Scott Klinker adding new dimensions for Great Falls High football team

Scott Klinker spent the first portion of the fall on the road, traveling the West with a Montana all-star baseball team.

Although he hadn’t suited up for the Great Falls High football team in two years, the senior felt the competitive itch upon his return in September.

“Just with baseball ending and watching my friends out on the field and knowing I was capable of playing alongside them, I really didn’t want to watch from the sidelines,” Klinker said. “I wanted to join them.”

Bison head coach Coda Tchida wasn’t going to deny the multiple All-State track performer and likely one of the state’s best all-around athletes, but told Klinker he’d have to earn his way on the field. He had to complete the minimum 10 practices to be MHSA eligible, all while learning the playbook and catching up on film study on the fly.

“In those 10 practices, everyone on staff could see how talented he is as an athlete,” Tchida said. “It’s great to have him on our team. All the kids love him. He’s going to help us be successful and that’s what we’re trying to do here.”

Great Falls High (5-4), the Eastern AA’s No. 4 seed, plays host to Missoula Sentinel (5-4), the West’s No. 5 squad, at 7 p.m. Friday at Memorial Stadium for the first round of the Class AA playoffs.

Klinker last played football in his sophomore season in 2021 at free safety and saw some varsity action as the coaching staff recognized his potential. Last season Klinker – a Legion star for the Great Falls Chargers – opted to concentrate on baseball.

But in his first game back on the gridiron two weeks ago against Billings Skyview, Klinker showed his immediate impact, skying for an interception in the end zone in a 40-0 shutout.

“It felt great showing out in that game,” Klinker said. “It felt great just playing after taking a year off. It felt so great to get out there and help my team catch a win.”

Last week against C.M. Russell High, Klinker threw a key block on Brevin Brockie’s kick return touchdown to open the second half of a 7-0 victory while also starting at cornerback.

The late addition of Klinker has given the Bison the option to shuffle things around on both sides of the ball. With Klinker stepping in at cornerback, Tchida moved senior Trace Hulett to safety, allowing Great Falls High to keep standout Izayah Brown at tailback fulltime.

“Trace (Hulett) was playing great at corner and we moved him to safety, and honestly, he’s probably playing better at safety now,” Tchida said. “We’ve got a lot of options on defense that we haven’t had the past seven years that I’ve been here.”

Klinker is also another reliable punt returner for Great Falls High, lending Tchida the option to put two returners back along with Brockie.

“We have two guys that we can trust that they’ll catch the ball and make the right decision,” Tchida said. “Not many teams can put two kids back, so I think that adds a dimension to our special teams on punt return also.”

Despite the late start to the season, the Great Falls High football team welcomed Klinker with open arms, he said, helping him get up to speed as quickly as possible in practice and in film study.

“These guys accepted me like a family,” Klinker said. “All of my friends were filling me in on stuff, Tchida was filling me in. They were all just helping me get along to where I am now, knowing the plays, knowing the defense, knowing what I had to do in coverage. They helped me a lot.”

A pitcher and outfielder in baseball, Klinker said he’s leaning toward playing college baseball at the moment at Montana State-Billings.

“I’m super proud of his effort and how he fit in with the team right away,” Tchida said.

Great Falls High is coming off back-to-back wins to close out the regular season, blowing out Skyview two weeks ago before a hard-fought crosstown battle last week.

Tchida said it was highly beneficial to end the regular season with a four-quarter struggle.

“We’ve either beaten teams really bad or we’ve been beaten really bad,” Tchida said. “It’s just been a weird year. That was our first close game throughout the season.”

Sentinel presents a stiff challenge in the opening round with a pair of University of Montana commits in receiver Grady Walker and tight end Danny Sirmon. Walker stands at 6-foot-3 and has caught 68 passes for 871 yards this season, while the 6-6, 240-pound Sirmon also has played some quarterback with an injury to starter Riley Allen.

“Defensively they’re going to blitz and blitz often,” Tchida said of Sentinel. “They like to man-up on the outside and say, ‘Hey we’re coming for you, come stop us.’ They always have been with Coach (Dane) Oliver. They’re just trying to confuse you as much as possible up front and that’s given us fits the past few times we’ve played them. They’re hard to prepare for.”

Great Falls High leans on its rushing attack with Brown, Ryder English and Braedon Rankin, while the defense has pitched consecutive shutouts heading into Friday. The Bison have been preparing in the snowy conditions and will be ready for the elements, Tchida said.

“You need a run game and a defense going into games like this and hopefully we can give Missoula Sentinel some fits and hopefully they’re kind of scared to come down here and play us a little bit,” Tchida said.

This article originally appeared on Great Falls Tribune: Scott Klinker adding new dimensions for Great Falls High football team