Class AA Football Previews: Glacier at C.M. Russell, Flathead at Capital

TODAY: Glacier (0-1) at Great Falls CMR (0-1)

KICKOFF: 7:30 p.m. at Memorial Stadium

LAST WEEK FOR GLACIER: The Wolfpack returned to last season's final destination, Daylis Stadium, and had turnover troubles similar to the season-ending playoff loss against Skyview. This batch of miscues - four turnovers on offense and a number of mistakes on both sides of the ball - gave way to a 28-13 loss to Senior last Friday.

"We knew that with the amount of new guys we have that we were going to have that kind of getting-your-feet-wet experience," Glacier head coach Grady Bennett said. "We still have a lot of guys getting used to playing at the AA level and realizing the game speed of AA. The good news is that our defense had some great moments and forced some turnovers (six). The problem is on offense we couldn't find a rhythm and take advantage of those turnovers. But the problems are fixable."

STANDOUT PERFORMANCES: Senior Brendan Hagan played superbly at three positions last game and was named Glacier's Special Teams Player of the Week, Linebacker of the Week and Running back of the Week. Hagan ran the ball nine times for a team-high 85 yards and caught four passes for 22 yards. He also worked kicker and defensive duties.

If there was a success story for Glacier, it came thanks to senior Trey Griffith. The 5-foot-10 cornerback/receiver stepped onto the varsity football field for the first game of his life and gave a performance his head coach said he won't soon forget. "I was trying to describe to him what Friday night lights is like," Bennett said. "There's nothing like it and Trey had never experienced it. He was so jacked and it was just neat to see a kid soaking it up, playing in front of a couple thousand people under the lights and on the field. That's what it's all about. That's why we do it. That's why l love doing it so much." Griffith grabbed two interceptions and a fumble recovery on defense and two passes for 22 yards on offense.

LAST WEEK FOR CMR: Great Falls fans might have been surprised to see the defending state champs stunned by Helena, 16-14, but Bennett wasn't. Before the season started, he emphasized the parity in AA this season with sincerity. "I've made this statement now ever since last season ended, but with the teams that are coming back, I think top to bottom this is the best league I've seen in 20 years. And I say that not just trying to pump everybody else up," the Glacier coach said. "Every team has amazing talent, which you just don't always see. Sometimes there's one or two good guys coming back, but it's almost like every team has their best players back." 

WIDE AWAKE: Unfortunately for Glacier, the Rustlers have been roused awake after last week's loss. "That just doubles the challenge, now you're going against a team that's ticked off and wants to get on the win side," Bennett said. "All we've asked this week is come out swinging and let it fly. That way afterward you can hold your head high ... This is a tough early schedule and we're just trying to work as hard as we can and do our best through this part. Let's just go ahead and see if we can prove people wrong."

LAST YEAR: CMR quarterback Jake Bleskin torched the Wolfpack for 368 total yards and three touchdowns as the Rustlers won 35-24 at Legends Stadium. Glacier trailed 21-14 at half and was outscored 14-10 after that. 

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FLATHEAD VS. HELENA CAPITAL

TODAY: Flathead (0-1) at Helena Capital (1-0)

KICKOFF: 4 p.m. at Vigilante Stadium

LAST WEEK FOR FLATHEAD: Butte quarterback Matt Berg stole the show at Legends Stadium last Friday and led the Bulldogs to a 41-21 victory, earning Butte head coach and former Flathead assistant Arie Gray a rare victory against Flathead. The win was Butte's first against the Braves in 15 games, according to the Montana Standard. Berg, a junior, totaled 407 yards of total offense - 360 passing and 47 rushing - and directed the Bulldogs to 505 offensive yards.

"We were certainly disappointed in the outcome, not the effort, but the outcome," Flathead head coach Russell McCarvel said. "Turnovers offensively hurt us and a couple dropped passes. Defensively we need to do a better job of tackling."

Butte created a scoring gap from the get-go and led 24-7 at half.

STANDOUT PERFORMANCES: Flathead senior quarterback Mike VanArendonk threw for 301 yards and two touchdowns. His favorite receiver was junior George Sherwood, who caught seven passes for 135 yards and both scores. Senior Jeff Markavage had six catches for 96 yards and Matt McLean had three for 37 yards. McCarvel credited the special teams unit with doing a solid job. "That was one of the better special teams performances we've had in awhile," he said.

LAST WEEK FOR CAPITAL: In the first game back since losing in the state championship game last season, the Bruins tallied 417 total yards on offense and held Great Falls to only 152, defeating the Bison 29-10 on the road. Capital, who has won three of the last four state titles and ended a record 33-game win streak against CMR, piled up 332 rushing yards, led by Brice Burton's 151.

LAST YEAR: Current Boise St. player Matt Miller had 127 total yards and three touchdowns to lead the Bruins to a 39-0 win over the Braves at Legends Stadium in Week 2. The Bruins held Flathead to 151 yards of offense.

UPHILL BATTLE: "They don't rebuild a thing, as the old saying goes, they reload," McCarvel said of Capital. "They're certainly one of the top programs in not just the state but the Northwest ... They do a great job executing their offense and they're well coached. It will be a great challenge for us. The thing we want to establish is going on the road we need some senior leadership to show the way."

NO SECRET TO SUCCESS: How does a program build a dynasty like Capital's? According to McCarvel, with one word: believe. "I think the big thing is those guys believe. What I mean by that is they work awfully hard in the offseason. It's something obviously other teams would like to emulate. Really if you look at the heights and weights of those guys (at Capital), they're not anything better than anyone else. They're not a lot bigger or faster than we are, but their kids believe and work hard in the offseason."

That said, McCarvel is quick to defend his team's identity. "I think you have to be careful comparing yourself to other teams. We want to try to be the best Flathead High Braves we can be."