MERIDIAN, Idaho — The Mountain View High School football team faced plenty of adversity last fall, starting the season 0-2 with a brutal opening schedule of Meridian and Rocky Mountain – the two squads who appeared in the 5A Southern Idaho Conference championship game.
The Mavericks rebounded in a hurry, posting 41.5 points per outing while allowing an average of just 15.5 points to opponents the following four weeks. At 4-2 with three regular-season contests remaining, more adversity hit.
"Then we really got hit by the injury bug," head coach Brian Compton said. "We were at a point where we could've gone one or two ways, we could've just kind of folded our tent, or kept on going."
After losing to Eagle and Nampa back-to-back – each by less than 10 points – Compton's squad closed the season with a statement 52-7 win over Capital, a win that propelled the Mavs forward. Compton told KTVB the ups and downs of the 2022 campaign taught the entire program "a great lesson on perseverance."
That perseverance turned into a 5A state-semifinal appearance. Two weeks after losing to the Bulldogs, the Mavericks opened the playoffs with a 44-0 revenge win on the road, followed by an upset victory against the East No. 1 seed Highland.
While the run came to a close in the final four, the lessons of last fall's journey are still making a massive impact. For the Mavs returning players, however, the battle doesn't match Mountain View's standard. Do-it-all senior Justin McGee, who plays quarterback, running back and wide receiver, said it's a "prove-it season" approaching.
"It wasn't really the road we wanted to take to get there. Finishing 7-5, it's just not really what we're about," McGee said.
As always, Mountain View will lean on its brand of play, what senior offensive lineman Dillon Starkel describes as "smash-mouth football."
"When throwing doesn't work, we'll run it down your throat and hope you beg for mercy," Starkel said.
That identity starts with the offensive line, a unit that won the 11th annual Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Lineman Challenge in July.
"We all love to play football, we all love each other and we all love to hit. So, that's always a great combination for o-line," senior offensive lineman Aiden McGinnis said.
On defense, it will be the same story. Mountain View returns nearly half of its starters on that side of the ball under coordinator Roman Keefe.
"We'll be a defense that everybody is worried about in that we'll be high energy and aggressive, and we want to live up to that," senior cornerback Owen McBride said.
While physicality is the brand, Compton's offense will also showcase some versatility. He told KTVB the mentality is, "run to win, throw to score."
"We got some skill guys that can get stuff done in the backfield. You know, throw it down, score big plays," Starkel said. "Being able to be effective in all the aspects of the game, that's what helps us."
During KTVB's trip to Mountain View's practice, the motivation was easy to see after last season. The energy is also contagious, with players excited to do conditioning on the hot August turf.
"You gotta love the day-to-day activities that you're doing. Otherwise, it's really going to be a tough sell," Compton said.
The Mavericks will once again have to come together in just over two weeks as the 2023 season gets underway. After a 'week zero' bye, Mountain View hosts Meridian to open the season on Friday, Aug. 25. They visit the Grizzlies in the annual "Battle of the Mountains" on Friday, Sept. 1.
"Every single guy on this team loves the heck out of each other and it's just so fun everyday coming out and practicing with my best friends," McGee said.
Each of KTVB's prep preview stories will be linked below as Friday Night Football inches closer:
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