The Star Valley Braves outlasted the Cody Broncs in a tight 16-13 final score to claim their fifth straight Wyoming 3A state football championship on Friday night at War Memorial Stadium in Laramie. It is the 13th straight season that either the Braves or the Broncs have won the championship and the fifth straight where Star Valley prevailed over Cody. It’s also the ninth straight win in the series for the Braves but it’s been far from easy with the last three contests overall decided by a combined nine points.

“Just so proud of our defense, replied Coach McKay Young. Our defensive coaches; Coach Merritt, Coach Cazier, Coach Ballard [Johnson], Jeff Johnson and Kirk Hoopes; just so proud of what they do for our kids and that was on display for the whole state tonight. On a night when it’s hard to move the ball you lean on your defense.”

Many of the players over the past 13 seasons for the two programs have been noted for their offensive prowess and there were more of them who added to that legacy in the game. But on Friday it was the defenses that reigned for much of the contest. 

Both teams were ushered off Jonah Field multiple times and it wasn’t until the 6:04 mark of the second quarter that either team scored. It was a one-yard quarterback sneak into the end zone by senior quarterback Ross Hilton that broke the scoreless stalemate. It was set up by a 42-yard run by senior Travis Thomson. The PAT was no good as the Braves led 6-0 into the halftime intermission. 

On the opening possession of the third quarter, Cody’s Cache McFadden started making inroads against the Braves’ defense and capped off the drive on a 40-yard sprint for the touchdown. The PAT was blocked by Kemen Filibi who had to be helped off the field just two plays before as the scored remained 6-6. It wasn’t until the 2:27 mark of the third quarter that Hilton hit senior Roman Erickson for his only reception of the night; a 53-yard catch and run for a touchdown that helped give Star Valley a 13-6 advantage. 

Heading into the fourth quarter, the Broncs opted to go for it on fourth and long from the Star Valley 29-yard line and the call paid off as McFadden found Griffin McCarten on a strike for the tying score. 

The two teams traded punts including one that pinned Cody at their one-yard line after a nice special teams play by Gabe Delgado. Instead of being pushed into the end zone by the Star Valley defense, McFadden hit Tommy Sitz on a slant that looked like it was going to be a 99-yard go-ahead score. In one of the crucial moments of the game, Landon Peterson caught Sitz at midfield to save the touchdown. On the next passing attempt, Peterson intercepted McFadden to set up Star Valley on their own 25-yard line with eight minutes remaining. 

It was this stretch that determined the end of the game as the Star Valley offense, who had lit up opposing defenses with their aerial attack for most the season, turned to their roots and ran the ball with authority behind Thomson, Crew Lancaster and Zach Delgado and a physical offensive line that cut their teeth on the turf in Soldotna, Alaska back in August. The drive lasted more than seven and a half minutes, ultimately placing the Braves at the five-yard line with just 24 seconds remaining. 

• The Kick – 

Before lining up for the game-winning 22-yard field goal, Owen Brown was smiling on the sideline as he got some advice from Hilton who put his arm around the sophomore kicker.

“I said focus, calm down and you got this,” Hilton said. “You are so ready for this moment. Just focus.”

Brown had made 49 of 52 PATs coming into the game,  but with a prolific offense, field goal attempts were rare and he had missed both of his two attempts earlier in the season. His first made field goal of 2026 was a big one.

Hunter Randall snapped the ball, Travis Thomson held it and Brown knocked it through to put the Braves up 16-13 with 21 seconds remaining. 

“I had zero doubt that it was going to split the uprights,” Young added. “I don’t know that I’ve trusted a PAT unit more. Hunter has embraced that snapping role this season and he’s been practicing for months and how big was that one?”

The Broncs spent their last timeout trying to ice Brown and were left with very little time to try and answer. McFadden’s final pass was picked off by Thomson who slid to the ground to end the game. 

It is the fifth straight championship for the program who have won nine of the last 12 3A championships. In the last five seasons, Young’s squad has gone 56-4. 

The two teams, despite many battles on the field once again knelt in prayer and respect for each other after the game, a sight that has become a common one in this matchup.

“I’m just so proud of these kids,” Young continued. “The focus of our team meetings this week was to have a lion’s mentality. Lions don’t hunt for the result, they do it because of the process of the hunt. They want to enjoy the process. We faced a really good opponent and had two absolute battles with them this year. We had our backs against the wall and Ross came over and told his teammates this was a championship winning drive and that’s exactly what they did.”

• Game Notes – 

Hilton finished the game by completing 19 of 28 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for a score. He set a new school record for passing touchdowns in a season with a total of 37 in his only varsity year at quarterback…Travis Thomson had two rushing attempts for six yards in 2026. On Friday night he finished with eight rushes for 60 yards, doing much of it by playing quarterback and keeping the ball on designed runs. His 42-yard sprint in the second quarter was the longest run of the game…Roman Erickson missed both the quarterfinals and semifinals after aggravating an injury in the second half of the game in Jackson. His 53-yard touchdown catch put him over 1,600 career receiving yards, the second most in school history…Peterson’s interception was one of three on the night for the Braves’ defense. Weston Crogg had one in the first half and Thomson ended the game with one of his own…Many of the players who helped cap of their careers with a fifth straight title for the program are the end of football families who all helped win titles along this current stretch. Some of those include Roman Erickson, Travis Thomson and Krew Morgan. “It’s interesting how many of these kids are the youngest brothers of families that have been part of this success,” Young concluded. “So many families who have been so dear to us and we are so glad to end it for them on a high note.”