Written by: Marlowe Hereford
Bonneville returns to the 5A classification this fall for the first time since the 2017-18 school year and it will do so with a new coach at the helm.
Head coach Shane Stephenson comes to eastern Idaho after coaching stops in North Dakota, Montana and Arizona and got to work right away with offseason workouts.
"I'm excited to be in Idaho and working with this great group of men," Stephenson said. "We started our offseason program shortly after I was hired and we averaged about 65 players a day during our winter workouts. These boys have been solid in their work ethic and have been grinding all offseason. I'm excited to see what they can do during the season."
With a new coach comes new systems, namely on defense. Stephenson said the Bees will run a 4-2-5 this season.
"Our kids are picking up the terminology and getting better and better every day," Stephenson said.
On offense, the Bees will lean on the experience of their returning varsity players. Among the returning players for the Bees are senior Keaton Trane (Honorable Mention All-conference RB) and senior Tyler Myrup (Honorable Mention All-conference DB/CB).
"We have a veteran line with guys who have played a lot of football," Stephenson said. "We have very skilled receivers. We run a spread offense."
As is true for a program with any new coach, learning new systems and gelling as a team will be top priority for the Bees this fall.
"Our players need to buy in to the system and trust each other on the field," Stephenson said. "Once they do that, the sky is the limit for us this season."
Bonneville begins its season Aug. 23 at Madison. The Bees begin conference play Sept. 6 in the annual Civil War game versus Hillcrest at Hillcrest's new football field.