Take it to the bank. These six teams will win football state championships this weekend
Parity remains a foreign concept in Idaho high school football.
The season ends each fall with largely the same powerhouses vying for a championship banner — the Highlands, the Bishop Kellys and the Snake Rivers of the world.
But the state championship round received an injection of fresh blood this year.
Long a doormat in East Idaho, Rigby qualified for the first title game in program history. Kuna only had won a single playoff game since 1998 entering the year, yet here it is in its first 4A final.
The shakeup extends to the smaller classifications, too, where Sugar-Salem aims for its second title, McCall-Donnelly seeks its first championship and Lost Rivers reached the finals in its first year as a co-op between Butte County (zero titles) and Mackay (eight titles).
A single year does not make a trend. But this weekend’s championship round gives hope to all the long-struggling programs out there. Dreaming of a state title isn’t crazy. It isn’t impossible. It’s actually obtainable.
5A: Rigby vs. Coeur d’Alene at Kibbie Dome, 2 p.m. MT Sat.
This marks the first of two regular-season rematches in a state championship game this weekend.
No. 2-ranked Coeur d’Alene (9-2) held on to beat Rigby 31-26 in Coeur d’Alene in the season opener when Colbey Nosworthy thwarted a potential game-winning drive with an interception in the end zone with just over a minute left on the clock.
The victory marked the debut of Coeur d’Alene junior quarterback Jack Prka (3,337 yards, 27 TDs), who looks like the next great Vikings quarterback in a long line of them. He’s grown immensely since Week 1, but so has Rigby.
The No. 5-ranked Trojans manhandled defending state champ Rocky Mountain on its home field last week to reach the Kibbie Dome. Their offensive line also had little trouble with the Vikings back in Week 1 as quarterback Keegan Thompson and running back Brigham Youngstrom ran for a combined 297 yards.
Size always travels. And Rigby already has pulled one upset, so why not another?
Rigby 24, Coeur d’Alene 21
4A: Kuna vs. Blackfoot at Holt Arena, 6 p.m. Sat.
Second-ranked Blackfoot (11-1) bottled up explosive Nampa quarterback Donavon Estrada last week. Now the Broncos get to do it all over with Sean Austin at the helm of No. 1-ranked Kuna (12-0).
The Kavemen field a bounty of weapons, evidenced by the 70 points and 766 yards of offense they hung on Middleton, one of 4A’s best defenses, in the semifinals. They are at their best when Austin can buy time, wait for defenses to break down and then pick them apart.
That requires a large amount of Austin’s on-field magic. But Kuna coach Sherm Blaser believes he can create a few opportunities for his quarterback as well.
“I think we can attack them formationally and put them in positions to our benefit,” Blaser said. “So if we put receivers in certain spots and running backs in certain spots and move some of those pieces around, due to their defensive structure, it forces them to answer a certain way.
“As long as we can get that formula correct, Sean’s going to be able to make some plays, along with the rest of our guys. And we’ve got some really good skill guys.”
That’s the one trait I keep coming back to with this historic Kuna team. The Kavemen are on the verge of their first title since 1991 because they have talent at every position, leaving no weak spots for opponents to exploit.
Blackfoot, a winner of 10 straight, will pose the toughest challenge yet. Teegan Thomas shredded the Nampa defense for 224 rushing yards and four TDs a week ago. The Broncos’ play-action passing game makes them a threat on every down. And Blackfoot coach Stan Buck has seen it all in his 28 years with the Broncos, including Blaser in an Eagle uniform in the 1998 4A title game. (Blaser and Eagle won.)
But Kuna has the depth, playmakers and swagger to go down in history. And they’ll do it Saturday.
Kuna 33, Blackfoot 28
3A: Homedale vs. Sugar-Salem at Holt Arena, 3 p.m. Sat.
Homedale coach Matt Holtry said all the right things for the past year. But once the Trojans (11-0) secured a rematch with Sugar-Salem (9-1) for the state title, he admitted the Diggers remained on his mind all year.
