It's Thursday and nobody else has started the thread!...but then, that seems to have been the case every week of the Cowboy football season this year, so I guess it's fitting.

I saw some comments and predictions on the "vs. Dillon" thread and thought I'd get the new one started...I'm thinking back to the last State Championship game the Cowboys played in a couple years back. I rememeber listening to it via Rocky-slow-talk-one-word-at-a-time-Erickson. He was joined in the commentary by one of the Stanton brothers while 2 of them were coaching against each other, and a third was in Helena helping coach Dickenson State against Carroll. Looks like it'll be a Stanton show again, at least where the 2 head coaches are concerned.

My prediction? Yeah, I'll say it - revenge for Custer High and a 10-point win. GO Cowboys!!!

...okay, Brian and Slosh, what's the tale of the tape?

While I have no tale of the tape, I would like to say GO COWBOYS!!! I fcking hated Billings Central back in the day...worse than Billings West...even worse than Glendive and that says a lot...as you all know. I hope The Cowboys whoop their asses royaly. Tackle, Tackle, Tackle!!!!

No need for a tale of the tape for this game, Shu. I've already posted a lot about Central this season, most recently in the Dillon thread. There's no need to rehash it.

Whichever team runs harder, hits harder, executes its game plan more effectively and minimizes mistakes will win. I think Central's biggest flaw is arrogance - the more hype they get, the more it'll play into the Cowboys' hands.

Let the media here in Billings say things like "Miles City can't score." The same thing has been said before ...

Getting pressure on Moller will help. Keeping pressure off Cooley even more so. But what will help the most is this:

Other than Cooley, none of the Cowboys' ballcarriers ran HARD in the first Central game. When you mince around and p***yfoot up to the line of scrimmage, you negate your size advantage and allow the defense to control the point of attack. Consequently, you're not going to do anything with the ball other than give it up on downs. I am confident that has been fixed since then.

Let the Rams think they were able to withstand the Cowboys' best shot in their earlier meeting this season. I think it's safe to say that anyone who has followed the Cowboys knows that game wasn't representative of what CCDHS can do on a football field.

There's no harm in letting Central think they have the game in the bag. Frankly, I encourage it. Play full speed-balls out, Cowboys, and you'll do just fine.

I stand by my earlier prediction: Cowboys 20, Central 7.

Does anyone know of any radio stations broadcasting the game over the internet? If not does anyone know how to go about finding that out? I live in Georgia and would love to listen to it if I can! Thanks!

[This message has been edited by Dawn (11/18/2010)]

You can listen to the game on Katlradio.com there will be a link for internet use. Very user friendly. GO COWBOYS!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks Kent!!!!

Brian said:
"whichever team runs harder, hits harder, executes its game plan more effectively and minimizes mistakes will win.

I believe you failed to mention, scores more points than the other team. Since we are stating the obvious.

you can also listen to Ben Hill and Rob Pierson on www.kyuskmta.com and if you cant go to the game, sloppy joes and chips will be in the bACk room of the montana bar at 1PM on saturday. A radio will broadcast the game and tv will have the griz , bobcat game on. See you there. Larry

I predict Coach Stanton will lead his team to another state title!

That's kind of the point, Trey. I could have gone with as in-depth a preview as I did for the other playoff games, but I wanted to keep it simple.

But if we were having a contest as to who could be the bigger prick, you'd win hands down.

Since you seem to like things pointed out to you, I'll be happy to oblige:

In the first game, Billings Central ran harder. They won.

In the first game, Billings Central hit harder. They won.

In the first game, Billings Central had fewer mistakes. They won.

I phrased it the way I did because I wanted to make a simple statement. Apparently, this was not simple enough for you. I hope this is more to your liking.

Ass.

14-7- Cowboys

I'll trade a regular season win for state championship win any day.

