HELENA — Who does fall football camp better: the Helena High Bengals or Capital High Bruins?
Friday marked the first official practice day for high school football teams in Montana. So, MTN hit the gridiron to answer the question of which Helena high school football team does fall camp better.
First up, the Helena High Bengals. Head coach Dane Broadhead said his team had a good first day of camp.
“Yeah, it was good. Day one, morning one, so first practice, lot of energy, lot of excitement, which is to be expected,” said Broadhead. “You know, it’s Christmas morning.”
Players and coaches at Helena’s camp said they enjoyed the camaraderie that comes along with having the team together again.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s really fun,” said senior Helena wide receiver Jaxon Leiberg. “I’ve hung out with them a little bit over the summer, but just like having this family mentality thing with each other every day just means a lot.”
When asked who he thinks does fall camp better, Broadhead gave a non-committal answer.
“You started here first, let’s just leave it at that,” joked Broadhead. “No, both sides of town do it great. You know, coach (Kyle) Mihelish does a heck of a job over there. Their record and their trophy case speaks for itself.”
And with that, MTN headed over to Capital High to see how the Bruins do fall camp.
“I think we had a good summer,” said Capital head coach Kyle Mihelish. “The kids work hard. Got here at 6 a.m., the majority of them. The kids get here every morning at 6 a.m. So, yeah, the two weeks is just kind of to get us game ready.”
Capital’s starting quarterback and safety, senior Merek Mihelish, said he enjoyed being back with his teammates.
“I think it’s really just the same as any other year. It’s a fall camp,” said Merek Mihelish. “You’re with your teammates that you’ve known, you’ve played football with, almost your whole life.”
When asked by MTN which Helena team he thinks does fall camp better, Kyle Mihelish also gave a somewhat non-committal answer.
“Oh, it’s gotta definitely be Capital High School,” said Kyle Mihelish.
But when asked why he felt that way, Kyle Mihelish responded with a laugh, “No, I’m not going to go there.”
And with that, it’s official. There really is no way to definitively tell who does fall camp better. However, both coaches spoke highly of each other and each other’s programs, giving respect for how their counterpart enhances high school football in Helena.