“We talk to the kids all the time about focusing on ourselves, control what we can control and everything else will take care of itself,” Holtry said. “But in the back of your mind, absolutely. You get a chance to redeem yourself and have another opportunity at a great team and in a state championship game.”
The matchup Homedale, Sugar-Salem and everyone around the state predicted — the teams tied for No. 1 in the final state media poll — finally comes to fruition Saturday. We can only hope for a game half as exciting as last year’s, when Sugar-Salem held on for a 30-22 victory with a fourth-and-goal stop at the 1-yard line with 8 seconds left.
Defenses dominated last year’s matchup as Sugar-Salem forced five turnovers and Homedale created three. Expect more of the same as Homedale fields 3A’s top defense (6.0 ppg) and Sugar-Salem has the classification’s second-best defense (7.1 ppg)
Both teams feature loads of returning talent from a year ago. Homedale quarterback Daniel Uranga leads a team with seven starters back on both sides of the ball. And Sugar-Salem quarterback Tanner Harris, the reigning 3A All-Idaho Player of the Year, is one of five returning All-Idaho players for the Diggers.
But in the end, the friendly confines of Holt Arena and a tougher schedule will pay off with back-to-back titles for Sugar-Salem.
Sugar-Salem 27, Homedale 22
2A: McCall-Donnelly vs. West Side at Eagle, 1 p.m. Sat.
Three Wing-T teams have run into McCall-Donnelly and its vaunted defense. And all three have gone home with a loss.
The second-ranked Vandals (11-0) will try to go 4-0 against the power-run offense as they take on No. 3 West Side (10-1) in the second championship game in program history.
North Fremont found some success on the ground against McCall last week, racking up 256 of the 476 rushing yards the Vandals have allowed all season (43 yards per game). But McCall coach Lee Leslie wasn’t bothered by that. In fact, he wanted North Fremont to keep the ball on the ground.
By striking quickly on offense behind quarterback Pete Knudson (3,249 total yards, 46 TDs) and receiver Noah Ormsby (1,160 yards, 18 TDs), the former Boise Burn coach turned the Wing-T against itself, forcing North Fremont to drain the clock as it tried to play catch-up.
“Sometimes you’ve got to know how to play those teams,” Leslie said. “The first thing I have to do is keep my offense scoring and driving so they feel like they have to catch up to us.
“We have done that in every playoff game. We’ve jumped right out on our opponents. As long as we’re hitting big plays and getting our studs the ball, I think we’ll be fine.”
And with the size advantage McCall-Donnelly has across the field, it’ll be more than fine. It’ll hang its first state championship banner.
McCall-Donnelly 28, West Side 15
1AD1: Lost Rivers vs. Prairie at Kibbie Dome, 8 p.m. MT Fri.
No. 1-ranked Lost Rivers (11-0) and its dominant run game (352 yards per game) head north to face No. 2-ranked Prairie (10-0) and its explosive offense.
Prairie fields the state’s top offense at 65.6 points per game and has topped 60 points seven times. Making the trip even tougher is the game’s location at Prairie’s home away from home. The Pirates of Cottonwood are 9-0 at the Kibbie Dome since 2014, including state championship victories in in 2014 and 2017.
Prairie 46, Lost Rivers 40
1AD2: Carey vs. Lighthouse Christian at Holt Arena, noon Sat.
Carey has dominated the 1A Division II classification the past three years, winning back-to-back state titles and 34 of the last 35 games, including a championship over Lighthouse Christian last year.
The only team to blemish that record? No. 1-ranked Lighthouse Christian (10-0) with a 36-0 shutout on Sept. 13, the first shutout of the Panthers since 2013.
It’s always hard to beat a team twice. No. 3-ranked Carey (10-1) will narrow the gap, but not enough to hand the Lions their first loss.
Lighthouse Christian 34, Carey 20
