Detwiler takes charge of Ronan Braves football
By JASON BLASCO
Lake County Leader
Newly appointed Ronan High School football coach Matt Detwiler admits it was a “surrealistic feeling” as he marched his Chiefs onto the football field at their traditional opening practice at midnight on Aug. 12.
Detwiler, a 2010 graduate of RHS, admits he didn’t anticipate he would get a shot to become the head football coach this early in his career.
“Like I said, it’s surreal. I mean (becoming the head football coach) is something I have no words for,” Detwiler said. “It’s a great feeling, its exciting and I am just ready for some football. Our team has done weights all summer and now it’s time for the real stuff.”
Detwiler surprised his wife Stephanie when he came home shortly after learning that long-time football and track coach Jim Benn was stepping away from his head coaching duties and asked her a question: “What do you think of me being a head football coach this year?”
“(Stephanie and I) were talking five years down the road,” Detwiler said. “She was more for me being a head football coach the first couple of months than I was. She’s been totally supportive and comfortable with my new position.”
Detwiler was a football player at the University of Montana Western when his call to coaching came after he heard a “pop” on the fourth play from scrimmage. That “pop” led to three knee surgeries, a blown MCL, a torn meniscus, an ACL, and a patellar tendon. Despite the injury, Detwiler caught a lucky break from his team when they still honored his scholarship, and as part of the deal, put him up in the booth for the remainder of the year as a student assistant coach.
“It was a big change being up in the booth,” Detwiler said. “It was frustrating the first couple of games.”
Detwiler will inherit a team that last season was 2-9 on the season. One of his biggest hurdles as a new head coach only six years older than some of his senior players is to walk a “fine line” between friend and coach.
“It’s kind of a curse and a blessing, and you ride that fine line,” Detwiler said. “You try to be their friend and yet still coach. I think it’s easier when you are an older coach because there is a bigger age gap between you and the players. Sometimes, I will hear (my students) talking about a new song or a popular video and I will know exactly what they are talking about. However, you just have to remember to walk that line between being their coach and good friend.”
Vikings kick off season with ‘midnight madness’
The Charlo Vikings were the other circulation-area team that began their first day of practice on Aug. 12 at midnight.
This season will be a transition for the 8-man football team that finished last year with an 8-2 record.
“We graduated six starters in 8-man football, and we are turning over six positions,” Coach Mike Krahn said. “(This year) we have some of the lowest numbers we’ve had in a while. We have 19 kids this season and we haven’t had under 20 since I’ve been there.”
The Vikings lost key contributor Montana All-state player Michael Delaney to graduation. Delaney will continue his football playing career at Montana Tech. The Vikings will head into the season with sophomore QB Landers Smith.
Krahn said he has done midnight practice for “as long as he can remember.”
“Our team gets to turn on the lights, make some noise and wake up everyone in the town,” Krahn said. “It makes for a pretty spirited practice to be able to play under the lights in the elements. It really gets the nerves and excitement going and gets us really focused to go to practice. Our kids stayed overnight in the gym, didn’t get a lot of sleep and were at practice again the next morning.”