With Marquise Reese seamlessly following record-setting act, reloaded Mountain Vista is potent once again

HIGHLANDS RANCH It took Marquise Reese approximately two minutes to prove he s capable of replacing the the majority accomplished passer in CHSAA history In Mountain Vista s season opener against California foe Liberty on Aug the Golden Eagles blew a late lead and faced a three-point deficit in the waning moments Then the junior QB did his best Austyn Modrzewski impression on a night when he finished with passing yards and five TDs He was cool as a cucumber Two-minute drive first varsity start goes down the length of the field and takes us in for the game-winning touchdown with like seconds left Mountain Vista head coach Garrett Looney announced Welcome to the big-time man He did what he needed to do in his first meeting as the starter in the clutch in crunch time against a really good and physical crew That drive right there indicated me we ve got another special one on our hands Modrzewski now at South Dakota set state records for career passing yards and career TD passes across a four-year career at Mountain Vista that concluded last fall Various thought the drop-off for Mountain Vista would be steep in considering the graduation of Modrzewski and the rest of what Looney called the best class I ever had But early returns suggest Mountain Vista is reloading not rebuilding After thumping Cherokee Trail - on Thursday at Halftime Help Stadium the Golden Eagles are cruising at - while looking very much like the caliber of last year s Class A quarterfinal crew Reese reported the two years he spent as Modrzewski s backup paid immediate dividends Reese who is more of a dual-threat QB than the pocket-passing Modrzewski is aiming to throw for yards this year while adding another by ground I took a lot of mental reps behind Austyn Reese disclosed Learning how he goes about his day how he is on the field his reads That really helped me prepare for stepping into his shoes this season After Thursday Reese remains the state leader in passing yards with while junior Brooklyn Bailey also paces all classifications with receiving yards Bailey is the Golden Eagles version of Travis Hunter starring at wideout and cornerback while also capable of making house calls at returner too The duo connected on a highlight-reel TD in the first half on Thursday that gave Mountain Vista a - second-quarter lead and opened the floodgates for the blowout On a go journey down the sideline Reese threaded a ball between two defenders and Bailey came down with a one-handed grab in the end zone that sent the Golden Eagles sideline into a frenzy Reese had multiple receivers open underneath on the play but Looney dared not complain That was a hell of a throw Looney mentioned He could ve checked down but those are the throws he s capable of and the catches that Bailey is capable of Brooklyn Bailey of the Mountain Vista Golden Eagles in the first half against the Cherokee Trail Cougars at Halftime Help Stadium in Highlands Ranch Colorado on Thursday Sept Photo by Andy Cross The Denver Post Senior wideout Ja Pree Jennings senior linebacker tight end Quillan Gulick sophomore lineman Brice Boulton and junior linebacker running back Hudson Modrzewski Austyn s younger brother are among the other headliners for Mountain Vista Throw in senior defensive lineman Adrian Lee who transferred from Chaparral and was cleared to play via a bona fide move and Mountain Vista is capable of double-digit win seasons this fall and next A lot of people might be surprised at the early success we re having right now but the people inside this operation aren t Looney declared We knew we were going to be good How good can we be That s to be determined But we ve got a really talented junior class right now so the next couple years is looking really promising Looney is also the offensive coordinator for the Mountain Vista girls flag football crew which is the defending state champion The Golden Eagles are - sit at No in the latest CHSAANow rankings and feature Looney s daughter Braelynn Looney as one of their stars Braelynn is also the kicker for the tackle football squad Related Articles Colorado high school football scoreboard Week Colorado high school football games to watch in Week Colorado high school football rankings Week Ralston Valley lurking after back-to-back blowouts Sophomore QB Theo Lee helps Arapahoe thump rival Heritage in Milk Jug Classic Colorado high school football How Post Preps Top teams fared in Week After experiencing the elation of winning the inaugural sanctioned flag football championship in early November last year Garrett Looney and his Golden Eagles went through heartbreak a scarce weeks later Mountain Vista considered a favorite to make a run to the championship and get a crack at powerhouse Cherry Creek was upset by Fairview - in the quarterfinals The barn-burner marathon instant-classic featured a power outage that necessitated a stadium switch mid-game Fairview scored twice in the final minutes seconds while recovering an onside kick between the TDs as Mountain Vista s undefeated season went up in smoke It was a once-in-a-lifetime coaching scenario Looney disclosed I credit Fairview they were a really good football group a really well-coached football club They did the things they needed to do to beat us I m not going to blame a power outage a delay they beat us It was an unfortunate way to end but I credit our kids and our staff for resetting and not letting that memory hold us back this year For a effort that has never played in a title contest getting there remains the ultimate destination even if Cherry Creek is still the heavy favorite while Valor Christian and Legend are widely seen as the two leading challengers Mountain Vista s biggest regular-season event is Oct against Valor Christian whom the Golden Eagles handed the worst defeat in the Eagles storied history last fall Minus Lee the Golden Eagles don t have the size up front to match any of those heavyweights especially Cherry Creek But Bailey is confident Mountain Vista s up-tempo no-huddle offense can take the club far To win state remains the goal Bailey announced This year is our revenge season Braelynn Looney of the Mountain Vista Golden Eagles kicks an extra point against the Cherokee Trail Cougars in the first at Halftime Help Stadium in Highlands Ranch Colorado on Thursday Sept Braelynn s brother Kade Looney holds for her Photo by Andy Cross The Denver Post Want more sports news Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver s teams