BILLINGS — We’ve reached the dog days of summer, but the Rocky football guys have been looking forward to this point in the year.
The Battlin’ Bears are back on Herb Klindt Field as they open up fall camp coming off a 6-4 season.
“We're expected to win every single game we go out there. That's what these kids are recruited for, that's why these coaches are here and that's why I'm here," Rocky head coach Chris Stutzriem said. "If we don't win — and that's in the classroom, the community and on the field — I shouldn't have a job. The expectations are what they are. The standard is there. That's what needs to be said and we need to practice like that every day."
The defense should once again be a strength for Rocky, as the Bears have a handful of returners on that side of the ball. The secondary especially has been shining early on.
“The tone is really set in winter conditioning and throughout the summer. That's where we set the tone. We're getting after each other, going 100 percent in every drill. Working real hard in the summer and the tone from there carries over and with the freshmen it's either get on board or go," said linebacker Prince Johnson.
There are some question marks for Rocky this year, namely on the offensive side where the Bears are looking for a new quarterback. There are six guys in the room vying for the position of starter with less than three weeks until opening kick.
“We need leadership. Need a vocal guy, need an extrovert, however you want to put it," Stutzriem said. "Need a guy that's going to make a mistake and rebound and know he's OK. Look at all the great ones — the Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes — they don't hang their heads. They know mistakes are going to happen and they've got to go. Somebody that can lead this offense, trust their reads, see what they're seeing and go from there."
There won’t be a shortage of weapons for whoever winds up taking those snaps.
“Our offense has the best skill players in the nation, honestly," Johnson said. "We have the fastest receivers, we have some of the fastest running backs with the ball in their hands. Really we're trying to get them tough. Making sure they can bang inside the box when they need to. Making sure the receivers aren't scared to block us. Making sure that when they see bullets and see everything flying around, they aren't scared to stick their nose in there.
Rocky will kick off its season underneath the lights at home against Dickinson State on Aug. 26.
