TERRY COLUMN: Braves focused on future
First impressions are the most lasting.
Flathead football made quite the impression last Friday, rolling into Great Falls and thumping early state title favorite C.M. Russell 28-7 on its home turf.
The win was as dominating and thorough as the score indicated, the Braves forcing CMR — a team that returns hefty numbers from a group that made the state title game last season — into four turnovers while compiling nearly 300 yards of offense and holding defending Gatorade state player of the year Andrew Grinde to just 85 yards rushing.
As first impressions go, the Braves caught the attention of quite a few football fans around the state.
“It’s big,” Flathead coach Kyle Samson said of his team’s start to the season.
“We’ve been preparing for that first game for a long time. All summer.
“We’ve talked about it since the schedule came out. We knew it was going to be a big challenge going up against a team that was in the state title game last year.”
The win has bolstered a new enthusiasm in Flathead football, one that seemed dormant during a stretch of six losing seasons entering this fall.
However, early wins have come before. The Braves won their first game each of the last two seasons, finishing 3-7 on the outside of the playoffs each year. The last time Flathead made the playoffs was as an eighth seed after a 4-6 regular season in 2011. Its last winning season came in 2008, in a 6-5 season during Brock Osweiler’s senior campaign.
That is why the current coaching staff isn’t cleaning out the trophy case just yet.
“It’s only one game, we understand that,” Samson said.
“It was a great start for us. I think it gives us a lot of confidence going into this second game.
“At the same time we know we have to regroup this week for a new challenge.”
That new challenge is Helena High, ranked as the best in the state in a preseason poll by Class AA coaches, and fresh off a 23-17 victory over defending state champion Glacier.
The Bengals fell short of a championship last year, losing in the semifinals to CMR, a team it had beaten earlier in the season. The sting from that loss, and a stingy defense, is what has many choosing Helena as a title favorite.
“They’re a very good football team,” Samson said.
“Watching them on tape, they’re very talented, they’re coached well. It’s going to be a great challenge. We’ve got to go down there and give it our best effort”
Should Flathead be able to pull out another win this week, the sky could be the limit for a team with loads of potential. Knocking off title contenders in back-to-back weeks to start a season has a way of shifting the title focus the other direction.
For now, the Braves’ coaching staff is focusing on smaller goals. They’re leaving the dreams and hopes to the fans and alumni.
“It really shows our kids that the hard work we did in the offseason really paid off,” Samson said of the win at CMR.
“Obviously, it’s great for our fans. We had great support (in Great Falls). People are excited about Flathead football again. It’s a real testament to how hard the kids worked.
“We just want to keep getting better. That’s what we’ve preached to our kids. We’ll let the games take care of themselves.
“It’s a big step for us. We can do it. We just want to keep getting better everyday and hopefully that will move our program forward.”
Joseph Terry has worked at The Daily Inter Lake since 2012 as a sports reporter and columnist. He can be contacted by phone at (406) 758-4463 or by email at jterry@dailyinterlake.com