A bag of Cinnamon Toast Crunch and a phone are all Sam Beers needs before a game. 

As he scarfs down his pre-game ritual cereal, he swipes through Saquon Barkley highlights. Watching the Giants’ running back who made his name on big plays inspires the Air Academy senior to do it himself. 

He did just that against Coronado last Friday, bringing the Kadets back from down 14-0 to a 63-56 win. In it, he rushed for six touchdowns, caught another and threw a shovel pass to make it eight, total. 

Oh, and he was part of 533 yards for the Kadet offense.

It doesn’t take long for this week’s Peak Performer to find his groove, as he’s done in now-multiple, four-or-more career touchdown games. But once it clicks, the fun starts. 

“It takes about a quarter to figure out what the defense is doing and how my guys are blocking each game,” Beers said. “Once I get the groove of the game, I just take off. They give me a boost and I just ride it to the finish.

“We were down early, but gathered the guys around and told them something needed to happen.”  

A run of 71 yards and a reception of 80 highlighted the explosive night and gave Beers a chance to model his idol. 

The whole time he was darting down the gray turf of Garry Berry, the tailback had another thought motivating him: only one school has offered me so far. 

Beers wants to play at the next level. Breaking through teammate’s arm tackles and finishing runs into the end zone despite fatigue show how badly he wants it in practice, too. 

Colorado School of Mines, thanks to his success in the classroom, has been the lone school to reach out and give an opportunity for Beers to bypass a career as a civil engineer for a little longer. 

“He is a great player, and we may not have a ton of those, but we’ve got that one,” coach Scott Grinde said. “He’s dependable, he’s reliable and he’s our hardest worker and that’s a godsend as a coach.

“He’s bought in to the culture and process here and he moves on from each play. We were down, we had hiccups against Coronado, but it never fazed him.”

Every game Beers can put together like Friday’s are games he knows can put him on the college radar. 

In just five games, he’s already carried the ball 104 times for 1,023 yards and 16 touchdowns. Add his receiving and pass totals and he’s up to 18 scores now. 

Most importantly, the Kadets have already bypassed last year’s three-win total — sitting at 4-1 with a back-to-back of Vista Ridge and Palmer Ridge still looming. 

Video game numbers like the ones he put up in the latest one are just indicative of how badly he wants to contribute to a winning Air Academy program alongside fellow senior quarterback, Braden Dougherty. 

It’s Cheyenne Mountain week now, and the senior has already moved on, as he does each play during a game. 

“I only play one way, so I’ll always be able to bring that energy,” Beers said. “You have to practice how you play and if I can make guys miss out here, I hope I can during games too.” 

A bruised, purple fingernail on his carrying hand and all, Beers is just looking to be electric. Saquon Barkley sure is.