And then there were six. The Vermont high school football season comes to an end on Saturday with six of the best squads in the state doing battle for state championship glory.
For a pair of squads, Fair Haven and Woodstock, the goal is to defend the state titles they won last year in St. Johnsbury.
For others, like Middlebury and Colchester, it’s about reaching the mountain top for the first time in over a decade.
Whatever the motivation, hoisting the championship above their head is the end goal.
South Burlington High School’s Munson Field plays host to this year’s State Championship Saturday.
The Division II final between No. 5 Fair Haven and No. 3 Colchester kick things off at 11 a.m. on Saturday, followed by the Division III showdown between No. 2 Bellows Falls and No. 1 Woodstock at 2 p.m. and the Division I matchup between No. 2 St. Johnsbury and No. 1 Middlebury at 5 p.m.
DIVISION II
When Colchester (7-3) met up with Hartford late in the regular season and lost by only a touchdown, many people thought that may be a state championship game preview.
In the words of the legendary Lee Corso, ‘Not so fast, my friend.’
No. 5 seed Fair Haven (7-3) had others plans, earning a colossal upset of previously-undefeated Hartford 14-13 last weekend in the Division II semifinals.
Colchester’s win the following day over No. 2 Lyndon Institute set up a very intriguing matchup between clubs that did not meet in the regular season.
Fair Haven started the season 0-2, but since then has won seven of its last eight games. The Slaters were dealing with a lot of key players being injured early in the season, but as they’ve gotten healthy, they have gotten on a massive roll.
“They’ve just bought in. They could have gone one of two ways after the (Bellows Falls game), but they bought into us and each other,” said Fair Haven coach Adam Perry. “We’re playing great football and the most important thing is that they believe in themselves. Having everyone back has helped with the confidence.”
“Hartford was a team win and everyone is starting to come along,” said FHU senior quarterback Cody Adams. “Everyone is becoming more team-based. We have some dogs and everyone has played at a high level.”
Fair Haven’s offensive line, which was a potential question mark coming into the season, has gelled and the offense as a whole has been revving.
Signal caller Adams has multiple years of starting under his belt and his favorite target junior wideout Sam Kyhill is healthy and shining. The talent goes well beyond those standouts, with running backs like Caleb Long, Anthony Szabo and Jonathan Hutchins and receivers Derek Webb, Mason Gutel and Brady New.
“You can’t concentrate on just one guy,” Perry said. “Obviously, Sam is our guy and we want to get him the ball, but there’s a lot of other weapons.
“As the offensive line has started to gel and come together, they’ve been able to be more confident with each other.”
“It’s nice to not only have to target one guy,” Adams said. “We have four receivers that can catch it and any running back, we’re confident giving them the ball.”
Colchester enters with the same record as Fair Haven and has been as battle-tested as they come, playing in a very tough Metro League, filled with Division I opponents. The Lakers went above .500 during the regular season against that tough league schedule.
Similar to Fair Haven, Colchester’s talent pool is deep. Senior quarterback Colton Lefebvre has been impressive and that shined in last week’s victory over Lyndon, where he tossed four touchdown passes, two to Mason Sheltra and one apiece to Sawyer Cyphers and Hugh Seidner.
“They are kind of like us, even offensive scheme-wise. In practice this week, it’s been like going against ourselves,” Perry said. “With them, you can’t key on certain things. With Hartford, you had to stop their run. This team, they can beat you in both ways.
“We just have to be sound on both sides of the ball and play the defense we have been playing.”
The Lakers’ defense has been dominant in their play playoff run as well allowing a total of 14 points to capable Rice and Lyndon offenses. After giving up a first quarter touchdown to the Vikings last week, Colchester clamped down.
Fair Haven has been able to get used to playing on turf this week with multiple practices at neighboring VTSU Castleton’s Dave Wolk Stadium.
Fair Haven and Colchester don’t meet often, but they do have recent playoff history. The Lakers ended the Slaters’ undefeated season in the Division II semifinals two years ago.
Fair Haven is hoping to go back to back and win its eight state title in program history. Colchester is searching for its first crown since 2009 and its third in program history.
It won’t be an unfamiliar stage for both clubs having represented Division II in the final within the last two seasons.
“You’ve been there and seen it and know what to expect for an 11 o’clock championship game in the morning,” Perry said.
DIVISION III
The only regular season rematch to happen on Saturday will be the Division III final between No. 1 Woodstock (9-1) and No. 2 Bellows Falls (9-1).
