It was a familiar scene at War Memorial stadium in Laramie, Wyoming on Nov 10th as the Star Valley Braves and the Cody Broncs eagerly geared up for the rematch of the 2022 thrilling championship game.
As the 3:00 pm kickoff time approached, the tensions began to rise as both teams clearly remembered what happened on this stage a year prior. For Cody this was a matter of revenge, taking back a game and a trophy they believed was stolen from them. For a full year conversations abounded on how different that game may have been were it not for a few key plays.
For Star Valley, pride was on the line, despite winning the year prior and defeating the Broncs in the regular season, they felt like they had not been given the respect they deserved and were out to prove themselves once and for all. “I think it was more of a fluke week for Cody,” an article from Sweetwatrer said about the regular season matchup between these two.
The two teams took the field shortly after the 2A championship. The warmups were brief on the field as the scheduled 3:00 pm kickoff team quickly approached.
Star Valley won the coin toss and elected to defer and kickoff to Cody to start the game. The Star Valley defense dominated from the beginning, holding the no.2 overall rushing team to under 100 yards and zero touchdowns on the ground.
The passing defense also faired well, holding Cody to 192 yards and a touchdown and a interception. The offense pushed to ball effectively scoring 27 points against the Bronc defense with all four touchdowns coming from quarterback Smith McClure, 3 rushing and 1 passing. The 27-0 victory secured the Braves their second championship in a row and the sixth in nine years.
An early turning point in the game happened after an effective drive from the Broncs who pushed the ball inside the Star Valley five yard line before being forced to attempt a field goal on fourth down. Senior Jayden Crook of the Star blocked the field goal try and the ball ricocheting all the way back to the 40 yard line, giving the Braves the ball and the momentum early.
“I’m not exactly sure what happened,” Jayden Crook said about his momentum shifting play. “All I saw was ball ricochet off my facemask and roll about 4o yards downfield. I feel like this was a major mood change for both us and them. It was a dogfight at that point in the game and the blocked field goal definitely hyped us up let the air out of their sails.” Crook went on to lead the team on the defensive side as well with 11 tackles and played a huge role in stopping the electrifying Cody offense to a shut out on defense.
Another leader on defense, junior Grant Thompson, is known for hitting hard and playing with intensity. He lead the team with the most tackles at 16 and also caught a touchdown pass to put the Braves up 14-0 in the first quarter. “I am not really the receiver type,” Thompson said, “but to catch a touchdown pass in the state championship game was definitely a big highlight of my football career.”
Thompson also had an Amazing night on the darkside of the ball. “I feel like the defense was really flowing and stopping the run game was definitely a major impact on how the game was played the rest of the night,” said Thompson. The Star Valley defense has a motto that they live, bend don’t break, which they put on display in the final game of 2023 Wyoming 3A football.
The run game for the Braves was incredibly effective, going for 250 yards and 3 touchdowns. Running back Jesse Leavitt led the team with 95 yards while McClure had 86 yards and three rushing touchdowns. The other 69 yards came from a combination of Tristen Hilton, Jayden Crook, and Jake Burchard.
The Braves’ offensive line dominated as they created the gaps for their runners. Returning senior and all-state tackle Jesse Gibson dominated on the offensive side of the ball giving up zero sacks the entire night and helping lead the team to 250 yards rushing. “It was very important to put the Broncs defensive on their heels early. We wanted to come out with some fire and start off fast,” said Gibson, who had a killer night and played a key role in the Braves’ success in winning the state championship.
When the clock hit zero, the whole team burst onto the field in celebration. For many seniors that moment was the culmination of years of work and dedicatio. Burchard missed the previous season and got to come back and enjoy a well earned victory with his teammates. “Winning state after I didn’t last year made me glad that I stuck with the program, because I would have always wondered ‘what if’ I hadn’t played.” The party lasted well into the night and traveled back to Rawlins where many players dyed their hair in celebration.
Star Valley’s victory is the sixth championship in nine years and the third time they have gone back-to-back during that stretch. The Braves will enjoy this moment as they head into the off season and begin preparing to defend their title for the 2024 season.
