HAMILTON — The Hamilton Broncs are not strangers to playing important football games deep into November, and that’s exactly the case this Friday as the team is just one of the final four teams remaining in the Class A playoff field.
Under 10 years with Bryce Carver as head coach, this week marks Hamilton’s seventh time playing in a semifinal game. But it’s their first since 2022. Hamilton made it to at least the semifinal round six straight times from 2017-2022 — the Broncs played in title games in 2017, 2018 and 2021 — and was a quarterfinal team in 2023 and 2025 and missed the playoffs in 2024.
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So Friday marks this group's debut playing under that spotlight.
"It’s very special, all the guys, freshmen through senior have put in a ton of work," junior quarterback and linebacker Cooper Weston said. "We bounced back, two years ago we had a losing record and we get here and we’re doing well.”
The Broncs success historically has been well-learned by this group, as they knew the expectations when they arrived to high school.
“I just remember Hamilton’s always been having a shot at state and just being this big program that only knows to win," senior running back and defensive back Jude Widmer said. "I think coming into this program, I just kind of knew the expectations that this program is about winning and that’s what we do.”
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Sporting 10 seniors, the Broncs suffered an early setback to Whitefish in the second game of the seaso, but have rolled from there as they earned the No. 1 seed from the Southwest A, and picked up a grinding quarterfinal win over Billings Central last week.
“I think that early loss has just kind of put a taste of we can’t let our guard down," Widmer said. "We just got to win every play and it left a sour taste and I think we don’t like the taste of losing and we’re just out to win every game and be physical and keep on fighting.”
“I just think that from that game we were like we have to put it to them and I think after our Frenchtown win we were super jacked and that kind of gave us the motivation for the rest of the season," added senior wide receiver and defensive back Easton Hollis.
Next up is a home game on Friday against East Helena, as the Broncs look to get back to the championship game for the first time since they won it all in 2021.
“This program means pretty much a lot to me, pretty much everything honestly," Weston said. "I grew up coming to practice and being around coach Carver, being around the older guys, growing up really wanting to play and it meant a lot seeing them succeed and do well.”
“Probably that it’s my senior season but I think we just all knew our end goal," Hollis added. "Get to the state chipper and just really persevere and work hard as a team.”