And man, what a rematch it could be.
The Wasps and Terriers met in the final week of the regular season, with Woodstock ending Bellows Falls’ undefeated hopes with a thrilling 60-52 overtime win.
The Wasps have been a near-impossible cookie to crack for much of the season. Following a convincing loss in Week 1 to U-32, Woodstock has scored at least 35 points in every other game this year, including games against quality teams like BF, Otter Valley and BFA-Fairfax/Lamoille.
Last week’s 49-0 semifinal win against Otter Valley was incredibly impressive and the Wasps put it away early. Riley O’Neal and Cole Little were big pieces of that dominance, as was Asher Emery and quarterback Aksel Oates.
O’Neal, Little and Emery all had interceptions that kept a powerful OV offense at bay throughout a dominant first half effort.
Bellows Falls has put that late-season loss to the Wasps quickly in the past and has blown through the first two rounds of the playoffs, outscoring Mill River and Mount Abraham/Vergennes 90-14.
The 44-14 victory over the Eagles displayed that not all one-loss teams are made the same.
Bellows Falls, like its finals opponent, is loaded with weapons. Declan Lisai is a very capable signal caller and has horses in the backfield with him in guys like Jaden Bazin and Pat Connors that eat up yards in bunches.
Bazin, a sophomore, has been one of the best running backs in the state, heading into the final with 1,842 rushing yards.
Bellows Falls will be looking to turn the tables on Woodstock and capture its first state championship since 2021 and first in Division III since 2010.
The Terriers have won 12 championships in their program’s history, the same amount as the Wasps have and a total that is tied for the most in state history with Mount St. Joseph and Hartford.
Someone is going to set a new standard on Saturday with lucky No. 13.
DIVISION I
Division I looked wide open this fall with at least five teams capable of making a run to the state championship game if things fell their way during their playoff run.
Despite all of that parity, chalk held.
Top-seeded Middlebury and No. 2 seed St. Johnsbury earned the right to battle for the crown in the state’s top division.
Both teams enter the contest with identical 9-1 records and plenty of momentum at their backs.
“I think St. Johnsbury and (Middlebury) are pretty even, so I’d be shocked if its not a one-score game or a close game,” said Middlebury coach Jed Malcolm.
Middlebury hasn’t lost to a Division I opponent, with its only defeat coming at the hands of Division II Hartford, during an impressive run of dominance for the Hurricanes.
Having not played St. Johnsbury, the Tigers have picked up wins over every other elite Division I team that took the field this year, beating Burr and Burton Academy twice, Rutland once and Essex once.
Middlebury cruised past BFA-St. Albans in the state quarterfinals, but its 27-7 win over BBA last week was even more impressive.
Like it has been for much of the season, it was a bunch of different guys finding the end zone last Friday with Jason Sperry, Logan McNulty and Brady Lloyd all scoring. Between those guys, Tucker Wright, Ben DeBisschop, Cooke Riney, Marshall Eddy, the weapons are tough to keep in check.
“It’s no secret, Middlebury is a run first team, but we’ve tried to sprinkle in more of a throwing game and keeping teams honest,” Malcolm said, noting the impact of big targets like Riney and Eddy on the outside.
St. Johnsbury avenged its only loss of the regular season, to Rutland, last weekend by beating RHS 33-13 in the Division I semifinals.
Hilltoppers sophomore quarterback Maddox McFarland has quickly become one of the best signal callers in the state and had some impressive passes last week that helped put the game away, especially to Cole Lemieux.
St. Johnsbury’s running backs are big and bruising as Memphis Mastine and Davis Palmieri are tough to bring down.
Middlebury boasts a really strong run defense so it could be a matter of strength on strength.
“Our linebackers are great at coming up and filling gaps,” said Malcolm of Sperry and Wright, who have great quickness as wrestlers as well.
“Our defensive front is big.”
Middlebury has gotten the opportunity to practice on turf this week at Rutland High and Middlebury College, giving them a taste of Saturday’s game in South Burlington.
“We’ve gotten out of our routine a bit, but that’s what a championship week is like,” Malcolm said.
Middlebury’s seniors were in the program as freshmen when the Tigers made a state finals trip in 2022, but have more recent championship game experience on the lacrosse and baseball fields.
St. Johnsbury is looking to win its first Division I title since 2017 and fourth in program history. Middlebury is looking for its first Division I title since 2014 and the 11th in program history.
