The more things change, the more they stay the same for the powerhouse Pioneer pigskin program.
Big Sandy left unfinished business on the field after a 10-1 2019 season ended with a semifinal loss to eventual state champion Jordan in the Montana 6-man semifinal. The Mustangs' lone blemish for the year wound up being a season-opening 44-28 loss to Big Sandy.
In 2020, it's a whole new ballgame.
The Pioneers replace more than half their starting lineup. But so does Jordan. So do many teams in the always-exciting 6-man division.
"I've got my core guys back," said Big Sandy coach Larry Jappe. "We've got a few new, young kids ... the East (Division) this year, they lost everybody."
While the Pioneers should be expected to have little trouble defending their North Division crown, Jappe named a few state playoff regulars who could be in the hunt for a trophy this year.
"White Sulphur Springs, (Roy-)Winifred, maybe Shields Valley," he said.
The former pair of teams may be targeting Big Sandy after the Pioneers eliminated them in the state tournament in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
Behind returning senior all-state running back Kade Strutz and senior all-state passer Parker Proulx, Big Sandy cannot be counted out as a contender for an elusive state title, which has escaped Pioneer teams in the title game twice this young century.
"I want probably what everyone wants at the beginning of the season, a state championship," Strutz said. "We'll be extending our playbook, trying to run some different formations."
"We changed up the backfield a bit where they can't just key on (Strutz) every play," Jappe said. "We'll run more spread offense."
Expect Strutz to continue to rack up yards and score touchdowns in his final prep season, though there will be no emphasis on rewriting record books.
"He may be in position," Jappe said, for some state 6-man records. "But I won't score 100 points on somebody."
Jappe chuckled that some of the state 6-man records have an arcade level of absurdity, with feature backs racking up 300-yard per-game averages. Some coaches, teams and players have emphasized them to a fault.
"We get our young guys some playing time," Jappe said, "the third- and fourth-stringers in there."
Proulx and sophomore Kody Strutz will each be slinging passes for Big Sandy this season and lining up elsewhere in the backfield to create confusion for opposing defenses. Senior Brady Pleninger, a defensive stalwart, is expected to have a greater impact on the opposite side of the ball this season.
Pleninger's return from military basic training Friday sparked excitement among his teammates and he returned with some lessons he can put to use on the gridiron.
"I feel like I learned a lot of discipline," he said. "I feel like I learned how to work as a team a lot better."
He learned never, ever to quit.
"It's over when it's over. It's not over two minutes before ... that's more of the (U.S. Army) Ranger mentality," he said.
Due to coming home after two-a-day practices wrapped, Pleninger will not be eligible to compete in the Pioneers' season opener at 7 p.m. Friday hosting the Valier Panthers. He is anticipated to begin his senior season at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 5, at Rudyard against the North Star Knights.
"I haven't gotten a chance to see what other teams have or anything but I'm really confident in my guys," Pleninger said. "Wherever (Coach Jappe) needs me, I'm going to put in 100 percent. I'm going to give it my all. We're all in it together. If I'm told to block for (Kade), he's going to get a block."
Besides reducing the regular season schedule to games only within the North Division, Jappe said COVID-19 "hasn't even affected us at all ... it's just business as usual."
While he and his assistant coaches will be required to wear masks on the sidelines, as will players, officials and other game staff, spectators are asked to fill out an online form or call the high school at 378-3400 to pre-register before the season kicks off. This will save time Friday evening at the gate and allow the Chouteau County Health Department to more easily conduct contact tracing if a positive case is connected to a sporting event.
When Pioneer opponents have the ball, they can expect to face a formidable front line. Pleninger and Dillon Geyer are slated to wreak havoc at each defensive end position.
"We shouldn't lose a step there," Jappe said, despite graduating key seniors. "It's the same defense as last year. We've just got to replace a couple guys."
He named sophomore Braydon Cline as another likely contributor on the defensive side of the ball.
Younger Pioneers will need to step up and showed themselves capable in recent seasons.
"We haven't lost a junior high game in three years," Jappe said.
Sophomore Lance Rutledge and freshman Wylee Snapp alternated taking snaps at center in preseason practices.
"We've got a couple good freshmen that are able to step up, some good sophomores ... that really didn't get the time to play behind our seniors (in 2019)," Strutz said. "I'm just looking forward to being able to play with these guys one more time, one more season and see what we can do."
The Pioneer squad in 2020 also features senior Cam Schwarzbach; sophomores Rusty Gasvoda, Tannin Baumann, Lane Demontiney and Matthew Bendig; and freshmen Sam Cox, Christian Winderl, Cooper Taylor and Jake Darlington.
The 2020 football season will kick off at 4 p.m. Friday with the Big Sandy junior high kickoff, hosting Valier. The regular season is scheduled to conclude with an Oct. 9 home contest against Power-Dutton-Brady and postseason play to begin Oct. 16.
