Glacier's home, but draws tough foe - Senior

A lot of ‘firsts' have come and gone over the past five years for the Glacier High School football team.

There was the first touchdown, the first win, the first team to make the playoffs. The list is long. Over the years, most have been picked off by previous Glacier squads.

There's a big one that is still out there, though.

The 2011 Wolfpack team is hoping to cross that one off tonight - first Class AA football playoff win.

The No. 4-ranked Wolfpack (8-2) plays host at 7 p.m. to No. 5 Billings Senior (7-3) at Legends Stadium.

Gates will open at 5:30 p.m.

Prices for tonight's game are $7 for adults, $6 for students. Admission has been set by Montana High School Association. Reserved seats will not be honored and regular season passes and senior citizen passes are not accepted per MHSA regulations.

This will be Glacier's third straight playoff appearance. The 8-2 record is the best in school history.

But few wins are easy at this point of the season and tonight's test is anything but easy, according to Glacier coach Grady Bennett.

Bronc losses this season were to Helena Capital (10-7), Butte (21-12) and Billings West (35-31).

It does look like there will be some points put on the board - at 36.3 points per game, Glacier leads the state in scoring. Number two? Billings Senior at 35.6 points.

"We're the leading scoring team in the state, but they've scored a lot of points, too, at times," Bennett said.

"Their two-headed rushing attack is really tough," Bennett said.

First and foremost is career 3,000-yard rusher Chad Newell. At 6-foot-3, 220 pounds, "he's a big load. He's tough," the coach said.

Newell has rushed for 1,057 yards and scored 14 rushing touchdowns this season. He averages 5.5 yards per carry and more than 100 yards per game.

Added to Newell is the coach's son, Ben Sulser at quarterback.

Sulser has rushed for 619 yards and 10 touchdowns himself.

The Broncs do a lot of zone read, Bennett said.

"Sulver executes as well as anybody. He's "either handing it to Newell or he's keeping it. Those two between them are kind of tough," the coach said.

"They're just tough competitors."

But ...

"One of our better things this year is our run ‘D'. We hope it plays into a good matchup for us. We've had some good nights against the run," Bennett said.

Glacier gives up an average of 151 rushing yards per game, 3.6 yards per carry - that's fifth best in Class AA.

"Offensively, we have to keep the ball away from them, turn our drives into points. If we sit on the sidelines and watch their offense, that will not be good," the coach said.

The Wolfpack finished the regular season on a good note last week - it defeated Missoula Big Sky 55-35.

"We wanted last week to really finish on a high note and I feel we did that. Offensively, we were solid, special teams we were solid. That was how I wanted to finish the regular season, playing our best football," Bennett said.

"I just like the way our kids are still practicing, working, their enthusiasm," he said.

Some years, coaches can tell by this point that kids are ready for football to be over.

"Not with these guys. They're still fresh. They're still excited. It's just good," he said.

Aaron Mitchell turned in a career night running the ball - 197 yards.

"I was really proud of him," Bennett said.

Before that game, Bennett challenged all the Glacier backs to run stronger.

"Aaron really rose to that challenge. Our blocking up front was outstanding. Kyle (Griffith) and Anthony (Gugliuzza) again were outstanding.

"What made a big difference in that game was our special teams. Every unit was solid."

Injury-wise, the Wolfpack came out of last week fairly unscathed.

"We do have some younger kids that are banged up. But we are remaining fairly healthy," he said.

Bennett attributes the good health to the offseason effort.

"I'm proud of our kids and all the hard work they've put in," Bennett said.