As a sophomore last spring, Markesh Woodson finished second at state in the 100 and 200, plus gave the Trojans a big lift on relays. Photo by Alan Versaw.
Fountain-Fort Carson scarcely needs any introduction as a 5A state title contender. Unless you slept through the season or lived in a different time zone, you know that Fountain-Fort Carson dominated the 5A state meet.
But there's an interesting little circumstance that keeps life interesting at the southernmost 5A school in the state. The good news at Fountain-Fort Carson is that the facilities are fabulous and there is a more or less constant influx of talent from Fort Carson. The bad news is, there's a more or less constant ouflow of talent as troops are reassigned from Fort Carson to some other Army base. So, what Ben Montoya has one year isn't necessarily when Ben Montoya has the next year.
I'm going to make the assumption that the underclassmen who ran for Fountain-Fort Carson last spring will be back this spring. That assumption may turn out to be wrong in a case or two. If it's not wrong, however, you can pencil the Trojans in as a preseason 5A state title favorite.
It's not that Fountain-Fort Carson didn't graduate anyone. It's just that the list of graduates is very short. Of those who scored individual points at state, only thrower Jamarius Mathis graduated. While Mathis contributed a bunch of points at state--18, to be precise--this is hardly a team that enters the new season short of weapons.
In fact, the Trojans should be loaded in sprints with Markesh Woodson (2nd - 100, 2nd - 200), Solyde Bankston (4th - 100), and Brandon Parson (1st - 400) coming back. If this trio shows any kind of improvement at all over last year's marks, anyone planning to chase F-FC for a state title is going to have a serious deficit to make up after the dust settles on the sprint events.
The other big segment of returning talent comes from the horizontal jumps, where both Trey Talley and Kordale Taylor should both be back exploding from the board. The duo amassed a grand total of one point at last year's state meet, but that total figures to go up this year which some additional development and a bunch of placers ahead of them graduating.
Beyond that, there are relays--something of a traditional specialty area for the Trojans--and a lot of unknowns. It's conceivable that the young men just mentioned could pull together enough points to win a state title on their own, but--given the recent history of 5A boys track and field--it is more likely that Fountain-Fort Carson will need to rely on some as yet unknown talent to bring home a trophy to match the one they won last spring. It's hard to say what events that talent might emerge in, but keep an eye on the early season meets and the rankings boards.
And if the Trojans aren't on your short list of teams to watch, you're missing something.