The most hyped game in Class AA over the weekend was rightfully the one between #1 Capital and #2 C.M. Russell, a matchup between two teams who are a notch above everyone else in the state. The game, a 28-26 win by Capital, certainly lived up to the hype.
But there was also a big game played in Missoula between Glacier and Sentinel, two teams trying to claim the top spot in that second tier of teams. The Wolfpack entered the game having already won three games this season, the most wins in the three-year history of the program, and showed that they now have to be considered a legitimate playoff contender with a 24-17 win on the road.
"It's a huge step," said Glacier head coach Grady Bennett, who admitted last week that he thought his team was a year behind Sentinel in the building proccess.
"Coming on the road and playing a very good football team like Sentinel and breaking through with a win is just huge. We've done this twice this year and I think it's just the next step in our program of playing a top-five team, a team that's very good and has some great athletes, and breaking through with a win. It's just huge for the kids, huge for their confidence, huge for our program."
Sentinel's relentless defense shut down Glacier's passing game, but timely big plays by the offense and an opportunistic defense made the difference for the Wolfpack.
"[Sentinel] Coach [Pete] Joseph has done a great job with that program and wow, those guys had a great game plan on defense to stop our passing game," said Glacier senior quarterback Shay Smithwick-Hann, who saw his team improve to 4-2.
"It's a big win for us. We've never been on a win streak before. This is our second win in a row. its the first time for us."
Sentinel, who is also 4-2, opened up the game with big play after big play and raced out to a 14-7 lead midway through the first quarter.
But the game turned on two plays in the third quarter. The first one occurred with Glacier still down 14-7.
After recovering a fumble on Sentinel's 27 yard line, the Wolfpack went for the jugular. Smithwick-Hann threw a wide receiver screen pass to Colter Hanson, who then threw the ball himself to a wide open George Werk in the end zone.
"I think the turning point of the game was when we got that fumble right before the trick play," said Smithwick-Hann.
"It's just called double pass. We put Colter Hanson who's our JV quarterback and throws the ball well, we just put him back there and our slot guy goes up to fake the block and then slips past them. We were lucky Colter is a good quarterback and threw the ball well, and that was a big turning point for us."
Bennett, a former University of Montana quarterback, had the Sentinel defense completely fooled by the play call.
"Everybody has a few trick plays in their bag. We try to make sure we work on those a little bit each week and just make sure we have a period where we practice those just in case. I don't know, I just go with the feel of the game. In certain situations you just feel like it's a good time to run it. That was right after a big turnover, so we just rolled the dice there a little bit to see if we could get it, and sure enough the kids executed it very well."
That play tied the game at 14. The second second play put the Spartans on the ropes.
On the last play of the third quarter, Wolfpack junior linebacker Boyce Ballard returned a Riley King interception 35 yards for a touchdown, giving Glacier a 24-14 lead. It was one of four interceptions on the night for Glacier, who got another huge one from linebacker Brendan Hagan as the Spartans were driving for the tying score in the final minute.
"Our D did a great job, said Smithwick-Hann. "We were worried at the start a little bit. They gave up some quick points, but they played well at the end and I think that was the best game they've played all year. Our offense struggled in the first half. We picked it up in the second [half] thanks to a pick-six. That was the first time in Glacier High School history that a defender scored a touchdown so we're excited about it."
There have been a lot of firsts for Glacier this year - first home win, first win over cross-town rival Flathead, first winning streak - and first time in the playoffs also appears likely. The rest of the schedule is favorable, minus a trip to Capital, and the Wolfpack have now beaten two of the seven 4-2 teams in Class AA.
"It sets you up," said Bennett when asked how important having the tiebreaker against Bozeman and Sentinel is. "It sets you up for a great shot now at the playoffs. As you get these big wins and look at the how the records stack up against the other teams, it does put you in a nice position for those playoffs and that's everybody's goal."
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