The best offensive line will win the game.

a little cranky eh Brian... Still too complicated, I will simplify my response

more points than the other team = (that's an equals sign) win

Unless Platter has any objections, here is the list of championship game rematches:

1983 - Glasgow 21, Miles City 17. The Cowboys held the Scotties to 43 yards of total offense in the regular season and won, 23-8.

Did you know that, Chafing Dish?

1984 - Sidney 21, Miles City 12. The Eagles defeated the Cowboys, 3-2, in the regular season. Until Miles City's 3-0 win over Glendive in 2004, this was the lowest-scoring game CCDHS had played in.

But you were already aware of that, weren't you, Salver?

1985 - Miles City 20, Glendive 6. The Cowboys defeated the Red Devils, 22-21, in the regular season. CCDHS and DCHS have had more games decided by a single point (5, including two state championship games) than any other Eastern 'A' pairing.

I'm sure Baking Rack was in the middle of typing that very same thing.

1988 - Sidney 37, Glendive 9. The Eagles defeated the Red Devils, 27-15, in the regular season. As Trifecta is well aware, Glendive defeated Miles City, 13-7, that season. The Red Devils' only other loss that year was by a 34-6 score to Dickinson in their season opener.

1990 - Sidney 20, Colstrip 14. The Eagles avenged their only loss of the season. The score of the regular season meeting? Ask Three-Pointer. He'll be happy to tell you it was also 20-14.

1993 - Sidney 28, Miles City 15. The Eagles won the regular season meeting, 25-8. The Cowboys actually led in the chipper, making it the first time all season long that Sidney had trailed in a game. WayDownTown...BANG! knows this, of course.

1995 - Miles City 13, Glendive 12. The Cowboys won the first meeting, 17-7. The Red Devils finished with an 8-3 record, the same mark they had in their previous two championship losses. This was on the tip of From Beyond the Arc's tongue.

1996 - Miles City 14, Sidney 7. The Eagles won the first game, 26-22, snapping the Cowboys' 23-game winning streak. Miles City's win in the championship game was Sidney's first home playoff loss under Mike Gear and marked the third consecutive game the Cowboys won on the road against a previously-undefeated opponent.

(Dammit, I'm running out of nicknames for Trey. Sue me.)

2000 - Dillon 33, Hamilton 6. The Beavers defeated the Broncs, 23-0, in the regular season. This was Dillon's first championship and the fourth consecutive title game in which Hamilton played. Tyler Thomas completed five of eight passes for 195 yards and no interceptions. All of his completions went for touchdowns.

2002 - Laurel 21, Havre 19. The Locomotives got revenge for their final defeat of the season, a 41-25 loss to the Blue Ponies in the fifth game of the year. At that point, Laurel was 2-3. Both Havre and Laurel defeated previously-unbeaten teams (Whitefish and Miles City, respectively) in the semifinals.

2004 - Havre 34, Billings Central 21. The Blue Ponies defeated the Rams, 20-19, in the second game of the regular season. The wins were easily the closet contests in which Havre played that year. The Blue Ponies scored 533 points in 12 games.

2005 - Dillon 21, Frenchtown 20. The Beavers' only loss of the season was against the Broncs, 27-19.

2006 - Dillon 35, Frenchtown 14. A "double" rematch, this game marked the same opponents as the year before. Trey is probably turning red from the obvious nature of this statement. The Beavers beat the Broncs 27-14 in the regular season.

2007 - Billings Central 28, Dillon 13. The Rams won the regular season meeting by a 20-6 score.

2008 - Miles City 20, Billings Central 7. The Rams won the regular season game, 14-8. This was the last game against an Eastern 'A' opponent that Central has lost.

2009 - Frenchtown 28, Billings Central 6. The Broncs' only loss of the season was to the Rams, 16-12.

Now, if you knew ANY of that, Trey, I'll gladly eat my shoe. Keep that in mind the next time one of my preview posts doesn't meet your oh-so-exacting standards, okay?

