High School Football Preview: Blackfoot Broncos
BLACKFOOT (KIFI) - Much like the copious construction on the school grounds, the Blackfoot Broncos are also rebuilding.
“Any time you have an 0-9 season, there’s some things that do need to change," explained head coach Josh Stewart.
The team's veterans believe those changes all start inside the helmet.
“As soon as one thing went bad, it kinda seemed to linger on for a long time," recalled wide receiver Jaiden Rodriquez.
“We went into games after we lost our first couple," added linebacker Landin Gallegos, "and we just hoped we at least scored some points, rather than hoping we won a game. And once we were down a little bit, we ended up getting down on one another. It just brought the whole team down.”
Stewart, entering his first season at Blackfoot's helm, plans to change that.
“I don’t care how good of a football team you are - you’re going to face adversity," he said. "And the key is, the good football teams overcome it quickly.”
Stewart would know. He took the Declo Hornets to the 2A state title game in 2023, falling to a West Side squad they had taken down earlier in the season. Now the winless Broncos have a winning head coach.
“It’s just up from here right now," Rodriquez said. "So we’re pretty positive about that.”
“We’re working harder in the weight room, on the field, and our relationship with our coaches is so much better from the get-go," Gallegos reported.
Moving to a 5A school is an adjustment for Stewart. He only oversaw about 50 players at Declo.
“I think we’re at about 130 in the program at Blackfoot," he asserted. "So that’s a big change.”
“Every good coach has good help around him," he continued. "And so I was able to bring in four or five guys that are new to the program.”
But Stewart is making changes on the field, too. He promised to create a much more physical Blackfoot team, hearkening back to the successful days of old.
“[We've had] more diversity in schemes," said Rodriquez. "Last year, we seemed to stick with a lot of the same things over and over, with it not working. But this year, it’s easy to adjust.”
“I’m not putting up specific expectations, like how many wins," Stewart said. "But we definitely expect to be a lot better football team this year. We’re gonna win some games.”
“I feel a chip on my shoulder," said Gallegos. "I feel underestimated.”
Stewart's mantra for the team is simple - no fanciness, all fundamentals.
“We’ll still do some of the pretty stuff that people like to see," he admitted. "But we’re going to be a gritty, tough, physical football team.”
