NEWS PHOTO JAMES TUBB
Medicine Hat High Hawks quarterback James Comstock reaches back to throw a pass during practice Thursday at the high school.
jtubb@medicinehatnews.com@ReporterTubb
The Medicine Hat High Hawks senior football team is ready to win the South once again.
The Hawks enter the 2023 Rangeland Football Conference off an eighth straight RFC championship and another South zone title added to their trophy case.
Head coach Quinn Skelton says they look to build off the young team from last season.
“We had a great group and I thought we did very well winning the South Zone championship and Rangeland,” Skelton said. “Coming in here with a lot of returners and great kids, great potential, we’re looking forward to an exciting year. We’ll have some big tests with games like Regina and then Raymond and Okotoks coming up. We’re excited to get at it.”
The Hawks opened their season with a 41-6 win over Chestemere on Aug. 26. They face the Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns out of Regina tonight for a 7 p.m. contest at the Methanex Bowl. Skelton says those matchups against schools like LeBoldus, Croxford and Raymond are to face that next level.
“We’re a tier-two school possibly moving into tier one as we get bigger by size and we have to continue playing the competition,” Skelton said. “So around our province and over in Saskatchewan, there’s some pretty darn good ball clubs and we have to take a chance to go play them.”
The Hawks are not looking for individuals to step up and do things themselves but are looking for leadership from all of their grades on the team.
“We’ve always said it doesn’t matter what grade you’re in, if you earn your way on the field, you’ve earned your way on the field, it’s as simple as that,” Skelton said. “So we look for leadership out of all of them and everyone can step up and play that role. Obviously we’re going to have some great kids in Grade 11 and Grade 12 who will be leaders for us, our captains, but as a whole we want this to be a team not just led by a couple guys.”
The Hawks, like the Monsignor McCoy Colts and Crescent Heights Vikings, will take part in JV jamborees within the RFC as a means to continue to grow football in the city. That growth of football at a local level is something Skelton says is critical at all stages.
After facing LeBoldus tonight, the Hawks’ next contest is Sept. 8 when they face CHHS at the Methanex Bowl. They take on McCoy in the game after that on Sept. 15. Skelton says they’re looking forward to the rest of the season and those local battles.
“It’s going to be exciting, our local games are always going to be competitive and high spirited,” Skelton said. “There’s great rivalries across the river and for some reason they don’t like us over here, so it’ll be fun making the trip up there to take on whoever it is.”
