Wildcats kick off grid season at Browning

By JOE SOVA

Hungry Horse News

If the Wildcats can keep their defense off the field more than they did last season, Columbia Falls could very well be a team bound for the Class A football state playoffs in late October.

CFHS, coming off a 4-4 season and a 3-3 mark in the Northwest A Conference, kicks off the season with three non-league games — beginning with a journey to Browning for a 7 p.m. game on Friday, Aug. 31.

Fifth-year head coach John Thompson sees five starters returning on both sides of the football, led by all-state junior tailback Josh Wilson. He ran for 1,119 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. But the Cats have a stable full of capable running backs and that should take the pressure off Wilson.

"Josh works extremely hard," Thompson said.

Those backs include seniors Scott Palmer and Michael Hader, who was converted to a ball carrier. Thompson said that's a switch that has been positive with everyone involved. Other backs are senior Steve Brennan, junior Stephen Baumgartner and two sophomores, John Woody and Curtis Wilson.

The Cats have run predominantly out of the I-formation, but they "need to mix it up and make us less predictable."

A lot of the versatility that Thompson hopes to see revolves around the quarterback position, where junior Mackey Nolan and sophomore Mitch Wassam are vying for the starting spot.

"Those two young men are very smart and they have knowledge of the game," Thompson said.

You will likely see the Cats runs some zone option plays this season.

Primary targets for Nolan and Wassam will be senior receivers Chase Fairbank and Jordan Thompson and juniors Tanner Perry and Quenton Hegel. Tight ends are junior Tanner Barth and senior Chase Grilley.

Coach Thompson said the Cats' line is coming along well, led by seniors Dustin Knoepfle and Jason Hatch. The other starters up front should be juniors Kodie Kenfield and Nathan Woods, and sophomore Kelly Houle.

CFHS will again go with a 3-5 defense and you'll see a lot of rotation of players, according to Thompson.

"Our defense played too much last year," Thompson said. "We gave offenses way too many opportunities."

When the conference season starts Sept. 21 at Ronan, the Cats better be ready to play 48 minutes of football in each outing.

"They understand that it's extremely important to play well against the best teams in the conference," Thompson said. "It's a one-shot deal and you make the most of it."

Thompson and other league coaches expect defending conference champion Libby and runner-up Polson are the front -runners. But the Cats should be in the mix for one of the three playoff spots from the Northwest A