Loveland holds on late to knock off local rival Fossil Ridge in season opener

LOVELAND — These two teams play some thrillers.

After Fossil Ridge opened last year with a final-minute, game-winning pass against Loveland, the Red Wolves got a measure of revenge to start the 2023 season.

Class 4A preseason No. 3 Loveland salted the final eight minutes off the clock with its patented rushing attack, knocking off the SaberCats in new head coach Chris Tedford's Fossil Ridge debut, 28-26.

Tedford was right at home at Ray Patterson Field, on the campus of his old Thompson Valley High School stomping grounds.

It wasn't the homecoming he'd have scripted, though.

While the SaberCats took a 20-14 lead into halftime behind two Marcus Mozer touchdowns, Loveland limited Fossil to just two second-half possessions and stopped one on fourth down.

With the Red Wolves leading 28-20, Fossil scored early in the fourth quarter to get within two points. But the home team snuffed out Jake Toshcoff on a 2-point conversion rushing attempt.

It was a high-level offensive game, with seven of the game's 10 possessions yielding touchdowns.

Loveland held the ball for more than 34 of 48 minutes, running for more than 300 yards. Payton Bundy had two rushing touchdowns, while Ryder Eastin and Karter Butler added one each for the defending 4A runner-ups.

"This was a disappointing loss for us, but credit to Loveland," Tedford said.

"It hurts, it stings right now," Mozer said. "I'd just love to have the chance to get the ball back at the end. "

Here are four takeaways from a thrilling season opener:

Loveland is legit again

The Red Wolves arguably already lay claim to the best program in the Greeley-Fort Collins-Loveland region, but this win was just further proof.

One season after losing the Class 4A title game and with two state titles since 2018, expect Loveland to be a prime championship contender again.

Fossil knocked Loveland off 36-35 in last year's opener, and the Red Wolves proceeded to run off 12 straight wins before falling to Broomfield in the 4A final.

Their power rushing attack was crisp right away, with Bundy, Butler and Eastin looking like a dynamic rushing trio again.

"That's Loveland football at its finest," Tedford said. "They're going to line up in power and run it down your throat."

"They're a physical team," Mozer said. "No doubt about it."

You could tell this one meant a lot after last season's defeat, with the final kneel-down sparking a major celebration among Loveland players and a frothing student section.

Marcus Mozer is going to be a star

If he isn't already. Mozer played like one Friday night, catching six passes for more than sixty yards and a touchdown.

That wasn't all.

He had more than 150 kickoff return yards, including a 99-yard score in the first quarter, making the most of a broken play after the ball died at the 1-yard line.

"I saw the kick came deep and thought it'd go in the endzone, so I held off and then it stopped short," he said. "After that, it was just instinct. I had to make it happen."

Mozer, a 6-foot-3 track star, had 12 catches for 300 yards and three scores last year. But he was battling for balls among a deep senior receiving corps.

This, though, was a breakout performance.

He snagged a 4-yard touchdown pass to give Fossil Ridge its halftime lead, though a missed point-after attempt proved costly later.

Still, Mozer often looked like the best player on an offense full of star talent like Gage Ginther (Colorado's top 2024 recruit), Colton Pawlak (who scored Fossil's first TD on a 39-yard run) and Jake Toshcoff.

"Marcus is a great athlete and what he can do with the football is really impressive," Tedford said.

"We have weapons, and you saw that tonight. Marcus is definitely a guy who really stands out."

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SaberCats will 'be OK' if they get more physical

The immediate message was obvious, whether it was Tedford, Ginther or senior defensive lineman Connor Vicars delivering the postgame speech.

"We have to be more physical."

That was always going to be a tough task in Game 1 for this Fossil squad, which lost its top nine tacklers from last season.

Loveland still had its way too often. The Red Wolves got seemingly every big fourth-down conversion and played keep-away all game.

"We have to be able to match that physicality because there are some 5A teams that can match or exceed them there," Tedford said. "It's going to get more difficult ahead. That's not going to go away."

More: Fossil Ridge football: Biggest questions facing the SaberCats for the 2023 season

It doesn't get any easier, with a powerful Grandview team up next, plus teams like Rocky Mountain and Fairview coming in conference play.

It may have to start in practice. Ginther delivered a fiery postgame speech imploring teammates to ramp up the practice intensity, especially in tackling.

"We have to come together, rally together and that starts at practice," Mozer said. "We need better than going through motions and that starts with being more physical in practice."

Fossil Ridge offense won't drop off

Even with three-year starting quarterback Tyler Kubat plus standout receivers Mac Busteed, Dom Leone and Trek Keyworth gone, the SaberCats are still an explosive offense.

Pawlak and Toshcoff combined for more than 150 total yards against Loveland. Mozer is a singular playmaker. Harley Schmidt and Bryan Bowerfind are reliable targets.

And Nick Kubat (Tyler's younger brother) won the QB competition and played well in his first varsity action.

"He kept his composure well, kept his cool," Mozer said of Kubat. "Better than a lot of first-timers."

Tedford said he was "fairly pleased" with Kubat's play. Mainly, he said the offense, which scored on four of its five chances, was affected by the low-possession game.

"With the defense struggling to stop them, it took us a little bit out of our gameplan," he said. "We only had five possessions in the football game. That's what they do to you."

It tightened the margins.

A couple penalties put Fossil Ridge behind the sticks. One fumbled snap threatened to halt a first-half drive. And failed fourth-down and 2-point conversions in the second half ultimately provided the difference.

"We knew we needed to keep our foot on the gas," Tedford said. "We still like the calls, but just have to execute better. Those conversions would have made it a different dynamic."

With more reps under its belt, this offense will be versatile, balance and capable of ripping off big plays every game.

"There are things to clean up but we're honestly not far off," Mozer said. "This offense is really good."

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This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado high school football: Loveland takes down 5A Fossil Ridge