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Two of the best teams in Colorado, Mullen and Cherry Creek square off this Friday night in what is bound to be an intense affair. The two powerhouse programs played each other in the Colorado state quarterfinals back in 2016, with Cherry Creek upsetting Mullen to move on to the state semifinals.

Mullen and Cherry Creek will renew their rivalry this season after not playing each other in 2017. The battle will be as intense as ever.

MVP

Alex Padilla

Cherry Creek

SCHOLAR ATHLETES

Carson Smail

Cherry Creek

Carson currently holds a 4.34 GPA and is a 4 year participant of both the lacrosse and football teams at Cherry Creek. He is a member of the National Honor Society and will be applying to several schools for next year and plans to major in either Business or Engineering.

Dominic DePizzol

Mullen

Dominic is a four year letterman football and has also lettered in Track, and has distinguished himself as a team leader. He is the President of the National Social Studies Honor Society and a member Spanish Honor Society and Honor Society. He is a student ambassador and a 3 year torch award winner. Dominic plans to attend the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis next year and major in Business.

HALL OF FAME

Rocky Martin

Cherry Creek

Rocky Martin attended Cherry Creek High School from 1962 – 1965. He lettered in Football, Swimming, Track and Wrestling. He earned a football scholarship to the University of Colorado where he was 1st Team All Big 8. Rocky played Pro Football in the Canadian League and The World Football League. From 1978 – 2003, Rocky taught and was Coordinator of the PE & Health Department at Cherry Creek High School. He coached Creek football, winning 8 State Championships and was Head Coach his final three years at Creek. Today Rocky lives with his wife Jane, in Norman, Oklahoma, and his sons John and Rocky Jr and his family. Now Rocky is battling ALS – Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Every day is a challenge but his FAITH gets him through. Rocky enjoys keeping track of Creek Athletics through his daughter Elizabeth and son-in law, Mike Luhring and Grandkids!

Jon Dubravec

Mullen

Jon played in the Cherry Creek rivalry game his sophomore, junior, and senior years. His senior year he helped lead his team to victory 4 times and completed his career as a great success. He subsequently went to play at UCLA, as a wide receiver, graduating with a degree in Sociology and History. He was chosen by the San Francisco 49’ers as a wide receiver. Jon has returned this year to help rebuild the Mullen program, his alma mater, as the tight ends and wide receivers coach. Jon’s contributions to Mullen High School and the football program support the valued culture for future players at Mullen High School. Jon epitomizes the values held so close at Mullen, and serves as a strong role model for all our young people.

GAME SUMMARY

Both teams came into this game feeling confident, both sitting at 2-0 early in the season, so this game had extra implications, as it would give one team their first loss of the season. And a stinging loss it was for Mullen, who were defeated 35-8 by arch rival Cherry Creek. The Cherry Creek offense was simply too much, led by QB and Iowa commit Alex Padilla. Padilla dominated the game, and the Mullen defense had no answer for the star player and eventual Great American Rivalry Series MVP. The Cherry Creek defense also played their part, holding the Mullen offense to only eight points in the content. The win moves Cherry Creek to 3-0 and drops Mullen down to 2-1.