District 1B foes meet in Conrad

CONRAD – Not to call the rest of them boring – they're not – but Conrad will certainly play host to Class B football's game of the week Friday night.

The No. 8-ranked Cowboys will host No. 6 Choteau in a matchup of unbeaten District 1B powers. The game is both schools' league opener, and it's the only face-off between ranked teams in Class B this weekend.

"Obviously, it's a big game, but we're going to treat it like any other game," Conrad head coach Mick Morris said, noting that there is plenty of football left to be played after Friday for both teams.

Conrad (3-0) has outscored opponents 172-38 in three victories this season, but the Bulldogs are a tougher test, Morris admitted.

Choteau head coach Craig Tucker said stopping the Cowboys' two-pronged attack -- running back Blake Underdahl and quarterback Shane Larson -- won't be easy.

"Those two guys are shifty runners and you have to make sure your defense gets to them," Tucker said.

The Choteau coach added that stopping the big play is a tall task with Conrad's zone-read offense. The Cowboys took a 52-40 decision in a shootout last season.

"I think it's the classic matchup of size versus speed," Morris said, saying his Cowboys have the wheels, but Choteau has the bulk. "They've got as good of a line as you'll see in Class B."

That Bulldog line is anchored by 6-foot, 260-pound senior Madison Martinson, who leads the way for a tough tailback in Liam Breen. Derrek Durocher facilitates the offense under center and can score with his arm and his legs. The junior was the Tribune's Boys' Prep Athlete of the Week following a Sept. 12 blowout of Thompson Falls.

"They have a lot of good players, and we have a lot a lot of good players," Tucker said. "We'll just have to come out ready to play."

Choteau (3-0) also has one of the most impressive wins in Class B this season: a 28-21 uprooting of Bigfork on the road to open the season.

"Fairfield beating Townsend and (Choteau) beating Bigfork are the two biggest wins in Class B," Morris said. "I heard all summer how Bigfork was (good) – and they are that good – but Choteau just dominated them."

In the rest of the 1B, Cut Bank travels to Fairfield for each team's conference opener. The host Eagles (3-0) are the unanimous No. 1 team in Class B after knocking off powerful non-conference foes in Townsend and Missoula Loyola. The Wolves (2-1) lost a 6-2 game to Troy at home last week.

Shelby is the odd man out in conference play. The Coyotes (2-1) lost to No. 2-ranked Glasgow at home last week and face another tough task in Bigfork on the road Friday. The Vikings aren't likely to take any 1B team lightly, though, after falling to Choteau back in August.