Friday Night Lights: The Numbers Game

In Class C football in Montana, whether it is Six-Man or 8-man, enrollment and participation numbers matter. Normally, more kids means more success.

For Chester/J-I, numbers have never been an issue ... until this season. In 2014, the Hawks are playing 8-man football with just 12 players, and anyone associated with the sport will tell you, that's not easy.

But C/J-I and head coach Jim Vinson, a veteran of the Class C ranks, are making it work. Vinson said he was prepared for this season's numbers in Chester, and the Hawks are still looking like a power in the tough Northern C.

"We knew that this year was coming," C/J-I Vinson said. "We only have 20 boys in our high school and two in the senior class. But we have some very good athletes that are really competitive and love the game. They help make up for that."

The Hawk's football program is one that is rich in tradition. Last season, C/J-I was 7-3 and made it to the quarterfinals of the 8-man football playoffs. Despite, the lack of overall participants in the football program, Vinson said he believes they will continue to be competitive and will play 8-man football as long as possible.

"I know there are schools that have gone down," Vinson said. "But that is not something we want to do. We want to play 8-man football, and we will as long as we are competitive. We have a great coaching staff here, and we just know we are not going to get 60 kids to work with. But we have what we have and we need to make a football team out of it."

Yet, the lack of numbers does make being competitive, let alone making the playoffs difficult. When you have just four players on your bench, an injury or two can deplete the team and the idea of depth is more of a pipe dream than reality.

Even worse than the lack of depth is the inability to have enough players to field a full practice. The Hawks have only played 8-on-8 twice this season and it happened in each of their two games against Centerville and Belt.

"It was too bad that Fort Benton didn't play its varsity schedule," Vinson said. "That took away a chance for us to play against a full team because that is not something we can do in practice."

The Hawks may lack the sheer numbers of many of their opponents but there is a difference between quantity and quality. The Hawks, who have always been one of the smaller teams in 8-man football, have made up for their lack of numbers because of great players like Justin May. May, a junior, had 1,917 total yards last season and scored 22 touchdowns. This year, May is off to an equally strong start. In two games, he has rushed for 161 yards and scored four rushing touchdowns, while also hauling in seven receptions for 125 yards.

May is equally effective on the defensive side of the ball, where he has totaled 20 tackles, good enough for second on the team. He also has one pass breakup and an interception. There are others that consistently make plays as well such as quarterback Brandon Richter and running back Brett Henke.

The problem with the Hawks football program isn't necessarily with who is on the field now, the issue is if injuries do strike because C/J-I is simply not equipped to handle them.

"So far we have been relatively healthy, other than the normal football injuries," Vinson said. "But with only 12 kids it definitely makes staying healthy more important."

Thus far, the Hawks' season is off to a solid start, as they won their first game easily against Centerville 84-0 and received another victory when Fort Benton forfeited. Unfortunately, the Hawks were no match for Belt last Friday and were easily defeated 58-14.

Even with the loss to Belt, the Hawks are sitting at 2-1 overall and 2-1 in the Northern C. C/J-I is aiming for one of the league's four playoff berths and defeating Power-Dutton-Brady in the home opener this Friday in Chester will be essential.

The Hawks' offensive attack will revolve around May, Richter and Henke. Defensively, the key will be not giving up the big plays that were surrendered to Belt.

"We are a young team and we gave up a lot of points to Belt, but if it wasn't for a few plays here or there we could have been in it," Vinson said. "But we are really excited to play at home as we always are. We love playing at home and have had a lot of success there. So we are looking forward to being in front of our home fans for the first time this season."