MERIDIAN, Idaho — As the Grizzlies football team welcomes in a new season, a 'Rocky' finish from last fall still festers - a missed opportunity in the postseason against a 'Mountain' they previously conquered in the regular season.
"To lose to a team that we had already beaten that year, you know, that really hurts us in the head," senior defensive lineman Kade Steadman said.
In the 2021 5A state quarterfinals, Highland came back from an 18-point second-half deficit to defeat the Grizzlies 22-21 at Rocky Mountain.
"We felt we shouldn't have lost that game, so the intensity has just been through the roof," senior offensive lineman Zach Renner said.
Rocky went to Holt Arena for a week zero matchup last fall and beat the Rams 12-7 in a defensive battle. After losing to Highland to end their season, the feeling has been the Grizzlies' main motivator this offseason.
"I can say for myself, since the day we lost -- I was in bed and I got up and lifted the next morning -- and I could say that's the same for all these other kids," Steadman said.
The collection of Division I talent on this year's Grizzlies' roster is something extremely rare for a high school program in Idaho.
"There's a lot of really talented teams and this one's definitely that talent," Culig said. "The best team wins at the end of the season. There's six, seven schools that got talent. We got to stay together as a team and understand we got one goal and the rest will kind of take care of itself."
Steadman - Rocky's 6-3, 250-pound defensive end - said the 2022 squad is loaded beyond dominant Grizz teams of the past.
"I mean, we've never been like this," Steadman said. "When I say we work the hardest, we work the hardest and that's why we've earned every offer, every opportunity we've received."
With head coach Chris Culig at the controls, the Grizz are always great defensively and although it's tough to pinpoint a singular heartbreak on this unit, it's impossible to ignore the impact Air Force commit Kade Steadman provides.
On offense, left tackle Jackson Fullmer has already verballed to Kansas State, while right tackle Zach Penner is commitment to the University of Idaho.
Running behind those two is the talented Art Williams, a three-year starter who is also committed to Idaho.
"Art is one of our best athletes by far," Steadman said. "He's one of the most aggressive, smartest players I've ever played with and it is a blast to play alongside him."
In addition to all of that, the Grizz boast 4-star tight end CJ Jacobsen, return their starting quarterback in Tegan Sweeney, plus will benefit from the brilliance of Scott Criner -- a coaching legend that has returned his post as offensive coordinator.
"We think the same, we talk the same, we've coached together for years and we've been really successful coaching together," Culig said. "So, I'm excited to have him back."
Rocky Mountain may break their goals down into stepping stones, but everyone is on the same page about the overall expectations in 2022 for the Grizzlies.
"State championship, every year. No matter what, how we feel, we want that ring," Steadman said.
Renner duplicated the message, saying, "as a team we want to win, like, we're gonna win."
The sky-high expectations are an intimating task for some, but Rocky embraces the challenge.
"Everybody wants to be somewhere where expectations are high and our kids have really embraced it," Culig said.
Having state championship expectations is all the players in this program have ever known.
"We all know what the goal is and we all want to work towards it and there's not a whole lot of pressure towards it," Steadman said.
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