Wait is over for Wildcats

By JOE SOVA - Hungry Horse News

The year was 1975. Gerald Ford was the 38th president of the United States. The Pittsburgh Steelers won Super Bowl IX. Philadelphia claimed the Stanley Cup and Golden State won the NBA title. Cincinnati took the World Series in seven games over the Red Sox. Archie Griffin of Ohio State won the Heisman Trophy. Popular movies were "Jaws," "The Towering Inferno" and "Benji." Six of the top 10 television shows were comedies, topped by "All In the Family."

The Columbia Falls Wildcats, who are hosting a football playoff game for the first time since 1975, have been have been as close as "family" in recent games. But there is no feuding like there was between Archie Bunker and Mike Stivic. They have compiled a 6-2 record as a cohesive unit — playing as a team. The Cats have won three in a row, earning the home playoff contest with a 20-7 win over Whitefish on Friday night.

"That's what we've been working for ALL season," junior tailback Josh Wilson said. "It's do or die. We want to go far in the playoffs."

"To be in the playoffs is great, but to host one [game] is even better," senior quarterback Mackey Nolan said. "We have to execute, from the first play to the last, and play a full four quarters."

"It's 11 men playing together, that's all it is," senior running back/linebacker Michael Hader said. "It's 11 guys being aggressive.

"It's a clear slate. Our records don't matter now," Hader added. "We have to go in and do our job."

"It's unbelievable, it's awesome," sophomore linebacker Mitch Wassam said of being in the playoffs.

Hamilton, the third seed from the Southwestern A Conference, goes into Saturday's game with the same record. The Broncs won their first six games, then lost to Frenchtown, the No. 2 Southwestern team, in double overtime. Last Friday, Hamilton fell behind Dillon (Beaverhead County) 26-0 in the third period and the Beavers earned a 29-6 win to claim the conference title and a top seed in the playoffs.

Harold Hughes was the head coach when CFHS last hosted a playoff game — 32 years ago. The Cats and Livingston took in perfect 8-0 records. The Rangers from Park County emerged with a 20-0 victory to end CFHS' fine season.

This will be the Cats' first playoff appearance since 2004. Before that, there was a 13-year gap between postseason play for CFHS.

Tough opponent

Cats head coach John Thompson wants his team to make the best of the opportunity, but is quite aware that Hamilton brings in a quality team.

"They're very good. They're big and physical up front on both sides [offensively and defensively]," Thompson said. "They have a strong linebacking corps."

One of the goals of the Wildcat defense is containing tailback Ryan Turley, a 6-foot, 180-pound senior who earned all-state honors last season. Turley has scored 20 touchdowns in eight games, all but a couple on the ground. He's complemented by 6-0, 190-pound fullback Brady Anderson, who has both power and speed.

Hamilton will run out of the I-formation, with split backs and a single-back set.

"They really like to establish the run," Thompson said.

However, during a late 15-play, game-tying drive against Frenchtown, the Broncs threw 13 passes. Seniors Jason Schallenberger and Justin Bourne share time at quarterback for Hamilton.

"They do a good job on all facets," Thompson said.

Keys for Cats success include taking care of the football and avoiding turnovers.

"We have to make good positive yards on first down," Thompson said. "That's going to be crucial.

"Defensively, we need to make sure we take care of alignments and assignments. We'll be facing a power running game. They can wear you down," the coach added.

Weston's 15th year

In his 15th year as head coach, Steve Weston has guided the Broncs into state championship games four consecutive years, from 1997 to 2000. Hamilton won state crowns in '97 and '98.

"We think we're playing well," Weston said. "We're pretty good up front. We've been able to run the ball pretty well. We're able to throw. You have to defend the run and the pass. Hopefully we can be balanced enough to keep those Wildcats off balance."

The Broncs offense sputtered, at times, in the losses to Frenchtown and Dillon, both quality teams.

"Our inability to score in the red zone the last couple of weeks has hurt us," Weston said. "We have to put the ball in the end zone."

During the first six wins, Hamilton shut out four opponents. The Broncs run a 4-3 defense and Weston said they're able to "disguise some things" out of that.

Wildcat support

Despite inclement weather during most of Columbia Falls' home games, Wildcat fans have come out in droves to support the team.

"The fans have been supportive," Thompson said. "That's a credit to our kids. We're playing well."

