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Rejuvenated Bottineau experiencing success in 9B

Junior running back Jacob Shriver, center, on a rushing attempt during a game earlier this season. Submitted Photo

On the heels of a handful of challenging seasons that bore little fruit on the gridiron, Bottineau High School decided it was time for a change.

The Braves’ football team had won only three of its 18 games during the 2019-20 seasons in conference 11B, and after the state had concluded its annual enrollment check, the school found itself on the fringe between remaining in the conference or dropping down and officially becoming a nine-man program.

“As a school we decided to move down to nine-man and try to help start our program a little bit and get things going,” head coach Zach Keller recalled.

The beleaguered Braves, now faced with the challenge of learning a completely new style of football, responded admirably to the change to 9B this fall.

Bottineau matched its win total from the past two seasons in its first three weeks and completed a perfect 8-0 season in its new conference. Its 26-8 victory over the North Prairie Cougars in the second round Oct. 23 provided the school with the first postseason win in program history, as well, following a first-round bye.

“We were just trying to get our athletes in the right spots to make plays on both sides of the ball,” Keller added. “Our assistant coaches have done a really good job plugging the right guys in the right spots. Each week it’s somebody else who steps up and there’s no selfishness at all. They just pick each other up and keep chugging.”

Keller emphasized the great impact his seniors have had on turning the program around, led by Trasen Pollman.

The tight end and linebacker paced his team in receiving this season by a wide margin, accruing team-best marks with 316 yards and five touchdowns in the Braves’ eight regular-season games. On the defensive side of the ball, Pollman wreaked havoc on opposing offenses by factoring on 61 total tackles.

The Braves’ head coach also pointed to the contributions of wideout Sutton Shurley and defensive lineman Micale Costa. The former produced 42 receiving yards in addition to his dynamic potential on special teams, where he notched a punt return for a touchdown and 250 total yards on the punt return.

The latter helps lead a defense that yielded no more than 15 points in any single game this season and has factored on 42 tackles of his own to complement Pollman’s work.

“These kids have done a really nice job; we have really good senior leadership on this team,” Keller added. “It’s been a group of seniors that has taken a lot of lumps the last couple of years, so they’ve had a lot of gametime experience. This year it’s really paying off.”

Following its second-round win over North Prairie, the Braves are preparing for a quarterfinal matchup against Nelson County Oct. 30. The contest will feature two of the five undefeated schools in the 9B conference out of 41 total programs and a first-time meeting between the two.

“They’re a good team,” Keller said. “They have a lot of good athletes who they can put in spots in space, and they do a lot of good things on both sides of the ball. It’s going to be a pretty evenly-matched football game.”

Not only have the two football teams never squared off, but the two schools have rarely faced each other in any sport, Keller noted. The unfamiliarity with the Chargers poses a challenge for Bottineau, but the team’s preparation will remain the same as the team looks to earn its first berth in the 9B state semifinals.

“We’re trying to stick together,” Keller continued. “Stay focused and determined, and just have that relentless attitude to keep the grind going.”

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