Warp passing MHSA all-time marks

There is no doubt that Havre High quarterback Dane Warp broke the Montana record for most touchdown passes for 11-man football Friday against Miles City. Yet, there is still some debate about whether or not Warp has broken the Montana High School Association record for passing yards.

As far as the MHSA record book is concerned, the record coming into the season was 8,907 yards, a mark set by former Billings Senior quarterback Mark Desin.

Entering his senior season, Warp had thrown for 8,407 yards. He also threw for 218 yards against Whitefish and 190 against Hardin, putting him at 8,815 yards going into last Friday’s game in Miles City.

Against the Cowboys Warp proceeded to throw for 187 yards, pushing his total to 9,002, surpassing the mark set by Desin according to the official MHSA record book. Of course, Warp’s record is also unofficial until his statistics are sent into the MHSA by Havre High and approved by the MHSA.

But, assuming that happens after the season, Warp will be sitting atop the list for career passing yards beyond Desin and all others.

Yet according to some, he’s not there yet.

Rocky Erickson, a radio broadcaster in Billings, came out recently and stated that he believes Desin threw for 100 more yards than he was given credit for in the MHSA record books. Thus, according to Erickson, the record is actually 9,007 yards.

However, those 100 yards have not been added by the MHSA to the official record books, not before Havre's game against Miles City, and not Saturday or Sunday either, meaning, with Warp's performance Friday night, he did indeed pass the MHSA record for the most passing yards every by a quarterback in 11-man football.

Not to say that an added 100 yards to Desin's total of his brilliant high school career isn't correct, as the MHSA recrd books certainly have inaccuracies, mostly because schools often fail to send the information when records are broken and without the information the records cannot be approved nor the MHSA record book updated.

But at the end of day, it’s not going to matter. Even going by the Erickson number of 9,007, Warp will have the record in short order this Friday night against the Sidney Eagles at Blue Pony Stadium. But as of now, and until the MHSA record book says otherwise, Warp and his 9,002 passing syards tand above every other quarterback in the history of Montana high school football and he will stay that way — as long as the paperwork gets sent at season’s end.

And, he may take the record much further than anyone could have imagined because the Ponies still have five regular season games left, and the playoffs to look forward to.