Even in the moment, the Week 2 football game between Glacier and Great Falls C.M. Russell had the feel of something big.

Each team took its shots. CMR, behind powerful running back Andrew Grinde and speedy receiver Bryce Cuchine, took a 31-20 lead deep into the third quarter. Glacier landed the final blow, scoring 29 unanswered points on its final four drives while forcing a fumble and an interception, to run away with the victory, though the substantial win never seemed easy.

The Wolfpack (12-0) cruised in its next nine games back to the state championship, its closest win a three-touchdown rout of Flathead in the final game of the regular season. The Rustlers (10-2) had a tougher slate, matching up twice with second-seeded Helena High on their route back to Kalispell, the last meeting with the Bengals coming in a 24-13 win in the semifinals last week in the Capital City.

No matter the path, it’s evident to everyone involved the two best teams in the state found their way to tonight’s Class AA state championship game. Action kicks off at 7 p.m. at Legends Stadium.

“I think they have as much talent as anybody in the state,” Glacier coach Grady Bennett said of CMR.

“(They’ve got) the best running back (in the state). (Grinde)’s a Division I player. He’s outstanding.

“They’ve got a good quarterback, (he’s a) good athlete, and a couple of really good receivers. Talent-wise, they’re as good as anybody.

“They’re a typical CMR team. They’re very disciplined on defense. They’re going to line up and execute and do what they’ve always done.”

Grinde, the state’s leading rusher, has amassed a school record 2,070 yards on the ground so far this year, 300 yards more than any other back in the state. He averages 172.5 yards per game, gaining 117 against Glacier earlier this season.

Grinde is just the fourth back in state history to eclipse the 2,000-yard mark in a season and has already put up the third-best year ever. The record is likely intact for the championship game, however, considering he’s still 317 yards from tying the record and 274 yards from moving into second place.

“He’s the full package,” Bennett said.

“When you look for a complete back, you look for a guy that not only has the running skills — and he’s a guy that’s tough to bring down — he’s also got great hips, vision, he can make you miss and he’s got the speed that if you do miss he can go the distance anywhere on the field. But, he’s also a very good blocker and a very good receiver out of the backfield. He’s really the complete package.”

The playcalling for CMR is likely to center around the 5-foot-11, 213-pound junior.

“I’m sure they’re going to want to feed Grinde the ball,” Bennett said.

“If they can get the run game going, it could be a long night for us.”

Cuchine and the Rustler receivers use the focus on Grinde to get open downfield on play action. That strategy burned the Wolfpack early in the first contest, leaving the offense off the field for all but one three-play drive in the first quarter, before Glacier’s defense was able to get play wrangled in the backfield in the second half.

“Our secondary had leverage issues,” Glacier senior free safety Tucker Rauthe said. “We’ve gotten a lot better at that. We’ll be able to play tighter on their receivers and shut down that pass game.

“Missed tackles was another big thing against CMR. Grinde broke quite a few tackles against us. That’s something we’ve worked on this season is gang tackles. (We need to) get them in the backfield and wrap up.”

The Glacier defense has been the best in the state this season, holding Big Sky to less than 100 yards of total offense before pulling its starters in the semifinal last week.

“We’ve got to get the offense the ball back quick, let them score, then go out and do work again,” Rauthe said.

“We have to let (the offense) get rolling, because that gets us rolling,” senior linebacker Josh Hill said.

That offense has been prolific all season, averaging more than 50 points a game, and is playing at record-breaking pace.

Wolfpack senior quarterback Brady McChesney has thrown 34 touchdowns this season and is one shy of tying the career state record for touchdowns passes. He’s thrown for 2,576 yards this season and is third all-time in that mark,

Junior running back Thomas Trefney is three rushing touchdowns shy of tying the season-best state mark and four total touchdowns shy of tying the record for most touchdowns by a non-quarterback in a season.

Logan Jones is second in the state this season in all-purpose yards, behind only Grinde’s historic run. That’s not to mention the seven other skill players for Glacier to score a touchdown on offense.

Glacier Wolfpack

Lineup

Offense

TE — (5) Devin Cochran, 6-0, 170, Sr.

LT — (59) Truman Pisk, 6-7, 265, Sr.

LG — (56) Charles Calobeer, 6-4, 210, Sr.

C — (50) Hunter Kauffman, 6-1, 230, Sr.

