PREP FOOTBALL: Viking statement ... Coeur d'Alene picks Montana-bound Flowers four times in 27-21 win over two-time 5A champion Rigby

By JASON ELLIOTT

Sports writer

MISSOULA, Mont. — Call it a battle.

Sure, it was that.

Call it an upset, well …

Coeur d’Alene, which forced four interceptions of Montana-bound quarterback Luke Flowers, dominated for much of the game, then held on late as the Vikings held off the two-time defending state 5A champion Rigby Trojans 27-20 in the season opener for both at Washington-Grizzly Stadium on Friday.

“When you play a team like Rigby, it’s not always going to be pretty,” Coeur d’Alene coach Shawn Amos said. “Responding to what they do, that was the key. We’ve got a ton to get better at, because it doesn’t get any easier next week.”

Coeur d’Alene junior linebacker Jayson Cady had two interceptions in the first half as the Vikings held a 13-7 lead after halftime.

“I should have had four, but I was excited,” Cady said. “He (Flowers) stares his guy down a little bit before he throws. He’s a good player and committed here, but we’ve been preparing for months. And it really showed.”

Coeur d’Alene jumped out to a 13-0 lead early in the first quarter after Carsen Speelman scored on a 6-yard screen pass from Jamison Kizziar. The Vikings struck again on a fourth down play as Kizziar found Shea Robertson on a 57-yard score for the early advantage.

“Rigby’s awesome, but our kids battled,” Amos said. “It was all you could want, playing in Montana’s stadium against the defending state champions. And our kids found a way. We knew they were going to keep coming and they did. Hats off to our kids and coaches. They just found a way.”

Speelman finished with 147 yards rushing and 26 receiving for the Vikings, who host Rocky Mountain of Meridian next Friday at Viking Field.

“He would have been doing that last year if he was healthy,” Amos said. “Our offensive line really stepped up and played a lot more physical, and that’s what we’ve been asking of our kids when we play a team like Rigby. You’ve got to come in and expect a street fight, and our kids responded. And now — Rocky — it doesn’t get any easier next week.”

Nolan Christ and Owen Harris also had interceptions for Coeur d’Alene.

“A lot of it was our pressure on him,” Amos said. “We had good pressure from our front causing him to make those throws. This is a group that we’ve had for a decade and a half. They care. They care about each other and we’ll go back to work. It’s a big one, but it’s Game 1.”

Cady missed most of last season while on junior varsity with torn ligaments in his left ankle.

“This is a great win, but it’s on to next week,” Cady said. “They’re not going to be any easier and were a great team last year. We’ve just got another revenge game. And I’m excited.”

Coeur d’Alene extended the lead in the fourth quarter on a 1-yard run by Kolbe Coey out of the wildcat formation to make it 20-7. After another turnover, Coeur d’Alene struck again on a 12-yard pass from Kizziar to Tucker Booth to make it 27-7.

“I just saw an open lane and took it,” Coey said. “I had to do it. We came into the game confident and knew what kind of players they had. We were ready to beat them. We didn’t want them to get it.”

Flowers rallied Rigby back to within six points late, but the ensuing onside kick rolled out of bounds.

“We made a lot of mistakes, but that doesn’t take anything away from what they did,” Rigby coach Armando Gonzalez said. “They made a lot of plays and executed tonight. And they were hungry. I told our kids that every week we’re going to have a target on our back. We’ve came a long way where they’re celebrating beating us, and that’s just how the tides have turned. Shawn does a great job with that program. Maybe we’ll see them again. We have before.”

Flowers threw for 306 yards, 160 coming in the second half.

“We just started opening it up a little bit,” Gonzalez said. “We got behind and had to throw it a little bit more, and that’s what he’s comfortable doing. We’ve got to look at our approach and maybe cut him loose a little earlier.”

Coeur d’Alene 13 0 0 14 — 27

Rigby 0 7 0 14 — 21

First quarter

Cd’A — Carsen Speelman 6 pass from Jamison Kizziar (Jayson Cady kick), 8:22

Cd’A — Shea Robertson 57 pass from Kizziar (pass failed), 3:29

Second quarter

Rigby — Kade Steffler 44 pass from Luke Flowers (Porter Hanson kick), 8:09

Fourth quarter

Cd’A — Kolbe Coey 1 run (pass failed), 10:44

Cd’A — Tucker Booth 12 pass from Kizziar (Kai Wheeler pass from Kizziar), 8:09

Rigby — Parker Graham 25 pass from Flowers (Hanson kick), 4:37

Rigby — Flowers 2 run (Hanson kick), 1:31

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Cd’A, Speelman 21-147, Coey 5-6, Kizziar 11-73, Harris 4-33, Hagel 1-9 ; Rigby, Klingler 7-2, Flowers 8-40, Humphreys 3-16, Waldron 1-0.

PASSING — Cd’A, Kizziar, 16-23-1-147; Rigby, Flowers, 25-40-4-306.

RECEIVING — CdA, Speelman 4-26, Cady 3-17, Robertson 1-57, Petree 2-7, Wheeler 3-43, Harris 1-4, Hagel 1-6, Booth 1-12.; Rigby, Peck 8-70, Klingler 3-14, Steffler 5-82, Searle 5-100, Humphreys 3-12, Whetten 1-2, Graham 2-29.