Rematch for the title

With apologies to Neil Diamond, it was only a warm August night when players and coaches for Coeur d’Alene and Rigby walked off the football field after the Vikings held off the visiting Trojans for a 31-26 victory in the season opener for both teams in Coeur d’Alene.

Little did anyone know that, 12 weeks later, the Vikings (9-2) and Trojans (9-1) would be meeting up again, this time for the state 5A championship on a Saturday afternoon at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow.

Or ... did they?

“Well, actually, I thought ‘might’,” Coeur d’Alene coach Shawn Amos said. “Because Rigby is really good.”

Meanwhile, on the other sideline ...

“That’s exactly what we said,” third-year Rigby coach Armando Gonzalez said, thinking back to the finish of that game, which saw Coeur d’Alene safety Colbey Nosworthy intercept Rigby quarterback Keegan Thompson at the goal line in the final minute to preserve the Vikings’ victory. “I vividly remember, when that game ended, walking next to our offensive coordinator (Aaron Flowers) as he was talking to Keegan after he threw that last interception, and (Flowers) saying to him, ‘I think we’re going to get another shot at them.’

The rematch takes place in North Idaho, since the last time a team from the North faced a team from eastern Idaho in a state 5A title game, in 2017, Coeur d’Alene traveled to Pocatello to face Highland.

Saturday’s game will mark the third meeting in two seasons between Coeur d’Alene and Rigby. Coeur d’Alene rallied to win 29-26 at Rigby in the 2018 season opener.

“Both times we beat ’em it was close, and it’s going to be a heckuva battle,” said Amos, in his 23rd season as Viking coach. “They’ve got some good real good players. Their quarterback is a real handful. So we have to play a really good game — just like playing Highland or Mountain View, you’ve got to put together four good quarters, understand it’s going to go back and forth. They’re going to make plays, we’re going to make plays. It’s going to be a helluva lot of fun. State title games are fun.”

Amos would know. The Vikings are playing in their sixth state title game in the last 10 seasons, and seventh overall under Amos.

Meanwhile Rigby, which moved up from 4A in 2016, is playing in its first football state title game in school history.

The Trojans have won nine straight since that season-opening loss in Coeur d’Alene, including a 32-13 victory over longtime state power Highland, and a 31-9 thumping of previously unbeaten and defending state champion Rocky Mountain in Meridian last week in the semifinals.

“It’s been a storybook season, and we wouldn’t have it any other way,” Gonzalez said. “It’s not often that you get second chances in anything you do, so to get this opportunity, our kids are pretty focused and ready to get back and play them again.”

Rigby, citing final exams this week, requested a Saturday title game rather than the traditional Friday night to cut down on missed class time. The Trojans plan to make the trip to Moscow in one day today, traveling north ... and then west ... and then a little bit south.

In the 2018 season opener, Nosworthy, then a junior, caught the go-ahead touchdown pass with less than a minute remaining as Coeur d’Alene rallied from 15 points down to beat Rigby.

One year later, Nosworthy made the game-saving defensive play. On offense, he caught 13 passes for 135 yards and two touchdowns.

Thompson ran for 164 yards and three touchdowns for Rigby.

“We learned, No. 1, that Coeur d’Alene’s pretty physical,” Gonzalez said of this year’s season opener. “They out-physicalled us that first game, without a doubt, up front. Their offensive line is good. We made some mistakes early on, struggled trying to slow down their receiver (Nosworthy), he’s a heckuva player. (But) It’s not just him; they’ve got a host of skill kids that are talented — 23 (Gunner Giulio), 26 (Brennan Crawford), 8 (Trent Elstad), 3 (Jake Brown) ... they’ve got a bunch of good athletes.”

Nosworthy (71 receptions, 977 yards, 9 TDs) is the leading receivers, but four other Vikings have 30 or more catches — Crawford (49 catches, 633 yards, 2TDs), Brown (44 receptions, ,584 yards, 5 TDs), Elstad (37 catches, 352 yards, 0 TDs) and Giulio (31 catches, 316 yards, 5 TDs).

