Pony Extra: No need to panic in Pony land

After a Week 3 loss last season, the Green Bay Packers’ quarterback Aaron Rodgers famously told fans to “R-E-L-A-X.” Now, I am going to say the same thing to Havre High football fans following the Blue Ponies' loss to Whitefish.

So take a deep breath Havre, one non-conference game does not make a season, not even close.

Yes, HHS was outplayed in all three phases of the game in a 44-12 loss Saturday inside Blue Pony Stadium and, yes, the BNSF trophy will remain with the Bulldogs for the fourth straight year, but in the end, Havre’s season won’t be defined by what happened Saturday, it will be defined by how the Ponies respond to it.

Every team faces adversity, even the great ones. Unfortunately for the Ponies, they are going to have to face their adversity a little sooner than they hoped. But, in the grand scheme of things, the loss to Whitefish doesn’t do more than put Havre at 0-1 in non-conference play.

Sure, the loss could hurt Havre in the new Class A wildcard system if HHS is unable to secure one of the Central A’s two guaranteed berths into the Class A state playoffs, but other than that, no harm, no foul.

With that being said, the Ponies will need to be better if they want to compete with the best that the state has to offer and they know that. But, it’s also worth noting that while the Ponies were playing their first game under new head coach Mark Samson, the Bulldogs didn’t have to go through any such changes.

Havre had to adjust to a new scheme and an entirely new coaching staff. Saturday was the first time that the Ponies put their new schemes to the test in live game action and its clear there are still some kinks to work out.

But, that’s to be expected. A new offense and a new defense aren’t going to be mastered overnight. And while that’s not an excuse, the continuity that Whitefish possessed coming into the game with the same head coach, the same quarterback, the same system and 15 seniors, ended up being a distinct advantage.

“This group of seniors has really put in a ton of work during the offseason,” Whitefish coach Chad Ross said. “Unlike any group I have ever seen. They got together to throw the ball around, to lift and I think early in the season that can really give you an advantage.

“I think Havre is a good football team,” he added. “I was nervous the entire game. I just think that we made less mistakes, but they have some great athletes.”

The Bulldogs also possess two of the best football players in Class A in All-State quarterback Luke May and All-State wide receiver Jed Nagler. They are the favorite to win the Northwest A and among the favorites to be in the hunt to the state title.

So while the Ponies certainly wish they were more competitive for their season-opener, losing to a loaded Whitefish team is nothing to be ashamed about. And while HHS will have to grow from its loss to the Bulldogs, the Ponies will have ample opportunity to do just that.

The point of this is to say that all is not lost, not by a long shot. In 2000 and 2002, the Ponies started out 0-2, losing non-conference games to Whitefish and Sidney. And each time the team rallied. In 2000, the Ponies made the playoffs and went all the way to the state semi-finals. In 2002, HHS ended up winning the Central A and hosting the state championship game, which it lost to Laurel 21-19.

Havre still has a great coach in Samson and a ton of talent with players such as Dane Warp, Parker Filius, Jase Stokes, Nate Rismon and others. The Ponies will also have plenty of other challenges on their schedule this season and even though it’s completely cliché, they need to just take it one game at a time.

The Ponies can’t do anything about what happened against Whitefish Saturday, all they can do is learn from it and get better. Beyond that, they need to just move onto Hardin and remember that their season won’t be defined by one loss, unless they let it.