Finding a foothold in the 8-Man Mountain League has proven to be incredibly difficult.
Three different programs from the Southwest Colorado conference have played for a state title in each of the past three years, with Dove Creek representing the region with a state title last fall.
With that landscape, Dolores’ move from 11-man football to the eight-man ranks a couple of seasons ago presented plenty of challenges for second-year head coach Joseph Gonzales and his Bears.
Challenges have been plentiful, no doubt, as have the many opportunities for growth against the state’s premier programs.
The Bears have done just that. Dolores enters the 2023 fall with plenty of optimism to take another big step in their program building.
Several Bears will take leadership roles this year, led by senior Ty Gaddis and junior Trayton Traweek. Gaddis has emerged as one of the dual threats for the Bears, serving as one of the primary targets for the Dolores offense last year.
Traweek continued to develop through his sophomore season, surging with the quarterback role for a Bears program that has been happy to put the ball in the air. Sophomore Michael Rantz, who enjoyed an impressive freshman season, looks to also shoulder some of the offensive load as well for the DHS offense.
Newcomers will certainly look to factor prominently into the DHS plans this year, as the middle school program’s solid numbers continue to feed into the high school.
The Bears defense have spent significant energy on continuing to hone their technique and discipline, knowing that they’ll be facing some of the most athletic offenses in the state this fall. Assistant coaches Travis Rantz and Casen Eldridge look to have all sides of the ball humming by the time the Bears step onto the field for their first contest this season.
The Bears will hit the road for their season opener, a contest against Monticello on Thursday, Aug. 31 at 4 p.m. Dolores will then get set for their home opener – a 2 p.m. meeting with Soroco on Friday, Sept. 8. From there, back-to-back road games at Rangely and Plateau Valley get the Bears set for their Homecoming meeting with Norwood on Friday, Sept. 29 at 7 p.m.
League play officially begins the follow weekend against Sargent, before the Bears play their local rivals Mancos and Dove Creek on consecutive weekends. The regular season concludes with a trip to Sanford on Oct. 27.
