It might be a new cast of characters, but Hillcrest is back to challenge perennial power Skyline for 5A title
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IDAHO FALLS – So after graduating around 30 seniors from last year’s football team that made a run to the state championship game, Hillcrest reset and went into rebuilding mode in 2024.
Well, that’s not exactly true.
That might seem logical on paper, because who replaces 30 seniors, several of whom were three-year varsity players, and comes back arguably stronger the next season?
“We knew as soon as the season ended,” Hillcrest quarterback Tyson Sweetwood said this week during a chilly afternoon practice. “We knew we had the guys to do it again, we just had to put in the work in the offseason and I think we did.”
Hillcrest is back in the state title game for a second straight year. The Knights will face familiar foe and perennial power Skyline for the 5A championship on Friday at the ICCU Dome in Pocatello. Kickoff is 8:15 p.m.
Even after losing four first-team All-State players, including quarterback Peyton King, there wasn’t much doom and gloom around the program entering the new year, coach Brennon Mossholder said.
Yes, several new players would have to step in and find their roles, but that never became a problem.
“The younger guys in this playoff run, a lot were on the scout team group last year,” Mossholder said. “They had four extra weeks of practice.”
They also got to compete against that talented and deep senior class every day in practice, sharpening their skills for full-time varsity play. Most also dressed during the team’s playoff run, getting the feel for what it takes to perform under the spotlight in the biggest of games.
Mossholder also noted that last season’s senior class already had high expectations. Most of the players were on a Grid Kid team that won a championship and were on the Hillcrest varsity by sophomore year.
If there was a team that was expected to challenge Skyline, that was the group.
Those expectations came to fruition when the Knights beat Skyline in the regular season and then knocked the Grizzlies out in the state semifinals last season, ending Skyline’s run at three-straight state titles.
“(This year’s) seniors and junior honestly have been overlooked, so I think they play with a little bit of an underdog mentality because of that,” Mossholder said of his new group.
Skyline won this year’s regular-season meeting 28-16 back in September.
Turnovers and giving up big plays proved crucial, a fact not lost on the Hillcrest coaching staff. Skyline’s defense could also make a claim of being overlooked.
The Grizzlies, with all their weapons on offense, also lead 5A defenses, giving up just 13.0 points per game, which should present a good challenge for the Knights’ offense, which has averaged more than 43 points during its last four games.
“It’s a totally different game than what’s the norm in the regular season,” Hillcrest receiver Jace Judy said, adding that some of the younger players may feel nervous for the championship game, but once the whistle blows, training and instinct take over.
“Your mind goes into auto-drive,” he said. “Your body will know what to do.”
Hillcrest (9-3) last won a state title in 2018.