I won't make any predictions, I'll just cheer for the Boys. Several posts mentioned running hard. Kyle Stanton wants this thing so bad he's almost drooling. He'll run hard. I watched him 2 weeks ago against Col Falls carry 3 guys for more than 5 yds. Last week he danced across the goal line. He has great energy as does most of the team. Right now I think we could power all of Miles City w/ that energy.I just hope they don't get mad they can just get even!

So can anybody tell me if the internet broadcasts will work internationally? I think I might be out of country, albeit not too far away in Calgary, but sometimes there are blocks on these sorts of things.

Mr. Rath?

And this is the ONLY Cowboys team I will root for!

At the very least, I'd imagine you can get Slosh's Twitter updates.

Trivia time:

In the 1983 state championship game, one team had eight turnovers (four fumbles, four interceptions) and the other had three (all fumbles). Which team won the game?

In the 2003 and 2008 championship games, one team had two turnovers and the other had none. Which team(s) won those games?

If you answered, "the team with fewer penalties (minimized mistakes)," you would be wrong in all three cases.

[This message has been edited by Brian A. Reed (11/19/2010)]

Brian you did that ALL for just ME?!?!?! How nice of you. Your information is so helpful. Note all those who did win, scored more than those who lost...

I can't figure out why Trey would be such an A-hole to Brian.

Brian's posts regarding Class A football are the best thing on mc.com. They are intersting, informative, and clearly take a lot of time and effort to put together. I don't know Brian from Adam, but I do know that I appreciate his posts. So Trey, go pound sand, and quit picking at Brian.

Here is a score for you Trey: Brian 1, Trey 0 (ZERO!)

Pound sand

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

This weather makes me appreciate beach volleyball as a spectator sport. It is going to be a wee bit nippy tomorrow. My guess is which ever team has the warmest long underwear will win.

Trey - don't flatter yourself.

JCF - 1.) Thank you for the kind words. I realize that sports stats/history aren't everyone's particular cup o' tea, but it's good to know that at least some people find them interesting. I appreciate you letting me know that you're one of those people.

2.) +1 for the "pound sand" reference. Awesome. I tent to go with "get bent," but "pound sand" is a refreshing change of pace.

[This message has been edited by Brian A. Reed (11/19/2010)]

All sniping aside, drive safely to Billings, people. The roads are not good.

I hope things look better in the morning, road-wise. Would suck to have to stay home.

GO GET 'EM, BOYS!!! Give Central everything you have!

I'm working today, so I won't be able to hear the game and may not be able to get updates during the game...will have to get the low-down tonight.

As Brian said; to everyone who is heading-up, please drive safe.

Road report says patchy snow and ice between MC and Hysham and "Severe driving conditions" from Hysham all the way into Billings. To add to the bad driving, there is 4 areas of construction.

Google montana road report and look at the high resolution map. Please drive safe everybody!

So far, so good. Bozeman High won it's 1st ever state title in football last night. When the Cowboys defeat Billings Central, and the Cats win in Missoula this afternoon, this weekend will be as good as it gets. Go Cowboys! Go Cats!
All you fans please drive carefully on the way to Billings, and on your return trip also.

Band bus turned around and pep bus is canceled. The team bus was 20 mi out @ 10 am. Ya'll yell loud from your living room so we can hear you in Billings!

We decided better to be safe than sorry. Unfortunately I'm still sorry about it, anyway.

Go Cowboys!

We decided it wasn't worth the risk either. And yes, I still wish I was there freezing my butt off!! GO COWBOYS!!

Game was pushed back to 1:30 for those listening on the radio. Refs are coming from Bozeman and road conditions are even worse west of Billings.

I guess I will bundle up despite my cold and head for the game. I feel bad that our band and pep band isn't there but I'm so grateful that they're not on the road.

Risking your life for a game does seem a tad over the top.

I live less than a mile from the football field. But the amount of accidents just in Billings is scary too!

Anyone know how much tickets are for the game?

I'm listening to the game via streaming radio on the Internet while trying to keep track of the Cat-Griz game. What a day for football in the state of Montana!