The weather forecast for Saturday is for the temperature in the high-40s with cloudy skies and no precipitation is expected.

C-Falls wins Cat-Dog fight, 20-7

By JOE SOVA

Hungry Horse News

The Wildcats of Columbia Falls made the home fans a little nervous in last Friday's big Northwestern A Conference football game against rival Whitefish on Senior Night. It was not until just 7 minutes, 39 seconds remained that the Cats took the lead. Once they did, CFHS was on its way to a 20-7 victory and a first-round home playoff game.

Victory was sweet, since Whitefish had won 18 of the previous meetings between the teams.

Trailing 7-6 approaching the mid-point of the fourth quarter, the Cats faced a third-and-12 at the Whitefish 28-yard line. The choice of head coach John Thompson was a screen pass right to Josh Wilson. He grabbed the ice-cold football on the pass from Mackey Nolan, found open ground and broke a tackle to the Bulldog 8 for a 20-yard gain and a first-and-goal.

"Those kinds of plays help you win ballgames," Thompson said.

Going in motion, Chase Fairbank raced around the left end on a buck sweep, going untouched into the end zone for the Cats' first lead of the evening.

Nolan's important conversion kick made the score 13-7.

A hard, low kickoff by Nolan pinned the Bulldogs at their own 8-yard line. Going to the air on third-and-long, Fairbank broke up a pass that could have been completed.

After a Whitefish punt and return to the Bulldog 42, the Cats mounted a quick drive — keyed by a nice run by Steven Brennan to the 28-yard line. On a third-and-9 play, the buck sweep paid dividends again as speedster Scott Palmer turned the corner — thanks to a devastating block by Michael Hader — and raced 28 yards for another CFHS touchdown and a 20-7 lead with 4:14 to go in the game.

"In the fourth quarter we avoided second-and-long situations," Thompson said.

"Our line came off the ball better in the second half and we were able to run it a lot better," Wilson said after the win.

Ben Wells provided a great tackle on the kickoff. Whitefish picked up one first down on the possession, but the Cats took over on downs when Kelly Houle sacked Bulldogs quarterback Alex Elespuru on a fourth-and-10 with 2:30 remaining.

"That's huge for our football program," sophomore linebacker Mitch Wassam said of the win that gave the Cats a home playoff game.

Greased pigskin

On a cold, breezy evening, the teams combined for nine fumbles. Whitefish lost two and CFHS gave up the ball once.

"Our defense has been coming up with turnovers all year long," Thompson said.

Whitefish wasted no time mounting a drive. Mixing the run and pass nicely, the Dogs took the opening kickoff and marched 80 yards for a touchdown. Matt Starr carried most of the load. On a third-and-13 at the Cats 13-yard line, Byron Whitcomb took a direct snap, found a lane on the left side and scooted for the score. The kick gave the Dogs a 7-0 lead.

Midway through the second quarter, a high snap caused the only Cats turnover at their own 38. But the Dogs gave it right back on the next play when Wells recovered a fumble.

Moments later, a 46-yard scamper by Nolan moved the Cats to the Whitefish 14. Three plays later, Nolan scored on an eight-yard keeper. But the kick was wide and the Cats trailed, 7-6, with 2:42 left in the first half. That was the halftime score.

Thompson was pleased with the Cats defense did not allow a score after the first Whitefish possession.

"We tried a few different fronts and settled on one that was working," the coach said. "We played pretty well defensively throughout the game. We took care of responsibilities."

Thompson was also pleased with the Cats' blocking.

"Our guys did a pretty good job of taking care of their assignments. That helped us in the fourth quarter. We had some patience with our offense," he said.

CFHS had 269 yards of offense, 244 of that on the ground. Nolan accounted for 83 yards and Wilson added 80. Nolan was 2-for-9 passing for 26 yards.

"I had an off-night tonight, but it's nice to see the rest of the team pick me up," Nolan said.

After a fast start, Starr finished with 63 yards rushing and the Dogs had 129 as a team. Elespuru was 7-for-18 passing for 55 yards.

Eleven seniors played their final regular season home game for the Cats on Friday.

Whitefish 7 0 0 0 — 7

Columbia Falls 0 6 0 14 — 20

WF — Whitcomb 13 run (Nielsen kick)

CF — Nolan 8 run (kick failed)

CF — Fairbank 8 run (Nolan kick)

CF — Palmer 28 run (Nolan kick)