Glacier edges Big Sky; clinches top playoff seed
MISSOULA — With a last-second audible, Glacier senior quarterback Taylor Hulslander tossed a 22-yard strike to Logan Jones that vaulted the Wolfpack to a 21-10 Friday night Class AA football win over Missoula Big Sky and a No. 1 seed in the playoffs next week.
“I don’t know if the kids knew the situation, but we knew that we had to have it,” Glacier coach Grady Bennett said. “We wanted to win the game but not by one point less than we needed. I called a play more for the outside. Taylor saw the defense and audibled to Logan matched up on a linebacker one-on-one in the seam.”
The Wolfpack (8-2) finished the season tied atop the standings with Butte and Great Falls C.M. Russell, but needed to win this game by at least 11 points to prevent Helena High from winning a final tiebreaker in its game today against Helena Capital. The final strike put them over the top.
“It was one of those things you hate to do it,” Bennett said of throwing late with the lead. “We needed to to get the one seed. You’ve got to try to stick it in.”
The final score, and the history that came with it, overshadowed what was another fantastic performance by the Wolfpack defense. Glacier held Big Sky to 191 total yards and minus-18 yards rushing, mostly on account of a slew of sacks on quarterback Cole Baker by Devin Jeffries and the ravenous Wolfpack front.
“Devin tonight was unreal,” Bennett said. “He had to have four or five sacks and even more hurries. He was just all over the quarterback.”
The Glacier offense was powered by its run game, as Big Sky blanketed the Wolfpack perimeter players all night. Noah James scored on the ground twice, scoring from eight yards out in the first quarter and 15 in the third. James finished with 70 rushing yards on 12 carries.
“I thought both backs ran well,” Bennett said. “Noah made some good cuts and on his own found his way to the end zone. Both of his touchdowns were fantastic runs.”
Hulslander finished 13 for 31 passing for 142 yards. He did throw four interceptions. Kyle Griffith led the team with five catches for 76 yards.
This is the first time in more than 30 years that a Kalispell school has claimed the top seed in the football playoffs. The Wolfpack will likely host Helena Capital (5-4) in the first round.
“It’s a great accomplishment by these kids,” Bennett said. “To start off 1-2 and get written off, then win seven straight and accomplish what they’ve accomplished. I’m so proud of these kids.”
Glacier 7 0 7 7 – 21
Big Sky 0 10 0 0 – 10
First quarter
KG – Noah James 8 run (Kyle Griffith kick), 2:11
Second quarter
MBS – FG Nico Graham 26
MBS – Jay Owens 1 run (Graham kick), 6:52
Third quarter
KG – James 15 run (Griffith kick), 4:11
Fourth quarter
KG – Logan Jones 22 pass from Taylor Hulslander (Griffith kick), 0:05
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING – Glacier (34-179): James 12-70, Hulslander 9-53, Aaron Mitchell 8-33, Griffith 5-23, . Big Sky (26-(-18)): Owens 11-19, Scotty Morgan 5-10, Ryan Flin 1-(-1), Cole Baker 9-(-46).
PASSING – Glacier: Hulslander 13-31-4–142. Big Sky: Baker 19-39-0–209, Owens 0-1-0–0.
RECEIVING – Glacier: Griffith 5-76, Kalen Reed 2-27, Jones 1-20, James Cutler 1-9, James 2-7, Nic Cramer 3-3. Big Sky: Graham 6-90, Olan Donaldson 5-48, Ethan Donaldson 2-20, Owens 2-14, Alex Mustard 2-10.