Beads of sweat raced down the face of Aspen High Scool football player Beau Seguin during an uncomfortably warm late August preseason practice.
The senior linebacker adjusted his black and red helmet as he squatted into a proper hitting stance - his chest nearly parallel with the Skiers' million-dollar synthetic field turf. His fingers began to twitch with anticipation; his eyes opened wide and then, "Crack! Thud! Whoo!"
The scrappy 5-foot-11-inch, 185-pounder seemed to explode through a teammate's midsection during a tackling drill. The violent crash of plastic pads echoed throughout the football stadium and sent the teenage testosterone into maximum overdrive - teammates started bouncing around wildly, coaches were pumping their fists in the air and everyone seemed to be shouting for more.
The war chants intensified when the rough megaphone voice of Aspen coach Mike Sirko roared, "That's what we want! We got to come off the ball and hit them in the face!"
Sirko, entering his second season as Aspen's football coach, has brought a new hard-nose attitude to a program that was once considered the doormat of the league.
"Mediocrity drives me nuts," Sirko said. "Every practice, every scrimmage and every game we're trying to build a successful foundation; and it's going to take all of us working hard to a get a brick for the building."
He constantly uses this analogy of making Aspen into a winning tradition one brick - or moment - at a time.
With the warm Colorado sun shining on his imposingly sturdy physique, the 33-year coaching veteran rubs his silver goatee and speaks about this season's first test, a scrimmage at home against Battle Mountain.
"We're going to find out what we've got," he said, staring at the players through his dark sunglasses. "We've got to strap it on and get after it!"
The team howls, tightens the huddle and shouts in sync their new slogan, "Brick by brick!"
Opening season
By opening his coaching tenure at Aspen High School by recording the best record in school history (7-3), coach Sirko sure set the expectations quite high last year. But with success comes envy and the Skiers' winning ways have many coaches throughout the league circling their calendars in anticipation of redemption.
"Anytime you have success, people want to make it seem it was a fluke," he said. "We know we're not going to surprise anyone this year. The beauty of this year is that expectations are already set. The kids now know what it takes to win and they know how much hard work it takes to be successful."
Part of the hard work Sirko talks about is an extensive off-season, meat grinder fitness program, 'Brawn at Dawn.' The early morning conditioning program includes Olympic lifts, plyometric workouts, speed training and hours of good old hard work in the weight room.
The idea, Sirko says, is to prepare the student-athletes for a rigorous season, and, hopefully, recapture some of last year's magic.
"Last year was definitely a Cinderella season," Sirko said. "I hope to equal it, but we're going to take it one game at time. The biggest challenge is finding the people to step up and step in."
Changing of the guard
For the first time in three years, Aspen will be without their Mr. Everything - Tucker Eason, the school's all-time leader in tackles, rushing yards and touchdowns.
Last year, Eason ran for a team-high 1,699 yards and 19 touchdowns en route to gathering League Player of Year honors and All-State accolades.
The Skiers are also going to have a tough time trying to replace their No. 1 receiving threat Cory Parker, a 6'6 basketball crossover that led the team in receptions (14), receiving yards (211) and receiving touchdowns (5).
With Eason now playing linebacker for Occidental, a DIII school in Los Angeles, and Parker hooping for Drake, the obvious question is: How does Aspen replace those guys?
Coach Sirko's answer: You don't.
Zach Ornitz/Aspen Daily NewsAspen Skiers head football coach Mike Sirko talks with his team last week during a preseason practice at the Aspen High School football field.
"You can't replace guys like that," Sirko said about Easton and Parker. "What they did on and off the field was just amazing. I just hope the kids learned from them."
In addition to the departures of Eason and Parker, the Skiers' also lost 14 seniors to graduation from last year's breakthrough team.
Helping ease the loss of such a stellar class is the return of 12 starters; including quarterback Anderson Cole, two-way player Travis VanDomelen, first team all-league linebacker Walker Hill and iron man Beau Seguin.
As a sophomore last season, Cole threw for 638 yards and seven touchdowns and added three more with his feet.
VanDomelen, a returning first-team all-league cornerback who finished second on the team in rushing (251 yards, 3 TDs), is penciled in as the starting fullback in addition to retaining his defensive back load.
After a season cut short to injury, workhorse Seguin looks to rebound for a super senior season as he handles both starting tailback and middle linebacker duties. In the three games he played in 2007, Seguin compiled over 210 yards of total offense while also playing defense and special teams.
The Skiers' also bring experience to the trenches as they return three starters on the offensive line in seniors Cooper Le Van and Curtis Berklund, and junior Nick Codd. Anchoring the defensive side of the line are returning starters Tommy Mines and Trevor Watson.
With a talented yet somewhat untested roster, Sirko said he was very optimistic about the upcoming season but also just as apprehensive.
"You really don't know what you have until you play someone else," he said.
The first test
Nick Ufkes and Beau Seguin had two touchdowns apiece as the Skiers' ran through, over and by a visiting a Battle Mountain team in the first scrimmage of the year for both teams.
Aspen was leading 30-7 when the game was called off with 2:06 remaining in the third quarter due to unsportsman-like conduct.
The scrimmage, which did not include live special teams, opened with Aspen on defense. The Skiers' forced a quick three and out and for a majority of the first quarter neither team could find an offensive rhythm.
Things started to get exciting early in the second quarter when Skiers' sophomore sparkplug Ufkes (5-foot-4-inch, 140 pounds) sprang loose from several tackles for an impressive 80-yard touchdown run.
The Aspen offense came alive on their next possession when Seguin outraced the Battle Mountain defense for an 83-yard touchdown run.
With less than two minutes remaining in second quarter, Cole and junior wideout Walker Moriarty picked apart the Battle Mountain secondary and were able to move the ball within kicking distance.
As time expired, Aspen kicker Daniel Munger nailed a 34-yard field goal to give the Skiers' a 17-0 lead heading into halftime.
Aspen continued their offensive prowess in the second half as they marched down the field and scored on a 17-yard Seguin run on their opening drive.
The Skier defense remainned solid and forced a punt.
Aspen was able to capitalize and once again put together an impressive drive that ended with a 1-yard Ufkes touchdown run.
They Aspen defense finally started to show signs of fatigue as the Battle Mountain tailback was able to break free for several big runs and eventually find the end-zone narrowing the lead to 30-7.
That's when things started to get chippy. Following two consecutive late hits, Sirko had enough and confronted the Battle Mountain coach. The two argued at midfield and eventually had to be restrained. The referee ended the game on a count of unsportsman-like conduct.
"I'm going to always have your back," Sirko said of defending his player's safety. "But I realize I need to be a better leader than that. After 30 something years I still get excited."
Aspen football: new excitement, new tradition, one brick at a time.
Aspen opens the season on Aug. 30 at 1 p.m. at Lake County High School in Leadville.
