2018 AA High School Football Power Rankings – Week 2
Howdy! Week one is in the books and outside of a 32-0 throttling of Helena Capital by Great Falls High, most of the teams that were favorites to win ended up winning. This week there are some dandy’s on the slate. Bozeman squares off with West while Helena High heads to Billings to tangle with the Broncs. We could very likely see any one of these teams in the chipper come season’s end. Giddy up!
#1 Bozeman (1-0)
Efficiency ruled for the Hawks in their win against Hellgate. Gunslinger Kris Brown displayed a next-level arm, the Hawk front seven made life miserable on Hellgate quarterback Rollie Worster and Joe Olson amassed 80 yards on only 8 carries. The Hawks are my early favorites to play for a state title this year.
#2 Billings Senior (1-0)
The win streak continues for the Broncs, but just barely. It’s almost impossible to think they’ll be as dominant as they have been the past two years, but a comeback win against a perennially stout team like Glacier is nothing to sneeze about.
#3 Flathead (1-0)
The Braves are the real deal. Running back Blake Counts was a stud behind a dominant Flathead offensive line and quarterback Jaden MacNeil dashed and darted all over the field in an eerily similar fashion to his current head coach and former Helena Capital quarterback Kyle Samson.
#4 Sentinel (1-0)
The Spartans scored early and they scored often. Rylan Ortt and Elias Dewaters each tallied three scores for Sentinel as they overpowered Skyview.
#5 Helena High (1-0)
The Bengals, led by new head coach Scott Evans and a stingy defensive effort, held CMR to only 72 yards of total offense.
#6 Billings West (1-0)
Lead by quarterback Josh Erbacher and receiver Jesse Owens the Golden Bears jumped out to a 35-0 halftime lead against Big Sky. The Eagles tacked on two scores late, but the game was already decided.
#7 Glacier (0-1)
Tough loss on the road against Senior. With 58 seconds left, Glacier looked to have broken Senior’s long win streak, but that all changed minutes later. Glacier will look to bounce back against CMR in Great Falls this Friday in what will likely be another physical battle.
#8 Great Falls High (1-0)
The Bison throttled Helena Capital at home, earning the program’s first win against the Bruins since 1990. QB Blake Thelen lead the way on offense with three touchdown passes and LB Tyson Krahe pitched on defense with a nifty fumble recovery for a score. Are the Bison this good or is Capital just down this year?
#9 Butte (0-1)
The Bulldogs went toe-to-toe with Flathead, but eventually got worn down by the Braves offensive line. Injuries jumped up and bit Butte in a couple positions during this game, so they could be scrambling heading into Week 2 against Hellgate.
#10 CMR (0-1)
The Rustlers couldn’t muster anything offensively against Helena High.A usually very effective offensive unit was held under 100 yards of total offense. They look to bounce back against another perennially dominant squad, the Glacier Wolfpack, this Friday.
#11 Capital (0-1)
The Bruins aren’t used to losing, let alone being shut out. They lost a bunch of talent on both the offensive and defensive fronts last year and that could be tough to overcome. They’ll try to bounce against a very tough Flathead squad this week.
#12 Hellgate (0-1)
Senior’s win streak continued Friday night and unfortunately so too did the Knight’s lengthy losing streak. Hellgate wasn’t necessarily overpowered as much as they were outmanned. The Knights moved the ball at times against the Hawks, but self-inflicted miscues made it tough to hang around against arguably the best team in the state.
#13 Skyview (0-1)
The new-look Falcons had a helluva time in Missoula with the Sentinel Spartans. Penalties hurt Skyview early and often last Friday. They face another stiff test at home against GFH this week.
#14 Big Sky (0-1)
The Eagles are trying to find their identity after the graduation of QB/RB/LB Levi Janacaro, who is now a Montana Grizzly. New starting QB Andrew Gardanier was picked off three times by West, but did tally a touchdown pass late in the game.
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About the Author
Minty Coach A proud native of Great Falls, Coach now resides in Missoula, however he's a Bobcat to the core.
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