Class AA Football Preview: Playoff-bound Glacier awaits Hellgate
The Daily Inter Lake | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 15 years, 2 months AGO
TODAY: Missoula Hellgate Knights (1-8) at Glacier Wolfpack (6-3)
KICKOFF: 7 p.m. at Legends Stadium
LAST WEEK FOR HELLGATE: The Knights sputtered on offense and dropped a 28-14 loss to Flathead at Legends Stadium.The Braves' defense held the Knights to only seven first downs and 169 totals yards. Senior Shawn Jensen carried the ball 20 times for 103 yards.
LAST WEEK FOR GLACIER: The Wolfpack earned its fourth win in five games and secured its first playoff berth in school history with a fortune-filled 35-31 win at Missoula Big Sky. Taylor Hart ran for two touchdowns and hiked his season total to 15. Senior BJ Corpron ran in an 11-yard score and had six tackles and a sack on defense. Senior lineman Kieran Hagan led in the trenches for Glacier. "That was a big, big game and for our guys to break through and get a win like that, that was just huge," Glacier coach Grady Bennett said.
LAST YEAR'S MEETING: The Wolfpack beat Hellgate 27-20 to grab its second overall victory.
PLAYOFFS: Four teams are sitting at 6-3 and each would like to grab the third or fourth playoff seeds, which means hosting a first-round game. The way it stands, Glacier has a chance. If Glacier beats Hellgate, then it depends on Bozeman beating Billings Skyview or Flathead beating Helena because of tie-breakers. Otherwise, the Wolfpack will likely travel to Billings Skyview or Helena. "I've told the kids all week, we just want to play our best game of the year on Friday and then see what happens," Bennett said. "We'll go wherever we need to go. But we just need to focus on playing our best football right now. We already know we're in, which is great, because now we can prepare and work on improving in all areas. That way it doesn't matter where we play or who we play."
The last time a AA playoff game was held in Kalispell was in 2005 when Flathead and Butte squared off. Flathead won 28-14.
TRAVELING STRONG: Playing on the road doesn't appear to be a weakness of Glacier's. Of the team's eight overall victories in three years, five have come on the road, including big time wins against Bozeman, Big Sky and Missoula Sentinel, which was ranked No. 3 at the time.
SEASON LEADERS: Quarterback Shay Smithwick-Hann has 1,562 yards passing and 575 yards rushing this season, which ranks him fourth in the state in total offense. The 6-foot-4 senior, who is also the second best punter in the league, has thrown nine touchdowns and seven interceptions and has eight rushing scores. Hart leads the team in rushing with 484 yards, followed by Wiley Fusaro's 453. Junior Bryan Chery is the top receiver with 526 yards. The defensive leaders are seniors Connor Fuller (90 tackles), Garrett Conners (seven sacks) and Justin Schenck (six interceptions).
LEAVING A LEGACY: Even though tonight's Senior Night game isn't the last game of the season, it could be the last gathering at Legends Stadium for the 29 seniors who have helped lay the foundation of Glacier's burgeoning program. "Every senior group leaves some sort of legacy," Bennett said. "I would just like to challenge them with what is their legacy going to be? How will the home fans remember them? These kids are so special. So we told them, go out and make a final imprint of what I think is an incredible legacy."
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