EAST HELENA — The East Helena Vigilantes look to continue their “season of firsts” against the undefeated Billings Central Rams.
East Helena hosted a playoff game for the first time, and has now also won multiple playoff games in the same season for the first time.
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But they Vigilantes are not stopping there. This week they’re headed to the Class A football semifinals for the first time in program history, where they'll face undefeated defending state champion Billings Central on Friday.
This historic season for the East Helena is defined by the trust the players built as a team, brick by brick.
“We've just got to make sure we can start fast, and trust ourselves and trust each other, play 48 minutes of Vigilante football, and that's doing your job for six to eight seconds as hard as you can and trusting the guy next to you to do his,” said coach Tyler Murray.
After starting with the varsity team five years ago, Murray sees the hard work his players are putting in year after year. His philosophy of process over product sets the standard for his guys to chase growth over wins.
“You're not going to always play good, you're not always going to go out and whoop a team, but it's about getting up after the next play and giving out your 100% effort,” said senior DeonDray Ellis.
“We like to take it day by day,” said senior Hagen Paddock. “Don't focus on too much at one time, right? Just focus on practice today, practice tomorrow. just do the little things.”
Seniors like Paddock have been with the team all four years, stepping into this leadership role and often putting in extra work after practice.
This mindset has carried the momentum for the Vigilantes since last season, as they continue chasing history for the valley.
“Just knowing that we can actually do this, we can hang with anyone in the state, all we've got to do is just get out there and prove it,” Ellis said.
Kickoff against Billings Central is at 7 p.m. Friday at Herb Klindt Field on the campus of Rocky Mountain College.
