Braves bump Bozeman
By EVAN MCCULLERS
The Daily Inter Lake
Flathead was far from perfect on Friday night against Bozeman.
A botched snap on an attempted punt gifted the visitors a score.
Quarterback Taylor Morton had his lowest passing output of the season.
The Braves’ offense sputtered at times in the second half.
None of it mattered.
Just like a week before against Glacier, Flathead (3-2) did more than enough to make up for its miscues in a 17-7 homecoming win over Bozeman (3-3).
“That’s exciting, because we know that we can keep getting better,” Flathead head coach Kyle Samson said. “We are going to keep getting better.
“We always talk about (how) our best game is going to be our next game. There’s some great things you did, and we’ll learn from the film on some things we didn’t do as well. Moving forward, we’re just super excited about the potential of this team.”
Bozeman’s only score of the game came off a two-play drive that started at the Flathead 3-yard line thanks to a snap over punter Anthony Jones’ head in the fourth quarter.
The Braves’ defense slowed the Hawks’ air raid attack all night by forcing short passes and virtually shutting down their running game.
Quarterback Kris Brown threw for 244 yards, but Bozeman managed just 37 yards on 20 rushes.
Flathead also avoided the big play, save for a 47-yard pass in the closing minutes that deflected off two Braves and into the waiting arms of Bozeman’s Logan Kleinhans.
“That stuff is going to happen sometimes, but I was so proud of the way they responded,” Samson said. “The defense played awesome.
“They did a great job getting sacks and turnovers. Hats off to my defensive staff and our defensive players.”
The Flathead offense took exactly the opposite approach, keeping the ball on the ground for most of the game and wearing down Bozeman’s undersized front.
As the passing game struggled all night to find its rhythm — Morton was 10-23 for 106 yards — the Braves’ deep stable of running backs ate time off the clock and kept the chains moving.
Take away the bad snap on the punt, which Jones fell on for a 28-yard loss, and Flathead rushed for 198 yards on 42 carries, an average of nearly five yards per carry.
“We just have to trust each other in situations like that,” offensive lineman Hunter Wellcome said. “When the pass game’s not working well, we’ve got to switch it up to run. We’ve just got to do what we’ve got to do.”
Flathead has split carries fairly evenly between Blake Counts and Jon Baker to this point in the season, but it was Counts who carried the load Friday night.
The junior rushed 26 times for 131 yards and accounted for both Flathead touchdowns with short runs in the first half.
“(The offensive linemen) were kicking butt all night,” Counts said. “It was easy.”
Flathead, playing its first home game at the newly renovated Legends Stadium, ended an eight-year losing streak for the second week in a row. The Braves had beaten neither Glacier nor Bozeman since 2008, Brock Osweiler’s senior season.
“I didn’t even know that, so that’s great,” Samson said. “This team is making some great memories and doing some great things. I think it just speaks to the program. We’re coming along. We’re getting back to where we need to be.
“Our goal is we want to keep getting better and peak at the right time.”
But while the Braves are enjoying the history they’re making as it comes, they have bigger aspirations this year.
The victory over Bozeman placed Flathead squarely in the middle of playoff contention in Class AA with four games still to play. With two wins over those four games, the Braves would be in prime position to earn a postseason berth after missing out on the playoffs last year.
“Flathead hasn’t had the most success in football the past several years,” Wellcome said, “but I believe this 2017 class is going to bring it back.”
They’ll have an opportunity to earn one of those needed wins on Thursday in Missoula, as Flathead travels to play two-loss Big Sky on a short week.
“(The Bozeman win is) big momentum,” Counts said. “We go down and play Big Sky, and they’re a good team, but we’re also a great team.”
Bozeman 0 0 0 7 — 7
Flathead 7 7 0 3 — 17
First Quarter
F — Blake Counts 1 run (Alex Coulter kick), 6:33
Second Quarter
F — Counts 4 run (Coulter kick), 4:24
Fourth Quarter
F — Coulter 48 field goal, 11:43
B — Joe Olson 2 run (Cullen Henley kick), 6:14
Boz Flat
First Downs 15 19
Rushes-Yards 20-37 43-170
Passing Yards 244 106
Comp-Att-Int 21-39-1 10-23-0
Fumbles-Lost 0-0 0-0
Penalties-Yards 11-79 7-97
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Bozeman, Kris Brown 12-18, Ryan Lonergan 1-9, Joe Olson 3-9, Tetrault 2-6, Logan Kleinhans 2-(-5). Flathead, Blake Counts 26-131, Jonathan Baker 6-34, Jaden MacNeil 3-17, Trae Vasquez 3-12, Taylor Morton 4-4, Anthony Jones 1-(-28).
PASSING — Bozeman, Kris Brown 21-39-1-244. Flathead, Taylor Morton 10-23-0-106.
RECEIVING — Bozeman, Logan Kleinhans 9-134, Korben Cossins 3-39, Ryan Lonergan 3-22, Joe Olson 2-7, Tyler Dobie 1-33, Ryan Simpson 1-7, Latrell McCutcheon 1-5, Kris Brown 1-(-3). Flathead, Anthony Jones 4-72, John Hinchey 2-14, Jonathan Baker 1-7, Kaden Wills 1-6, Austin Demars 1-5, Blake Counts 1-2.