PREP FOOTBALL: Viks ready for unbeaten Lewiston
League play begins in 5A, 4A, 3A and 2A leagues
It’s been a few seasons since the Lewiston Bengals have been a major player in the 5A Inland Empire League football race.
But this year’s Bengals are off to a 6-0 start for the first time since 2008, scoring points at an alarming rate, and excited to see what that all means when league play begins tonight.
Lewiston (6-0) plays at second-ranked Coeur d’Alene (5-1) tonight at 7. Also tonight at 7, Lake City (1-5) travels to Post Falls (3-3).
“We know we have a great challenge,” said Shawn Nilsson, in his fourth season at Lewiston head coach. “Coeur d’Alene has been the cream of the crop for a while. It’ll be a big challenge to come up there.”
Lewiston, with an offense directed by former Bengals (and Post Falls) head coach Nick Menegas, has wins over Lakeland (49-7), North Central (56-13), Sandpoint (42-39), Clarkston (33-15), Hermiston (56-37) and Moscow (69-14).
Hermiston is the lone common opponent; Coeur d’Alene won 43-10 at Hermiston last week.
Lewiston played a lot of sophomores and juniors last year, and “we took our lumps,” Nilsson said. Those players are all back, with a year of varsity experience.
“(Quarterback) Colton Richardson has done a great job of taking care of the ball, and getting the ball out quick,” Nilsson said. “We have not turned the ball over once in six games, so that’s huge.”
That stat will be put to the test tonight, against an opportunistic Coeur d’Alene defense.
“We’re 6-0, so we have some confidence,” Nilsson said. “Coeur d’Alene (is going) to come at you at all angles. They play a defense that we haven’t seen. They’re athletic … we’ll have our work cut out for us.”
Lewiston last won a league game in 2011.
Coeur d’Alene has beaten Lewiston in 12 of the last 13 meetings. The Bengals last won 33-27 in 2008 in Lewiston. The Vikings have won the last six matchups by a combined 267-50, and only one game has been closer than 27 points.
But this year is this year, and Lewiston has Coeur d’Alene’s attention.
“Lewiston is playing very well right now,” Coeur d’Alene coach Shawn Amos said. “I think they are a very good team regardless of who they have played — they have scored a lot of points and have playmakers on both sides of the ball. They are a year older, stronger, and faster than last year considering they return most of their team. Our biggest concern is us not turning the ball over and our defense limiting the big play. Coach Menegas is a great coach and there certainly are similarities to what he has always done. We are very excited to start league play against a great team.”
Lake City (1-5) at Post Falls (3-3): The lone common opponent for these teams is Sandpoint. Post Falls led the Bulldogs 19-6 in the season opener before falling 20-19 at the Kibbie Dome. Lake City lost 48-19 at Sandpoint last week. Post Falls is allowing just 10 points a game over its last four games. Lake City, the defending league champion, is yielding 33.3 points per game.
“Offensively, I think we need to get a little more consistent, finish more drives,” Post Falls coach Jeff Hinz said. “Defensively, we have to keep moving forward, and keep playing tough.”
Lakeland (0-6) at Sandpoint (3-3): Lakeland is the two-time defending 4A Inland Empire League champion, but had no returning starters this year. Sandpoint has its sights set on a run to the state title game.
Lakeland is yielding 48.7 points per game, and is measuring its success by the amount of improvement in each game.
“We’re going to have to play a lot cleaner game than we did (against Timberlake) to beat Sandpoint,” said Lakeland coach Tim Kiefer, whose team lost 31-28 to the Tigers last Friday. “I don’t know if we’re right where we want to be, but we’re getting better. It’s a credit to the kids and the community for their support. You never know what’s going to happen. We just need to find a way to play a complete game.”
Priest River (1-4) at Timberlake (3-2): It’s the Intermountain League opener for both teams. Timberlake has won the last six IML titles, and has won 25 straight league games dating back to 2008.
Grangeville (3-2) at St. Maries (6-0): It’s the Central Idaho League opener for both teams. The Lumberjacks are off to their best start in two decades. All three CIL teams (Orofino is the other) make the expanded 16-team state 2A playoffs. But the league games are still crucial for seeding — the top two teams get to host first-round games, while the third-place team has to travel to the District 3 champion.
St. Maries has won one league game since dropping down from 3A in 2012 — beating Orofino in 2012. Grangeville’s two losses were to 4A Moscow (40-21) and to Clarkston (40-19), a strong 2A team in Washington.
“It’s a huge game for us,” St. Maries coach Craig Tefft said.
Kootenai (0-5, 0-4 White Star League) at Kendrick (2-2, 2-0): Kendrick has scored 136 points in its two league wins, over Lakeside and Lewis County — teams that own victories over Kootenai this season.
5A INLAND EMPIRE LEAGUE
League Overall
W L W L
Lewiston 0 0 6 0
Coeur d’Alene 0 0 5 1
Post Falls 0 0 3 3
Lake City 0 0 1 5
Friday’s Games
Lewiston at Coeur d’Alene
Lake City at Post Falls
4A INLAND EMPIRE LEAGUE
League Overall
W L W L
Sandpoint 0 0 3 3
Moscow 0 0 1 5
Lakeland 0 0 0 6
Friday’s Games
Lakeland at Sandpoint
Cheney at Moscow
INTERMOUNTAIN LEAGUE
League Overall
W L W L
Timberlake 0 0 3 2
Bonners Ferry 0 0 2 3
Priest River 0 0 1 4
Kellogg 0 0 0 5
Friday’s Games
Priest River at Timberlake
Kellogg at Bonners Ferry
CENTRAL IDAHO LEAGUE
League Overall
W L W L
Orofino 0 0 4 2
St. Maries 0 0 6 0
Grangeville 0 0 3 2
Friday’s Games
Grangeville at St. Maries
Orofino is idle
1A DIVISION I
Independent
W L
Wallace 4 1
1A DIVISION II
WHITE STAR LEAGUE
League Overall
W L W L
Deary 2 0 5 0
Kendrick 2 0 2 2
Clark Fork 2 0 4 0
Timberline 1 1 3 1
Lewis County 1 2 2 3
Lakeside 1 2 1 4
Kootenai 0 4 0 5
Friday’s Games
Kootenai at Kendrick
Lewis County at Timberline
Clark Fork at Deary
Lakeside is idle
Wallace is idle