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Pony seniors look to walk with a win

Week Eight, Special Night: Havre High seniors play inside Blue Pony Stadium for the final time

There is an old saying in sports, that you are only as good as your last game. Well tonight, the Havre High football team is taking that idea to heart as the 0-7 Blue Ponies try to get their first win of the season against Livingston.

"That's the great thing about trying to be 1-0 every week," HHS head coach Ryan Gatch said. "No matter what happened last week, win or lose, our goal is always going to be 1-0. We can't do anything about what has happened in the past. We can learn from it and grow from it, but we have to be looking ahead, and I think our guys have done a good job of that. They are excited for this opportunity."

While the Blue Ponies have struggled to find consistency this season, so have the Rangers, who are also coming into the matchup with an 0-7 record. Therefore, both former Central A schools will be hungry for victory, when they meet inside Blue Pony Stadium at 7 tonight.

"(Livingston) is a lot like us," Gatch said. "They have some good players and we have some good players, too. But for whatever reason, we have both had a hard time putting it together. But they are a solid team and I anticipate a really competitive game."

For the Ponies, tonight's game isn't just the final home game of the season, for some, it will be the final home game of their careers. Senior night is always special for Havre football and once the game is over, win or lose, the 10 HHS seniors will walk the field at Blue Pony Stadium one last time. Among those being honored tonight as part of the senior class will be Trey Murphy, Ivar Aageson, Jacob Irvin, Brady Ophus, Dawson Kinsella, Jazz Schroeder, Brock Smith, Cody Weatherford, Daniel Ogden and Wyatt Johnstone.

"It's going to be a really special night for those seniors," Gatch said. "It's going to be an important night for them and their parents and for our community. Football and family, those are two very important things. Obviously, school is more important than football, but on Friday nights, it's about those two things, football and family. And it would mean a lot for our program if we could send those guys out with a win in their final game at Blue Pony Stadium."

If the Ponies are going to find a way to beat Livingston, a number of things need to happen, but the first and most important thing, according to Gatch, is taking care of the football.

"Turnovers are going to be huge. We have to take care of the football," Gatch said. "We have had issues with turnovers all season long. Last week, we had three that turned into 21 points and that was even including a punt we had blocked. So turnovers are going to be a really big factor in this game. Whichever team takes care of the ball is probably going to win the game."

That means that Havre, which has had turnover issues this season, will need to take care of the ball, which Murphy and the Ponies have done more effectively in recent weeks. Consequently, Havre had a chance to win two of the last three games, against both Sidney and Glendive, before the two teams pulled away from HHS in the second half.

Of course, turnovers will be key, but one thing Havre can do to take some pressure off Murphy is establish a running game with Mason Dionne. The Ponies also boast two highly productive wide receivers in Aageson and Ethan Roberts, who have been Murphy's top targets all season long.

Yet, offense is only half the battle. Havre, which has surrendered 54 points and 55 points, respectively, to Sidney and Billings Central, the past two weeks, will need to be better on the defensive side of the ball, too.

"I know that the stats might not show it, but we have been improving against the run," Gatch said. "We have just played two really good running teams the past two weeks. But we have been getting better, even if the numbers don't necessarily reflect that."

As much as Havre has struggled to score, their lack of offensive production is nothing compared to the Rangers, who come in averaging just 6.2 points per game. Livingston's offense is built around quarterback John Waddell, a former All-State wide receiver that is a threat to throw and run.

"The quarterback, he is their guy," Gatch said. "He can run it, he can throw it. They have been a heavy run team, but they do some different things, so we have a few different defensive looks ready for whatever they throw at us."

Havre and Livingston will meet tonight inside Blue Pony Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7.

Havre Blue Ponies

(0-7) Lost at Billings Central last week

vs

Livingston Rangers

(0-7) lost at Hardin last week

Tonight at 7 p.m.

at Blue Pony Stadium

Radio: 610 KOJM AM

See Friday Night Lights, B5

 

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