Written by: Keller Sherman
After a disappointing 1-7 campaign in 2021, former Ririe coach Jim Newton resigned after 7 years on the job with the Bulldogs. Josh Huntsman comes in to assume head coaching duties and he will have a tall task ahead of him to turn around a struggling program.
Despite what the record might indicate, there is indeed talent to be found on Ririe’s roster. The Bulldogs return four players that received all-conference honors for their efforts on both offense and defense as well as a special teams selection.
Aaron Martinez is back after being named honorable mention at offensive line and defensive tackle. Huntsman states that Martinez will be his “go-to guy on the offensive line.” He will have to step up in a big way in order to fill in the void left behind by Gavin Harris, a second-team all-conference selection last season who Huntsman says “was the anchor on offensive line” last season. Martinez will also be expected to step up at the defensive tackle position as Harris was a first-team selection at that position, but Martinez showed his capability to excel there last season and will be expected to do so again in 2022, likely the anchor of that unit.
Donivan Johnson was another notable loss from last year’s team and a second team all-conference selection at wide receiver. His role is likely to be fulfilled by Jackson Johnson, who was a second team selection at defensive back last season. He will need to also demonstrate his skills on the offensive side of the ball as well to keep the wide receiver position strong.
Rounding out the returning all-conference players, Houston Brown received honors as an honorable mention at tight end as well as a second-team punter while Landon Nelson was named an honorable mention at linebacker. Both will be expected to play major roles at their respective positions on both sides of the ball in 2022.
Additional returning players that Huntsman believes will be crucial to the team’s success in 2022 include Carter Huntsman, Jackson Coles, Hyrum Boone, and Dennis Barnett. Kyle McMurtrey will also be expected to be “a great asset at running back and outside linebacker.”
Team speed is something that Huntsman emphasizes as a strength for the team on both sides of the ball entering the season. Huntsman hopes that this speed will translate to his team being able to get the ball in to space believing that his team “can do some special things” if they do.
Physicality will be an area of focus for the offense in 2022. “We need to be able to match physicality in the Nuclear Conference for all four quarters,” Huntsman said.
Ririe lacks in size compared to its conference foes and Huntsman will bring in a new defensive scheme as his team shifts to a 3-5-3 defense. He also strongly believes that what his team lacks in size, it makes up for in speed and he hopes that implementing the new defensive scheme will help keep that speed on the field. He also hopes to see his team improve in communication and knowing their assignments.
Huntsman strongly believes that a team’s performance is enhanced by the mentality of the players playing the game. While he does believe that the younger players can have an impact, he believes the seniors are the most important as he states, “It’s a new start for these young men. They get to write this chapter for themselves. Our seniors can be a part of the group that changes the football culture at Ririe.” He further emphasizes how important the seniors will be to the success of the team in 2022 as he adds, “How do they want to go out? Do they want the status quo? Or do they want to have value?”
Ririe will kick off its season with two straight games against opponents from District 5; Soda Springs on the road and Malad at home. Both the Cardinals and Dragons shutout the Bulldogs in 36-0 and 30-0 losses a year ago. They will then host a team from District 4 as Wendell will visit Ririe, followed by a trip to American Falls to close out the non-conference slate. Ririe did not play either team in 2021.
Conference play begins on September 23rd when Salmon visits. Ririe barely fell to the Savages last season in a narrow 19-12 defeat and will hope to return the favor this season. As the Bulldogs host Firth the following week for senior night, they will hope for a much different result than last season’s 75-0 defeat at the hands of the Cougars.
Ririe will finish the season with two straight road games; at West Jefferson and North Fremont. The Bulldogs dropped 53-8 and 58-20 contests to the Panthers and Huskies, respectively, last season and a win against either in 2022 would go a long way to change the narrative of the Ririe program.
With the arrival of a new head coach comes various new opportunities. As Josh Huntsman begins his tenure with Ririe, he will look to turn around a long struggling program and if he can do that and make Ririe competitive at the state level, he will go down as one of the greatest coaches in Ririe football history. But The players are a part of it too. They have to want a bright future for this program as well, and leave it in a place where many future players will come in and work hard to keep Ririe competitive year in and year out.