CHSAA officially takes championship games from Denver to Fort Collins

PREP FOOTBALL

Contract with Broncos ends at conclusion of 2022 -23 school year

Loveland’s Drew Foley left, heads to the end zone for a touchdown as Broomfield’s Brent Harris tries to tackle him during the Class 4A state championship game at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver on Dec. 3, 2022. ANDY CROSS — THE DENVER POST

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By Nathan Wright

nwright@ prairiemountainmedia.com

Next season’s Class 4A and 5A football state championship games will be played at Colorado State University’s Canvas Stadium in Fort Collins, the Colorado High School Activities Association announced Thursday at a news conference at the venue.

Additionally, the 3A state championship game will move to Canvas Stadium as well, beginning in 2024.

The 5A/4A football championships had been played at Empower Field at Mile High since 2005. The reason for the move is that the contract with the Denver Broncos and Colorado Sports Hall of Fame ends at the conclusion of this school year.

“We are proud to have worked with and established strong relationships with the Denver Broncos and Colorado Sports Hall of Fame,” CHSAA assistant commissioner overseeing football John Sullivan said. “Moving forward, we are excited to give our CHSAA football schools the opportunity to see the same things that attracted our team to CSU. The facilities are fantastic, the fact that the stadium is in the heart of a college campus, and the ability for us to include 3A into the 4A and 5A game day schedule after the fall of 2023 made this new partnership so inviting.”

The partnership to play at Canvas Stadium, which seats 36,500 and opened in 2017, is a multi-year agreement between CHSAA and CSU.

CHSAA commissioner Mike Krueger said the benefits of having the games in Fort Collins will go beyond football.

“Obviously, an incredible number of considerations come into play when it comes to a decision of this magnitude,” Krueger said. “As we learned more and continued dialogue with CSU, it became apparent that CSU and Canvas Stadium was going to be a great fit for our schools and membership as a whole.

“We have seen the positive impact that bringing events to communities around our state can have on cities and towns. We look forward to the city of Fort Collins opening their arms and embracing these championships. I believe it is a strength when we recognize the diversity in our state and acknowledge that our kids come from all over. Bringing this championship event to Fort Collins continues our efforts to build upon that strength.”

Canvas Stadium, which not only hosts CSU home games, but also annual rivalry games from schools in the Poudre School District as well as other community and school events, was built to benefit the entire community and will now showcase the best high school football in the state.

CSU athletic director Joe Parker is excited about the agreement and the opportunity teams will have to play for championships at Canvas Stadium.

“The goal for Canvas Stadium, from its inception, has been for it to serve as a community asset and to enhance the value of Colorado State University within our state and region,” Parker said. “We are thrilled that CHSAA has chosen to host these football championships in Fort Collins and Canvas Stadium. In addition to community fundraisers, proms, graduation celebrations, and many others, this is another example of how Colorado State and Canvas Stadium serve our local and regional community with a great venue and bringing people to our great city.”

While the 4A and 5A games will still be played on the same day in 2023, the 3A game will join them on the same day beginning in 2024. The remaining championship games will continue to be played at CSU-Pueblo’s ThunderBowl.

Next season’s 5A, 4A and 3A title games will be played on Dec. 2.