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Steamboat Springs — Hayden football coach Shawn Baumgartner knows there are good reasons his 9-1 Tigers have advanced to the Class 1A playoff quarterfinals.

He also realizes the good fortune the team has had in avoiding injuries.

Relying on a tough brand of ball-control, power-running offense all season, no one on the haggard offensive line or any of the three primary ball carriers has suffered a serious injury.

Coy Letlow now leads all Class 1A rushers with 1,662 yards. Combined with Brandon Ford and Russell Waugh, the three have run for more than 2,800 yards. All are healthy heading into Hayden's second-round playoff game against Limon at 1 p.m. Saturday in Hayden.

The same cannot be said of Mike O'Dwyer's undefeated and top-ranked Limon sqaud.

Limon's 24-13 first-round win over Sanford broke the 10-year state record of 48 consecutive wins. Down 7-6 at halftime, O'Dwyer sounded concerned when relating how his team was missing key offensive starters to injury, and it had to mount a second half comeback with some inexperienced players.

O'Dwyer said starting running back Andy Love is a "dinged up, walking bruise" whose status would be decided prior to the game. Tight end Zach Scherrer and lineman Bernardo Chacon are out, he said, and Chacon's sophomore replacement is 110 pounds lighter.

But if there's any school that can effectively replace players, it's the storied Limon program. The Badgers own 17 state titles and have not lost since Nov. 2, 2002.

Baumgartner said his team has kept its intensity up since a 14-0 win over Sargent on Saturday. The defense is expecting Love, who has rushed for 1,171 yards and 15 touchdowns, to play.

The Tigers hope to slow down Love while containing quarterback Travis Sandersfeld, who has rushed for 463 yards and thrown for 840. Top receiver Joe Stone has 28 catches for 566 yards and seven touchdowns.

On offense, Baumgartner said he has focused on fine-tuning blocking assignments against a five-man, "50-front" defensive line that Hayden hasn't seen often.

"This is the best team we've faced up to this point," Baumgartner said. "But if we do things right the way we have all year, we can keep the game close and give us a chance in the end."

O'Dwyer said he "could see the strain on the kids' faces" from the constant media attention surrounding Limon's record-breaking game. Now, he thinks they will operate under "the normal pressure of playoff games" and get back to his self-proclaimed "old-school" style of run-oriented football.

Baumgartner thinks the pressure burden of continuing the streak still weighs heavy on Limon compared to his underdog, eighth-seeded team that was not expected to even make the postseason. With home field advantage, Hayden has a ripe chance to break the streak and get its first quarterfinal win if the players can stick to Baumgartner's strategy - controlling field possessions and capitalizing on what he calls the "hidden yards," of Limon miscues that set up a shortened field.