Box Elder to play for a Six-Man state championship

These Box Elder Bears are in rarified air.

Last Saturday, the Bears outlasted Hot Springs 57-54 in the Six-Man semifinals to advance to just their second state championship game in school history. Box Elder lost to DGS in the 2015 state title game.

Now, the undefeated Bears will get a second chance at a football state championship as they play Bridger in the title game this Saturday.

To get to the chipper, the Bears saw Tuarie Stiffarm-Rosette threw eight touchdown passes in the semifinals, five of them going to Dreyden Anderson, whose fifth score with less than three minutes left provided the game-winning points.

The Savage Heat had one final drive, but Nick McAllister's fourth-down pass in the waning minutes was intercepted by Kenny Helgeson. Anderson's monster game lifted the Bears after standout wide receiver Tracen Jilot left the game with an injury in the opening quarter. Hot Springs led 34-31 at halftime, and Weston Slonaker's 40-yard touchdown run put the Savage Heat on top 54-50 with 5:30 to go in the fourth quarter before Box Elder's game winning-drive and freshman Helgeson's interception sealed it.

It was an incredible win for the Bears who will now face the 11-1 Scouts in the championship game. Last Saturday, Bridger knocked off defending state champion Centerville

In a contest where just about every possession resulted in a score, the 11-1 Scouts had a bit more firepower than the defending champs. After the first quarter ended with the teams tied at 22, the Scouts gained a crucial advantage in the second quarter, outscoring the Miners 22-12 on a pair of touchdown runs from Gage Goltz, who also found Cade Stringari for a five-yard TD pass. Bridger stretched its lead to 66-54 in the third quarter, and while the Miners outscored them 20-16 in the fourth, it wasn't quite enough. Goltz finished with six rushing TDs and threw for five, with scoring shots to Ryley Kallevig (2), Bishop Hopewell, Stringari and Rex Zentner. Luke Kelley was sensational for Centerville, throwing seven touchdown passes and rushing for four. Karson Darko hauled in four TDs, Caden Olson two and Kale Annis one.

The Bears are looking to make history Saturday afternoon. And this team wants to do something no team has ever done in Box Elder. Win a football state championship.

"There's an opportunity to be the first in something, to do something that has never been done before," Box Elder head coach Thomas Dilworth said to 406 Sports earlier this season.. "This talented group of boys wants to write their names in the history books.

"We don't always have a lot of positive things going on here. There's a lot of poverty, drugs and alcohol," longtime Box Elder administrator, coach and graduate Neal Rosette said to 406 Sports earlier this season. "These boys are the light. We needed one and they are it."

Box Elder and Bridger will meet for the Six-Man state championship this Saturday in Bridger. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.