Page 71 - Flathead Beacon // 8.20.14

FLATHEADBEACON.COM
FLATHEAD COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PREVIEW
AUGUST 20, 2014 | 71
High Expectations for Athletic Whitefish
QUARTERBACK LUKE MAY LEADS STRONG SQUAD OF RETURNING PLAYERS SEEKING ANOTHER PLAYOFF BERTH
T he summer workouts were packed. The first practices were full of energy. Following last season’s exciting success, the Whitefish Bulldogs are
clearly hungry for more.
“The staff is really excited. The kids did a
great job last year bringing back the tradition of working hard and expecting to win,” head coach Chad Ross said. “Now they have some pretty high expectations. We believe we will be able to compete in every game.”
The Bulldogs bring back several talent- ed seniors who are lead-
ing the way and provid-
ing even more excitement
around the football pro- gram as the season ap- proaches. Whitefish kick off the fall season at Havre on Aug. 30. The first home game is Sept. 12 against Belgrade.
One of the top return-
ing players in the entire
state is Luke May, now a
junior entering his third
season as the starting
quarterback. As a sopho-
more a year ago, White-
fish’s skilled QB passed for
1,562 yards and 11 touchdowns and only two interceptions. He also ran for 717 yards and another nine TDs, and helped guide White- fish to the quarterfinals of the Class A state playoffs.
The Bulldogs finished 7-2 in the regular season last fall and defeated Butte Central 43-12 in the first round of the playoffs, before Belgrade edged out a victory over the Bull- dogs in the next round, 27-20.
A few key players graduated, including Sean Foley, who erupted for a huge season and was recruited to play at the University of Montana.
Ross said he is eager to see new players step up and fill the important roles.
“Last year we really had seniors who took ownership in the program and turned it
around. They went out expecting to win ev- ery game,” he said. “They set that tradition and passed it on to the seniors-to-be.”
As a sophomore sharing carries last year, running back Chris Park piled up 304 yards and three touchdowns.
Jack Streibich, now a senior, is poised for a big season at wide receiver. Last season he caught 13 passes for 251 yards and two touch- downs.
Jed Nagler could also have a breakout year at wide receiver. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound ju- nior caught 14 passes for 240 yards last sea-
son.
“We’ve got a lot of
good three-year starters coming back,” Ross said.
Ross described this year’s team as fast and athletic, which could lead to an exciting offense.
“We’ve got the mind- set of being in shape and playing every down,” Ross said.
One of the key strengths of last year’s team was the turnover margin. The defense snatched 28 intercep- tions. The penalties also
came at a minimum.
Whitefish finished in second place in the
Northwestern A conference a year ago, going 3-1 in conference games. This will be the fi- nal year the conference is aligned the way it is following Libby’s move to Class B in 2015. That could mean there’s added motivation to claim the final Northwestern A crown. For Whitefish, that will require taking down a longtime rival.
Last fall Columbia Falls blanked White- fish 21-0. The two teams square off this year on Sept. 26 in Whitefish.
ABOVE: Whitefish junior Luke May undergoes drills
during the Bulldogs’ practice last week. GREG LINDSTROM | FLATHEAD BEACON
HEAD COACH
Chad Ross (5th season, 17-20)
2013 SEASON
8-3 overall (lost in Class A state quarterfinals to Belgrade, 27-20)
RETURNING
2014 SCHEDULE
WHITEFISH BULLDOGS
AUG. 30 SEPT. 5 SEPT. 12 SEPT. 19 SEPT. 26 OCT. 3 OCT. 10 OCT. 17 OCT. 24
2P.M. AT HAVRE
7P.M. AT BROWNING 7P.M. BELGRADE
7P.M. AT CORVALLIS 7P.M. COLUMBIA FALLS* 7P.M. AT POLSON
7P.M. LIVINGSTON
7P.M. AT FRENCHTOWN 7P.M. LIBBY
*HOMECOMING
STANDOUTS
Luke May, Jr., QB; Jack Streibich, Sr., WR/LB; Chris Park, Jr., RB/LB; Brian FauntLeRoy, Jr., RB/DB; Jed Nagler, JR, WR/LB; Luke Cardon, Sr., WR/DB
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