Speedy 'Cat heading to Griz

Braxton Reiten had one of the most remarkable senior seasons in the history of football in the Flathead Valley.

The Columbia Falls receiver hauled in 74 catches for 1,303 yards and 22 touchdowns.

According to the MHSA record books that’s the most receiving touchdowns in a single season by far, the old mark set at 17. It’s the second most receiving yards in a season and fifth most receptions.

“He’s an amazing slot receiver,” Columbia Falls coach Jaxon Schweikert said.

“He’s a mismatch for linebackers trying to cover him. He’s way too quick for linebackers. And he’s too strong for DBs to cover. He’s an extremely explosive, strong kid.

“He changes speeds extremely well. He stems his routes extremely well. He just turns kids inside out consistently. There’s more than just getting open. You have to get open at the right timing too. He learned all of those things and he worked really hard. He’s just a driven kid.”

Despite the big numbers, most schools got a late start on recruiting Reiten because of a shoulder injury during his junior season that limited him to just 20 catches. Hurting him further was his modest size, listed on the home roster at 5-foot-10, 175 pounds — small for a high-end recruit.

That didn’t stop him. Schweikert said Reiten ran routes every day of the offseason and often times worked out twice a day to get ready for the season.

In the season opener against Corvallis he had 99 yards receiving and an 80-yard kickoff return touchdown, totaling three scores on the day.

Proving those numbers weren’t a fluke, Reiten hauled in 130 yards receiving and had an 87-yard kickoff return in a mid-season victory over eventual state champ Dillon.

Many of the state’s smaller colleges took notice. Eventually so did the big ones.

Reiten will walk on at the University of Montana, forgoing offers from NAIA schools throughout the state. The choice for him was easy.

“As I was going along with the season, I kept in contact with the Griz coaches,” Reiten said. “I was looking for any chance to prove myself.”

Once that chance arose, Reiten didn’t let them down, helping his team to the state title game for only the second time in school history while putting up the most impressive numbers in the state for a non-quarterback.

Pretty big for a small player.

“Size was the biggest part of it,” Reiten said.

“That’s a big part of the game but, I’m not going to let that affect me.

“Size doesn’t matter. It’s a game of heart. I’m a kid that’s willing to put in the work.”

There have been some pretty successful walk-on athletes for the Griz over the years. Colt Anderson. Marc Mariani. Current top receiver Jerry Louie-McGee.

Given a chance, the next could be Braxton Reiten.

And given how hard he’s worked to get here, I wouldn’t count him out.