ROCK SPRINGS — The Rock Springs Tigers will open the 2026 football season with a challenge that would test any team in Wyoming.
The defending Class 4A state champion Sheridan Broncs come to Tiger Stadium Friday for a Week 0 conference matchup, bringing with them a 55-game winning streak that is already the longest in Wyoming high school football history.
Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m., with pregame coverage beginning at 5 p.m. TRN Media will provide a live HD video stream of the game, available on SweetwaterNOW’s Facebook page. Fans can also listen to the game on 97.9 FM KZWB, with TRN Media’s Keith Trujillo handling play-by-play and Jayson Klepper providing color commentary.
For Rock Springs, there is no easing into the season.
While Week 0 traditionally serves as the opening week of the high school football season, Class 4A begins conference play immediately. With 10 teams in the classification and an eight-week regular season for most classifications, 4A teams play their first conference game in Week 0 to allow every team to meet once during the regular season.
That makes Friday more than just a season opener. It is the first conference game of the year, and the Tigers will have to deal with the team that has dominated Wyoming football for the better part of the last five seasons.
Sheridan has won five consecutive Class 4A state championships and has not lost a game since the 2021 season. The Broncs’ 55-game streak has already surpassed every previous winning streak in Wyoming high school football history, with the second longest being Laramie’s 34-game winning streak from 1959-63. The Laramie streak is in jeopardy to drop to third all-time, with Star Valley sitting at a 33-game winning streak heading into the season.
The Broncs have been equally dominant away from home, winning their last 20 road games.
Rock Springs knows firsthand how difficult Sheridan is to beat. The Tigers faced the Broncs in the 2021 state championship game, the same season Sheridan’s current historic winning streak began. Rock Springs has not won a playoff game since, despite qualifying for the postseason three times.
Last year’s meeting showed the Tigers can make Sheridan work. Rock Springs held the Broncs to 14 points in a 14-6 loss last season, allowing just seven points after halftime. It was Sheridan’s lowest-scoring game in five years and one of the closest challenges the eventual state champions faced during another championship season.
In a previous article previewing Rock Springs’ 2026 season, head coach Kasey Koepplin pointed to that game as something the Tigers could learn from.
“That was a very exciting game last year, and we have been using our film study to see what we executed well that might carry over,” Koepplin said.
The Tigers will need another strong defensive performance Friday.
Rock Springs returns a significant portion of the group that helped make its defense one of the division’s best last season. The Tigers lost standout defensive backs Cammeron Blake and Santiago Cruz, but return experience throughout the front seven, including three starting linebackers who received all-conference recognition a year ago.
Among the returning contributors are Jernee Padilla on the defensive line and Kaleb Praytor at linebacker, both First Team All-Conference selections last season. Carter Gard also returns after earning honorable mention recognition.
The Tigers’ defensive experience is matched by a veteran offensive backfield.
Boston James, a First Team All-State selection at running back and a First Team at-large defensive selection last season, returns after leading Rock Springs in rushing in 2025. James also earned Second Team All-Conference recognition at linebacker.
That combination of returning talent gives Rock Springs a clear identity entering Friday: play physical defense, establish the run and try to keep the game within striking distance.
Finding more production on offense, however, remains one of the biggest issues. Rock Springs averaged 11.2 points per game last season, its lowest scoring average since 2013. The Tigers showed repeatedly that their defense could keep them competitive, but offensive consistency ultimately proved difficult to find.
That will be especially important against Sheridan, where possessions are at a premium and mistakes can quickly turn into points for a team that has rarely allowed opponents to dictate the pace of a game.
The Tigers enter the season believing they have the pieces to improve on last year’s 2025 campaign and make another push toward the playoffs. A strong showing against the defending champions would immediately provide an indication of how far Rock Springs has progressed.
It also would come in front of a home crowd that has become one of the program’s strengths.
Koepplin has previously said the community support at Tiger Stadium was “absolutely great,” pointing to the large crowds that consistently supported the Tigers last season.
That atmosphere will be put to the test Friday night as Rock Springs will try to snap Sheridan’s historic winning streak, protect home field and begin its nine-game conference schedule with one of the biggest opportunities of the season.