Running back duties are divvied up between Elstad (60 carries, 540 yards, 2 TDs), Giulio (48 carries, 481 yards, 9 TDs) and Crawford (49 carries, 303 yards, 2 TDs).

Junior Jack Prka took over as starting quarterback this season and has thrown for 3,337 yards and 27 TDs, with eight interceptions. He’s also rushed for six scores.

“I had great quarterbacks above me — Colson (Yankoff), Kale Edwards, Carter Friesz,” Prka said. “Those guys taught me a lot, and I appreciate it.”

Amos has had teams sprinkled with Division I recruits. This team doesn’t have that, but it still has plenty of talent, and depth — lots of depth.

“We don’t have as many superstars; what we have is a lot of good football players,” Amos said. “No one person or two people have to be the focal point. Our best guy, Nosworthy, if they try to take him away, we’ve got a lot of other guys that can help us. This team has really figured out how to care about each other, and go to work every day. And it’s more important for the team success than the individual success. It’s fun to coach when guys figure it out.”

Thompson, who has a scholarship offer from Idaho State, and a preferred walk-on offer from Washington, is also Rigby’s leading rusher, followed by Brigham Youngstrom, who ran for 125 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries in the season opener. Christian Fredericksen, who caught seven passes for 60 yards in the opener, is the Trojans’ top receiver.

Rigby was missing two starters in the first game, including Tanoa Togiai, a 6-foot-7, 290-pound defensive lineman who has 11 Division I offers, many from Pac-12 schools, as well as from BYU, Nebraska, Virginia and Kansas State.

Togiai, the cousin of Tommy Togiai, who starred in Highland’s win over Coeur d’Alene in the 2017 title game, and is now a sophomore at Ohio State, also plays some at offensive tackle.

“He’s a monster,” Gonzalez said.

Coeur d’Alene has cleaned up the turnover issues that plagued it early in the season, particularly in a loss at Gonzaga Prep in Week 2.

And it keeps finding ways to win the close games, particularly in the playoffs.

“This team has really figured out how to keep battling,” Amos said. “That’s when you know you have good character — you win these close games, make these fourth-down stops, that’s a character thing. Because they have good players, we have good players. That’s a character thing.”

Gonzalez came to Rigby three years ago from Southern California. He played quarterback for his dad a Franklin High in Los Angeles, and he coached at Cal State Northridge when the Matadors were in the Big Sky, before the school dropped football.

Once at Rigby, Gonzalez pushed his administration to schedule the other top teams in other parts of the state — Coeur d’Alene, and the Boise area. When Coeur d’Alene had an opening last year, Rigby jumped at the chance. And if it can be worked out, Gonzalez said Rigby would like to keep playing the Vikings, who already hope to keep playing Highland on an annual basis.

“We want to play the upper echelon schools in Idaho. That’s the only thing that’s going to get us prepared for the playoffs,” Gonzalez said.

After some lean years earlier, Rigby is in the playoffs for the sixth time in the last seven years, as Gonzalez has built on the success of Rigby’s previous coach.

In 2017, Rigby finished 8-3, losing 14-13 to Mountain View in the playoffs, when the Mavericks went for two late and the win. Last year, hurt by injuries to Thompson and others, Rigby finished 4-5 and just missed the playoffs.

This year, since the loss to Coeur d’Alene, Rigby has won every game by at least 15 points.

“They continue to step up to the challenge, and I don’t expect anything different this week,” Gonzalez said of his team.

He said the Trojans shouldn’t be fazed mentally, making their first appearance in a state title game.

“The pressure’s on Coeur d’Alene, to be honest with you,” he said. “They’re the program that has a winning tradition, and they’re playing close to home, and they’ve already beat us once. I told our kids, ‘They beat us last time. We have to go take it from them.’ I think the pressure’s on Coeur d’Alene.”