RG — (52) Harrison Kauffman, 6-3, 250, Sr.

RT — (77) Andrew Klamecki, 6-3, 288, Jr.

WR — (18) Sam McCamley, 6-2, 175, Sr.

WR — (87) Jacob Janke, 6-0, 175, Sr.

H-Back — (28) Logan Jones, 5-7, 165, Sr.FB — (4) Thomas Trefney, 6-0, 183, Jr.

QB — (1) Brady McChesney, 6-1, 175, Sr.

Defense

DE — (98) Andrew Harris, 6-3, 208, Sr.

NG — (52) Harrison Kauffman, 6-3, 250, Sr.

DT— (56) Charles Calobeer, 6-4, 210, Sr.

DE — (42) Bryce Brenden, 6-0, 196, Sr.

ILB — (44) Neal Wood, 5-11, 199, Sr.

OLB — (3) Tadan Gilman, 6-0, 180, So.

ILB — (45) Josh Hill, 6-0, 200, Sr.

CB — (8) Cain Boschee, 6-2, 170, Sr.

CB — (24) Caleb Jones, 5-9, 150, Jr.

SS — (2) Jacob Willich, 5-10, 180, Jr.

FS — (11) Tucker Rauthe, 6-0, 200, Sr.

Schedule

Aug. 29 — Glacier 31, Billings West 7

Sept. 5 — Glacier 49, C.M. Russell 31

Sept. 12 — Glacier 38, Bozeman 8

Sept. 19 — Glacier 68, Missoula Hellgate 13

Sept. 26 — Glacier 55, Butte 29

Oct. 3 — Glacier 49, Missoula Big Sky 13

Oct. 10 — Glacier 59, Missoula Sentinel 7

Oct. 17 — Glacier 55, Helena Capital 14

Oct. 24 — Glacier 58, Great Falls High 0

Oct. 31 — Glacier 27, Flathead 7

Playoffs

Quarterfinals

No. 7 — Glacier 58, Billings West 8

Semifinals

No. 14 — Glacier 42, Missoula Big Sky 8

C.M. Russell Rustlers

Lineup

Offense

TE — (80) Kam Mims, 6-0, 200, Sr.

LT — (74) Bryan Wilkes, 6-3, 252, Sr.

LG — (72) Noah Danielson, 6-1, 217, Jr.

C — (61) Kail Williams, 5-10, 191, Sr.

RG — (73) Ryan Millhollin, 5-11, 204, Sr.

RT — (58) Casey Cleveland, 6-0, 264, Sr.

SE — (18) Zach Harper, 5-11, 152, Sr.

SB —(3) Bryce Cuchine, 5-10, 158, Sr.

H-Back —(6) Karl Tucker II, 6-1, 205, Jr.

TB —(34) Andrew Grinde, 5-11, 213, Jr.

QB —(7) Dallas Farren, 5-11, 155, Sr.

Defense

WLB — (51) Alex Nicholson, 5-11, 160, Sr.

DE — (90) Payton Sexe, 6-0, 207, Sr.

NG — (76) KJ Klingaman, 6-0, 250, Sr.

DE — (94) Jordan Wanner, 6-4, 230, Sr.

SLB — (44) Jed Engebretsen, 6-0, 206, Sr.

MLB — (37) Sean Morris, 5-11, 202, Jr.

Rover — (42) Jake Jarrett, 5-10, 205, Sr.

CB — (16) Ethan Zaremski, 5-10, 166, Sr.

SS — (35) Blake Miller, 5-10, 160, Sr.

FS — (9) Chase Marmon, 5-9, 158, Sr.

CB — (30) Evan O’Neill, 5-10, 173, Sr.?

Schedule

Aug. 29 — CMR 33, Missoula Sentinel 28

Sept. 5 — Glacier 49, CMR 31

Sept. 12 — CMR 31, Butte 13

Sept. 19 — CMR 23, Helena Capital 0

Sept. 26 — CMR 44, Flathead 14

Oct. 3 — CMR 28, Billings Skyview 21

Oct. 10 — Helena High 21, CMR 7

Oct. 17 — CMR 24, Billings Senior 14

Oct. 24 — CMR 42, Billings West 31

Oct. 31 — CMR 19, Great Falls High 12

Playoffs

Quarterfinals

Nov. 7 — CMR 28, Billings Senior 21

Semifinals

Nov. 12 — CMR 24, Helena High 13