Central A battle ground tonight in Havre

Every kid who plays high school football dreams of playing in that big game, under the lights, on a Friday night. Tonight, the players on the Havre High football team will get to see that dream become a reality as the Blue Ponies get set for the most important game of their season.

In a Central A showdown that has playoff implications, the fourth-ranked Belgrade Panthers invade Blue Pony Stadium on homecoming night to try and beat HHS for a third straight season, as well cement their status as the dominant team in the conference. Kickoff between the Ponies and the Panthers is set for 7.

After losing to Whitefish, Miles City and Sidney to start the season 0-3, HHS has rallied, defeating Glendive and Livingston the last two weeks 40-12 and 52-27, respectively. The Ponies now sit at 2-3 overall and are in the playoff hunt thanks to a 1-0 record in conference play

The Panthers come into tonight’s game with a 4-1 record and a number of impressive wins under their belt. Belgrade has knocked off No. 5 Butte Central, Miles City, Whitefish and last week, Lewistown by the score of 42-35. The Panthers only loss was in overtime to second-ranked Billings Central.

“We know that we are going up against a tough opponent,” HHS head coach Jason Christianson said. “But I think our kids have a lot of confidence. They know that if they play tough and play hard for four quarters that we are a good football team. I think they want to showcase that in front of our home crowd and more importantly, I think they want to prove to themselves that they can beat a quality football team.”

With just five teams in the Central A and three playoff spots available, Belgrade and Havre are well positioned to make the postseason after winning their respective conference openers. Yet, both teams have their eye on a conference championship and the first-round bye in the Class A State playoffs that comes with it. And to get it, a win tonight is essential.

“We want to get in the playoffs and try to win the conference championship,” Christenson said. “And we know that if we are going to do that we have to beat tough teams like (Belgrade).”

Leading the way for the Panthers will be senior quarterback Brayden Konkol, who earned All-State honors a season ago. Konkol is the key cog in the Belgrade offense and is the ideal dual-threat quarterback. In four games, Konkol has completed 60 percent of his passes for 902 yards to go along with eight touchdowns and four interceptions. As a runner, he has a team-high 562 rushing yards as well as 11 rushing touchdowns.

“I think (Konkol) is the best running back in the state of Montana to be honest with you,” Christenson said. “He is dangerous because he can throw the ball, too. He is a great athlete and he gets the majority of the rushes, so we have to try and make sure that he doesn’t hurt us too badly.”

When Havre has the football, the Ponies will trot out their own All-State signal caller in junior Dane Warp, who has been on a tear in recent weeks with 747 yards passing and 10 touchdowns combined in his last two games. On the season, Warp is connecting on 69 percent of his passes for 1,524 yards, 15 touchdowns and just three interceptions.

“We are going to try and put Dane in situations where he has quick reads and get the ball out of his hands because I think Belgrade will put a lot of pressure on him and our offensive line,” Christenson said. “He just needs to make good decisions and take good care of the football. Turnovers are going to be a key factor in this football game. “

The Ponies, who averaged just 15 points a game during their first three games, have found a rhythm offensively thanks to some tinkering with the offense and the emergence of Parker Filius and Isaac Warp in the passing game as well as Jase Stokes in the running game.

Filius has caught 27 passes for 436 yards and five touchdowns this season, all team highs. But over the past two weeks he has taken his play to another level with 16 receptions for 272 yards and seven total touchdowns against Glendive and Livingston. While Filius does a lot his damage from the slot, Isaac Warp has developed as the Ponies’ top threat on the perimeter. Warp is second on the team with 22 receptions for 391 yards and three touchdowns and is coming off his best performance of the season against Livingston with six catches for 121 yards and two scores.

“(Isaac) has really stepped up and he has just done a phenomenal job,” Christenson said. “He’s a smart receiver, he catches everything and he also has been doing a really good job of getting yards after the catch.”

The other thing the Ponies have been able to do the past couple of weeks is run the football. Jase Stokes has stepped in and provided an additional threat from the backfield, which was badly needed. The sophomore has tallied 127 yards rushing and a touchdown over the past two games. And as a team, HHS has rushed for over 100 yards in consecutive games after being held under 60 in the first three games of the season.

“It’s nice when we can run the football,” Christenson said. “When you have back like Jase Stokes or even Parker (Filius) it’s hard to bring those guys down, and it’s nice to have that.”

On the defensive side of the ball, the Ponies will be without Tyrell Pierce, an All-Conference defensive end last season that was the team-leader in sacks with three. With Pierce sidelined, Jose Emge will move out from defensive tackle to defensive end and Ruben Stewart with get the nod at defensive tackle for Emge.

Leading the way for the Havre defense will again be Stokes, who leads the Ponies in tackles with 51. Defensive end Jace Billy will also play an important role for HHS and is second on the team with 33 tackles. Filius will lead the way for the secondary and has 29 tackles to date as well as three forced fumbles.

And Havre’s defense will need to be up to the task against a Belgrade offense which has been a juggernaut so far.

But it will be an emotional night for the Ponies on both sides of the ball. Belgrade isn’t just a big rival, and it isn’t just homecoming that will have the Pony players jacked up, tonight, the Central A chamopionship does hang in the balance, and that is the ultimate goal for the Ponies and the Panthers.

“It’s going to be a street fight,” Christenson said. “We know that if we want to achieve our goal of winning a conference championship, we have to beat tough teams like this and hopefully we will come out on top.”

Tonight’s homecoming game between Havre and Belgrade kicks off at 7 inside Blue Pony Stadium. Havre returns to the road to face Lewistown next Friday.