Written by: Will Hoenike
Coming off another eight-win season, North Star League championship, and appearance in the 1A Division 2 state playoffs, it might be easy for head coach Stetson Spooner and his assistant head coach, Jesse Allan, to just sit back and say the Mullan-St. Regis Tigers are going to keep doing the same thing they’ve done the past several seasons.
But that’s not how things work in small-school high school football. Adapt or die, the old saying goes, and the Tigers are willing to adapt if necessary.
Spooner and Allan will be looking to replace QB/DB Caleb Ball and TE/LB Blake Layton, each of whom were voted second team All-State by coaches around Idaho and each of whom are pursuing football at the University of Montana-Western this fall. Those two picked up the slack from 2021 standouts Adam Ball and Luke Trogden, who picked up the slack when Riley Trogden graduated in 2020, who picked up the slack when Ian Farris and Skye Gallaway graduated in 2019. Fans of the two schools, who combine to form one team despite residing in different states, have been spoiled with a lot of talented football players and big plays over the past several years.
“We want to sustain drives rather than huge play touchdown or 3 and out,” Spooner said. “We want to be more disciplined and consistent play to play.”
That’s not to say Spooner doesn’t think his team has big-play potential – the Tigers definitely do – but perhaps grind teams down rather than waiting for the big play.
“I am excited to really have to run clean and consistent schemes on both sides of the ball. Not just broken plays going 80 yards for 80 points,” the veteran head coach explained. “Having to buckle down on real football with guys that have been next in line for a large part of 3 seasons.”
Two players who will be counted on heavily on both sides of the ball are seniors Alex Trogden and John Pruitt. Both will carry the ball as running backs on offense and chase down ball carriers as linebackers on defense. The tandem each earned All-North Star League accolades last season and will step into leading roles for the Tigers this season. Seniors Josh Houston and Blake Knoll both bring needed size and strength to the offensive and defensive lines and could get help from sophomore Barrett Bassette, who will compete for playing time at tight end and defensive end. Senior Kofi Appiah, who is also an accomplished kick returner, will fill a role at receiver and defensive back while junior Kaleb Park might move around to exploit matchups on offense while playing in the secondary on defense.
After the lengthy and decorated run of Caleb Ball at quarterback for the Tigers, Spooner and Allan will be looking for a new trigger man for an offense that scored over 400 points last season (two of Mullan-St. Regis’ eight wins were forfeits). Freshman Conner Lulis might get the opportunity to step under center from the start and his transition should be eased by having Trogden and Pruitt in the backfield with him.
Another key Spooner mentioned was the ability of younger players to ascend and thrive in bigger roles. The program has had success in that category for the past several seasons, as outlined above, but each year brings its own character and personality of a team. If the trend continues, the Tigers have an excellent chance to claim another North Star League championship and return to the 1A Division 2 state playoffs for the fifth consecutive season.