Vote for Blue FCU Fort Collins-area Football Player of Week (Aug. 24)

The Coloradoan is proud to present another aspect of our weekly Athlete of the Week series, partnering with Blue Federal Credit Union to honor the best Fort Collins-area tackle football players throughout the fall 2026 season.

The weekly Fort Collins-area Football Player of the Week poll has five nominees each week, and fans can vote every Monday through Thursday at coloradoan.com/sports.

A limited Week Zero slate of games kicked off the 2026 season, with Fort Collins winning a thriller and Rocky Mountain and Poudre falling on the road.

You can find the nominees and ballot below. Voting is open this week until 11:59 p.m. on Aug. 27, with the winner announced Aug. 28.

Fans can nominate their favorite players (deadline: 11:59 p.m. every Sunday) and the Coloradoan sports staff will ultimately select the nominees each week.

If you have nominations for a future football Player of the Week, please send them via email to ChrisAbshire@coloradoan.com for consideration.

• Ayden "Ace" Bynum, Fort Collins LB: Varsity debuts don't get much better than Bynum's, especially in a heart-stopping one-point home win over Columbine. Bynum was all over the field, compiling a team-high 13 tackles (seven solo, one for loss) with a sack + forced fumble as the Lambkins' defense held the Rebels' run game in check.
• Donovan Dumas, Fort Collins TE/LB: Dumas was a walking mismatch on both sides of the ball in that Fort Collins victory. Offensively, Dumas caught five passes for 87 yards and a touchdown, torching defenders across the middle. On defense, the junior had 12 tackles (seven solo) and a fumble recovery while delivering punishing hits.
• Jace Garcia, Fort Collins QB: Speaking of great debuts, Garcia's first start lived up to the hype. The junior QB completed 22 of 33 passes for 307 yards and two touchdowns. He led a 21-point barrage as the Lambkins scored on three straight possessions to flip a deficit into a two-score lead in under nine minutes of game time.
• Chuck Gebhardt, Poudre DB/KR: The Impalas lost a tough one on the road, falling 15-13 at Severance. But Gebhradt got the season off on a good foot, intercepting a tipped pass and taking it back 61 yards for a pick-six touchdown. The senior also added six tackles on defense and 95 return yards on special teams.
• Isaiah Pope, Rocky Mountain DB: The Lobos fell on the road at Eaglecrest in a shutout defeat, but the Rocky defense battled through tough field position and gave the offense chances. Pope aided that effort, picking off Raptors standout QB William Brinkman with an interception and making several tackles in the season opener.