Can we get an update on the game? Thanks

They are in the second quarter and the score is still 0-0.

1:38 left in the 1st half, Miles City 0, Billings Central 0.

Halftime: Miles City 0, Billings Central 0

Thanks David. Keep em coming.

59 yard run for a Cowboy touchdown. 6-0

Penalty so kick for extra point was pushed back to 25 yards. It ended up being blocked, so still 6-0.

I appreciate the ability to listen to the Cowboys while watching Cat-Griz, but Rocky Erickson makes me want to put a gun to my head.

I don't know about you Bob, but I find it a little disconcerting seeing the Cat-Griz game on the screen while listening to the Cowboys game. I forget I've got two games going and wonder why things aren't matching up. :-)

End of the 3rd quarter, Miles City 6, Billings Central 0.

With 4:41 left in the 4th quarter, Miles City scores a safety. Miles City 8, Billings Central 0.

CONGRATS COWBOYS!!!!!!!!!!

Final: Miles City 8, Billings Central 0

Congratulations to the 2010 Montana State Class A football champions, the Custer County District High School Cowboys from Miles City!

Great game Cowboys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Awesome game Cowboys! Bozeman Hawks - MSU Bobcats - Miles City Cowboys - All state champs on the same weekend. My teams did themselves very proud this weekend. Should be an amazing party in Bozeman tonight, so I'm gonna head downtown and partake. Hot Damn! What a weekend!

For those of you who are interested in such things, here are some tidbits:

- The game was the lowest scoring Class A championship since 1945, when Butte Central defeated Glendive, 6-0.

- This was the Cowboys' first shutout victory over the Rams since 1993 (42-0). Miles City also blanked Central in 1983 (33-0) and 1991 (20-0).

- This was the first time the Rams have been blanked under Jim Stanton. The last time Central was shut out was in 1999 (55-0 loss to Laurel).

- The Cowboys have now won championships in four consecutive decades, having earned titles in the 1980s ('81 and '85), 1990s ('94-96), 2000s ('08), and 2010s. The only other Class A team to accomplish a similar feat is Butte Central, which won titles in the 1940s ('42), 1950s ('52), 1960s ('64-65, '69) and 1970s ('71-73).

- Central is 45-3 over the last four years. All three losses came in the state championship game at Daylis Stadium. The only other Class A team to win at least 10 games in four consecutive seasons was Sidney from 1990-93 (42-1). The Eagles won championships in each of those seasons.

- Prior to Central's recent run, the last Class A team to reach the chipper in four consecutive seasons was Hamilton, which won back-to-back titles in 1997-98 before losing to Laurel in 1999 and Dillon in 2000. The Broncs' record over that span was 40-4.

- Sidney made the championship game in seven straight seasons (1987-93). The only other team to make four consecutive Class A title game appearances is Miles City (1993-96).

- Billings Central is the first Class A team to lose three consecutive championship games (Butte Central also lost three straight from 1953-55, but there was no differentation between Class A and AA in 1955, when the Maroons lost to Missoula).

- The Cowboys have won 31 games over the last three seasons, tying the team record set from 1994-96. Miles City was 31-2 during their three-peat seasons. The 2008-10 Cowboys have posted a mark of 31-5.

This is what I have for now. I'll post more tidbits as I find them.

Blgs. Gaz. had some video/interviews/still photos at:

http://billingsgazette.co...mode=story

Judging from the fog on the lens when shooting the indoor interviews, it must have been cold out there.

Congratulations Cowboy players and coaching staff.

Since I'm writing roughly 10 pages on this game, I'll keep this brief.

The Cowboys beat the )&$* out of Central. Some of the hardest hitting I've seen from the boys all year, and I've seen every single play.

Impressive job boys, you earned it

We had some great players back in the 60s not to many championships though good job guys hope this provides a springboard to the next l level.

D'oh! I gave Central an extra win (apparently they did the same previous to the chipper. Ha!) - BC's record over the last four years is 44-3.