For just the second time ever, the Southeast Cyclones will play the Rocky Mountain Grizzlies, and it’s in a first-round Class 1A-9 Man football playoff game.

The Cyclones are the defending champions, having won the title in return of 9-man football to the high school level in 2020. The Grizzlies were a semifinalist a year ago.

WyoPreps talked with Southeast head coach Mark Bullington and Rocky Mountain head coach Richard Despain before the game. They talked about their team’s performance in the regular season, the adversity they’ve had to overcome, the matchup between the two teams, and more.

Get our free mobile app

Southeast is 4-4 on the season. They’ve won three of their last four games entering the playoffs. The one loss was to fourth-ranked Lusk, 38-32, in Week 7.

Rocky Mountain has won six in a row coming into postseason play. They are 7-1 on the season. Their last loss was to No. 2 Shoshoni in Week 2, 27-10.

The Cyclones rush for 264 yards per game, which is third in the state. Southeast is led by Ryan Clapper, who is averaging 173 yards per game and has scored 19 TDs. Cord Herring adds 71 yards per game on the ground and has scored seven touchdowns. They’ll face the sixth-rated rush defense from Rocky Mountain that allows 196 yards per game.

The Grizzlies feature the second-best passing attack in 9-man. They average 134 yards per game. Southeast counters with the fifth-best pass defense that allows only 72 yards per game. Rocky Mountain QB Carsyn Weber is fourth in passing at 104 yards per game. His top target is Collin Haslem. He has 16 catches for 310 yards and 8 TDs.

This is only the second time these two schools have played each other in a football game. The first was also a playoff game in 2010. Southeast won that quarterfinal match-up, 15-14, in Yoder. The series history is from wyoming-football.com.

The game starts at 6 p.m. in Cowley at Grizzly Stadium.

Just The Facts: Size Doesn't Matter For Wyoming's War Memorial Stadium

Did you know it would take the populations of Gillette (32,857), Laramie (32,381), Rock Springs (23,319), Sheridan (17,844) and Wright (1,200) to create a sellout inside Michigan's famed 107,601-seat Big House, the largest college football stadium in the nation?

For those of you not familiar with the Cowboy State, those are Wyoming's third through sixth most inhabited cities, along with the small mining town in Campbell County.

- Just The Facts: Size Doesn't Matter For Wyoming's War Memorial Stadium

More From WyoPreps