Off To A Great Start

The Glasgow Scotties crushed Glendive 47-14 at Scottie field on Friday, Sept. 6, in the first game of the season.

The Scotties played great football on both sides of the line throughout the entire game and earned an easy win. Coach Greg Liebelt was pleased with the result.

“It was a great victory for us,” Liebelt said. “We had a decisive win and we were able to have a lot of success, both on the ground and in our passing game.”

The team quickly took control of the game, scoring its first touchdown five minutes after kickoff. On the 5 yard line, Junior quarterback Jason Thibault found senior Jonathan Koessl on an option right pass after reading the defense. Koessl’s speed made the difference and he finished the job, despite the tackle of a Glendive defender. The extra-point by Scotties’ kicker Tanner Roness was blocked, and it was 6-0 for the Scotties.

But the Red Devils of Glendive responded shortly after with a 68-yard run to bring them to Glasgow’s 5 yard line. The next play was a short pass over the defense to tie the game at 6-6.The two-point conversion attempt failed. The score would not change until the end of the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Glasgow took the lead once more. Ten yards away from the goal line, the Scotties went for an 11-yard run with the speedster Koessl who, despite three Glendive defenders on him, still managed to break away to find the Promised Land. An incredible play by Number 33. The senior proved once again that he will be a key player for the Scotties this season.

This touchdown seemed to be too much to take for Glendive, which fell apart little by little. Glasgow went on to score two more touchdowns before halftime. The first one came from an incredible 40-yard run by Thibault to add seven more points to the scoreboard after a successful kick by Roness made it 19-6. Then, with 30 seconds left in the half, Thibault threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to senior receiver Chase Fossum to make it 25-6 Glasgow. The first half would end on an interception by Koessl to stop Glendive in the last seconds of the quarter.

Fans, pleased with the Scotties first half, returned to the stands with hands full of nachos and hot dogs to watch the end of Glendive’s nightmare. The Scotties were simply unstoppable Friday night.

Koessl started the third quarter with a kickoff return all the way to the 42-yard line. The Scotties would lose possession but still score thanks to Koessl, who tackled Glendive’s quarterback in the end zone for a safety to make it 27-6. Not long after, Thibault got his second touchdown of the game with another amazing 45-yard run to finish the third quarter 33-6.

Glendive was drowning under the Scotties’ offensive waves and could not do anything against the always-great Glasgow defense. Glasgow scored another touchdown to open the fourth with a 24-yard pass by Thibault to senior Lachlan Vaira, and Roness converted the extra point to make it 40-6. With five minutes left in the game, Glendive found the energy to score on a beautiful 30-yard pass, to which the receiver added a 20-yard run all the way to Glasgow’s end zone. The 2-point conversion was completed and the score was now 40-14.

But not for long! Glasgow scored another touchdown by Fossum after a 16-yard run to make it 47-14, with another successful conversion by Roness.

Glendive’s defense was simply overwhelmed by the Scotties’ depth of play. The coaching staff did a wonderful job alternating runs and passes to destabilize the Red Devils and can be proud of their players for getting the job done. The team showed solid skills offensively and was impressive defensively as well. As for Glendive, the team was better than last year, according to Liebelt.

“They were definitely improved from last year,” he said. “some nice plays, running and catching the ball, but overall they were not able to match up with us as far as inside running game and quarterback/receivers passing game. We had a stronger team across the board."

Asked about what made the difference Friday night, coach Liebelt focused on the importance of experience and team spirit.

“I believe that having a lot of returning players with experience helps us a lot,” Liebelt commented. “We have a very athletic team, and kids know each other so well that I believe it showed on our execution Friday night.”

Seven players will get back on the team after being put aside for missing practices. Coach Liebelt said that some changes have to be expected for the next game. At practice, the Scotties will work on improving their execution and also their defense on kickoff or punt situations.

The team will travel to Baker for its first away game of the season next Friday, Sept. 13. A team “well-coached,” according to Liebelt. “This will be a tougher opponent for us.”

The next home game for Glasgow will be Friday, Sept. 20, against Shelby. This game will be the homecoming game.