Glacier Knights enduring preseason

With 27 returning players, the Glacier Knights semi-pro football team is ready to avenge two winless seasons.

The Knights got their first outdoor practice in a couple weeks ago and are getting ready for their season opener on April 7 in Great Falls.

"We look good, we need to stay focused though," Glacier coach Ron LaTray said. "When we're outside it is easy to get distracted. We need to push each other harder each day."

The Knights' past has been disappointing. In three years of existence, they have gone 1-7, 0-8 and 0-8. They were outscored in those seasons 328-37, 342-25 and 314-38.

But the past is the past.

LaTray and assistant coach Dave Cervantes have enlisted the help of line coach Darrin Woeppel and running backs coach Elvis Hilliard - the father of Flathead High School and University of Montana running back Lex - for the upcoming season.

The team is anchored by defensive back Jason Zielanski, linebacker Tony Rojo and defensive lineman Red Dutton. All three won All-League honors last year. The defense also has Sheldon McCool and Shane Bear in the secondary with Will Wheat as a defensive end. Quarterback Beau Herman and lineman Steve Biggs are the stars of the offense.

Eight team members will be playing in their fourth season and six are returning for their third season.

The Knights are a member of the Rocky Mountain Football League. The league started in Idaho with four teams in 1997 and has blossomed into two leagues (AAA and AA leagues) with two conferences or divisions apiece.

The setup of the RMFL has changed drastically each season. But the league has had a playoff system and named a champion every year as well as all-league picks.

This year, the RMFL has one AAA league with 11 teams from Utah and Idaho and one AA league with two conferences - the Mountain and Northern conferences. The Knights are in the five-team Northern Conference with the Bitterroot Blaze, Great Falls Gladiators, Helena Titans and Missoula Phoenix.

No Montana team has ever played in the championship game. Only three times has a Montana team won a playoff game: Missoula in its inaugural season of 2005, Helena in 2003 and the Great Falls Rangers - the first-ever Montana team - in 1999.

The Knights have added Tuesdays and Thursdays to the practice schedule for backs and receivers at 5:30-7 p.m. The team practices Saturdays at 11 a.m. and Sundays at noon. Practice locations change on a weekly basis to prevent tearing up the fields.

For information on joining the team, call LaTray at 863-9589.