History
The Bears have been one of the most successful teams in Colorado's 3A classification over the past dozen years. Rifle has been in the playoffs for 13 consecutive years and have been league champions in 4 of the last 10 years (with a 86 - 35 record).
The Bears play in 3A's Western Slope Conference which has proven to be one of the most competitive leagues in the state in the past 15 years. Palisade High School won 4 straight state championships between 1994 and 1997 and won another in 2003. Steamboat Springs was a state semi-finalist in 2003 and 2005 and won the League Championship (the Sailors won the head-to-head tiebreaker with the Bears) in 2006.
Despite finishing fourth in the Western Slope Conference in 2004 and 2005, the Bears appeared in two consecutive 3A state championship games, and brought home the state title in 2004. In 2006, the Bears finished the season tied for the best record in the Conference. In the playoffs, Rifle scored more points than any other Mean Moose opponent in a quarterfinal loss to eventual state champion Alamosa. In 2007 the Bears were undefeated at home and scored more points than any other opponent on eventual state finalist Falcon.
Coaches
After winning the state championship in 2004 Head Coach Darrel Gorham took the reins at Highland Ranch High School. Gorham had coached the Bears since 1990 and was responsible for building the program into a periennial playoff contender.
Current Head Coach Damon Wells moved up from the Defensive Coordinator position to replace Gorham and returned the Bears to the State Championship game in 2005.
Gordon Cooper was another notable Bears head coach. Cooper was at the helm for the Bears' 1973 run to the state championship and also led the Bears to State Baseball championships in the 1980s.
Playoff History
- 27 Colorado State Playoff Appearances
- 48 Total State Playoff Games
- 23-24-1 All-Time Playoff Record (Single Elimination)
- 13 Consecutive State Playoff Appearances
- 3 State Championships
- 2 State Runners-Up
Notable Seasons
- 2005 - The Bears finished the season in 4th place in the Western Slope Conference but knocked off the #1 ranked and unbeaten Northridge Grizzlies in the first round of the playoffs. Wins over Elizabeth and Steamboat Springs earned the Bears their second straight state championship berth. The Bears lost the game to #1 ranked Florence at Bears Stadium.
- 2004 - The Bears finished the season in 4th place in the Western Slope Conference but knocked off the #1 seeded Florence Huskies in the first round of the playoffs. After a home win over Conifer, the Bears pulled off what may be the biggest upset in school history by beating unbeaten and #1 ranked Niwot in the state semi-finals. This set up a showdown with Sterling for the State Championship. The Bears won an extremely close game 7-6 for their third state championship.
- 2002 - The Bears ran the table through the regular season, winning the Western Slope league in an overtime thriller with Palisade in Grand Junction. The #1 ranked Bears were upset in the first round of the playoffs by Fountain-Fort Carson in one of the toughest defeats in school history.
- 2001 - The Bears won the Western Slope League Championship losing just one regular season game to eventual state champion Fort Morgan. The first round was unkind to the Bears as they were upset by the Valley Vikings on their home field.
- 1999 - The Bears won the Western Slope League Championship and went on to beat Windsor in the first round of the playoffs. In the second round the Bears travelled to Alamosa and were defeated by the Mean Moose 20-0.
- 1998 - The Bears won their first Western Slope league championship in two decades. After beating D'Evelyn in the first round of the playoffs the Bears lost a hard-fought battle with Brush at Bears Stadium.
- 1992 - The Bears qualified for the playoffs for the first time in 12 years. They lost a close game to Cheyenne Mountain in Colorado Springs.
- 1974 - The Bears had a great regular season but lost to Salida in the semi-finals after Russell Hiner was injured in a playoff win over Las Animas. The loss broke the Bears' 22 game winning streak.
- 1973 - Behind the power running of Russell Hiner, the Bears won their second state championship over Yuma 8-6.
- 1961 - Rifle won a share of its first state championship by tying Louisville 6 to 6
- 1952 - The Bears made it all the way to the state championship game but lost to Fort Morgan 21 to 14 at home.
This is a evolving history of Bears football. Any omissions are not intentional. If you have information that should be included here please contact us.
