Charlo senior quarterback Chico Stipe looks strong in scrimmage

CHARLO - Charlo head coach Mike Krahn said he had been blowing the whistle too early during practice. At least too early for his football team's defense to truly understand how hard it is to bring down senior quarterback Chico Stipe. They learned their lesson last Thursday during the Purple and White scrimmage.

"A lot of times, kids think they got him and they don't," Krahn said. "He's a great athlete, he's really knowledgeable about football. He watches a lot of film, any film that the coaches get. It's like having an extra coach."

Stipe helped showcase an offense that is built around speed by running for two touchdowns, but Krahn said the defense naturally looked sharper, but that's just the nature of an early season scrimmage.

"They've seen the plays for two weeks," he said. "We can't really judge where we're at until we play someone else. They looked good in the scrimmage."

While the kids on defense knew what to expect, the offense impressed Krahn with how much knowledge they retained from the play book.

"They had a good understanding of the play book," Krahn said. "That has go to be credited to the work they put in during the summer."

Players attended two camps and attended Monday Night Football, an open field and weight lifting session in the summer. They also showed up to practice in tip-top shape.

"I think they're in the best shape I've every seen them in," Krahn said. "And they came into [fall practice] that way."

While there were little things that the team needs to polish up on, Krahn also said he wants to focus on special teams before the first game and make sure that his team is finishing plays.

"With this speed we have even when things break down," Krahn said, "we could have big plays on offense."

Charlo will open the season at 4 p.m. on Friday at Seeley.