 (95) No. 4 (122)

Pass Defense = No. 9 (174) No. 1 (109)

Total Defense = No. 5 (269) No. 1 (232)

Scoring Defense = No. 1 (10.5) No. 2 (13.2)

Key Players:

Cheyenne East = Drew Jackson – 80.4 rushing yards per game, 21 TDs & 46 rec., 738 yds receiving, 6 TDs, 29 total TDs ranks No. 1, plus No. 1 punt return at 27.1 per return & 1 TD; Cam Hayes – 236 passing yards per game, 32 TDs, 3 INTs & 296.3 all-purpose yards per game is No. 1; Renton Jensen – 44 rec. for 590 yards, 11 TDs; Nathan Mirich – 48 rec. for 469 yards, 4 TDs; Colby Olson – 14 defensive points per game – ranks No. 4.

Sheridan = Terran Grooms – 67.9 rushing yards per game, 13 TDs; Dominick Berrettini – 122.6 passing yards per game, 17 TDs, 3 INTs; Dane Steel – 37 rec. for 839 yards, 8 TDs, 165.5 all-purpose yards per game, 25 total TDs ranks No. 2, 21.8 punt return yards per game, 6 TDs, plus 35.8 kick return yards per game, 1 TD; Cody Dunham – 28 kick return yards per game; Dane Steel – 8.7 defensive points per game – ranks No. 25.

The game is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start on Saturday in Laramie.

Series history information is Courtesy of Wyoming-football.com.