Flathead, Glacier gearing up for AA football season

By KATIE BROWN

The Daily Inter Lake

A fall-like chill has already begun creeping into the air in Northwest Montana and that can mean only one thing.

It’s football season.

Last year probably couldn’t have been more different for the football teams of Flathead and Glacier high schools.

Flathead lost in the Class AA state title game under the lights and snow at Billings West and Glacier was a near Cinderella story who surged to the playoffs after a rough start.

Both begin the season on Friday at 7 p.m., with Glacier on the road and Flathead at home.

Flathead hosts Bozeman at Legends Stadium and Glacier will travel to play Billings Skyview.

Flathead

“Last year was last year,” Braves coach Matt Upham said. “We’re not thinking about it.”

Upham is of course referring to Flathead’s 20-14 loss to Billings West at the state title game last November. Flathead was 9-4 for the 2018-19 season.

The first year head coach was on former coach Kyle Samson’s staff last year and has been part of Flathead’s coaching staff for the past four years.

Upham was hired after Samson departed for Montana Tech as the school’s new quarterback coach several months ago.

With Class AA divisional realignment taking effect this season, there’s even less room for error. And that includes too much reflection on the past.

“Right now it’s about one game at a time and getting better every week,” Upham said. “We’re just trying to get guys to step into their new role and get going.”

Flathead lost a host of graduating seniors from that almost-championship team, including Blake Counts, Anthony Jones and Jaden McNeil, all three of whom signed with Montana Tech.

“Those guys just don’t come around every year,” Upham said. “They’re tough to replace.”

But Upham is confident in his squad.

“I’m really excited,” he said. “I think we’ve got a great group of kids.”

While there may not be as much experience on the offensive side of the ball, there’s quite a bit on the defensive side.

Seven starters from last year are returning and Upham has a lot of faith in his linebackers, calling them some of his most consistent players.

Flathead returns first-team all-state selections senior offensive linebacker Max Anderson and senior defensive linebacker Tanner Russell.

Senior Cooper Smith is expected to start at quarterback. Smith didn’t get much playing time at that position last year, instead slotting in at wide receiver a few times.

Flathead, like all AA football teams, begins the season with two nonconference games. After that, every game counts.

“Our approach is the same, conference or nonconference,” Upham said. “Just to play with great effort on the field and continue to get better every week.”

Glacier

The Glacier Wolfpack’s 2018-19 season was a little bit like a roller coaster ride. After a 1-4 start, no one expected to see them in the playoffs. But Glacier won its last four games to extend its season, which ended with a loss to Helena High in the playoffs.

“For some reason the last two seasons we started slow,” Glacier coach Grady Bennett said. “We’ve been talking to the kids and we have to find a way to start better.”

One of the Wolfpack’s strengths this year, says Bennett, is the team’s depth. There are two players ready at each position, including a veteran group of juniors and seniors.

“It protects you when you have injuries,” Bennett said.

A notable absence from the Wolfpack offense is star runningback Preston Blain. Senior wide receiver Drew Deck, who earned second-team all state and first-team all-conference for his work last season, is what Bennett calls a “marquee” player, will likely be called upon to lead the Wolfpack offense.

“He’s a guy that we’re going to use all the field.”

Deck, an early commit to the University of Montana, scored seven touchdowns and had a team-high 774 receiving yards during the 2018-19 campaign.

Hank Nuce, a senior lineman, was an all-conference honorable mention last year.

“He’s a special player as a two-way player,” Bennett said. “He’s disruptive.”

Bennett is a supporter of the new AA football divisional format, which raises the stakes for games early on in the season.

“I’m excited about it,” he said. “I think having two eight team conferences will be great for the league.”

Right now, the Eastern AA has seven teams, with Butte moving to the West. Belgrade is a new addition to the East. Bozeman’s Gallatin High will join for the 2020-21 season.

Bennett says the new format opens the door for teams to shake things up come playoff-seeding time after Week 9.

“If you’re playing your best football, you have a chance to knock someone off,” Bennett said.

“That’s one of the things about football — every Friday night you have to be at your best. Prepare well and play well every Friday night.”