BILLINGS — It's been years since Sidney was a Class A football juggernaut. Decades, actually.
But third-year coach Jace Schillinger, as part of a rebuild and now a resurgence with the Eagles, has made the program’s championship past part of the team’s culture. And No. 4-ranked Sidney is beginning to show flashes of what could be possible.
Related: MTN Sports 2026 high school football power rankings for Sept. 28
"There's been a lot of winning that's been done here before, and there's no reason why it can't happen now," Schillinger said in an interview with MTN Sports. "We try to bring as much history and talk about the banners as much as we possibly can. Not so much to put pressure on the kids, but just to let them know that it can be done here with hard work."
After last week's 56-34 comeback win over Glendive, the Eagles are 5-0 for the first time in years and are turning heads in what looks like an increasingly wide-open Class A.
Sidney went 0-9 the year before Schillinger took over the program, and went 1-8 in his first season in 2024. But last year there were major signs of life — a 7-3 overall record and a playoff berth.
The Eagles' fast start this season won't make longtime Sidney residents forget the program's seven straight state championships from 1987 to 1993, but it has certainly given folks reason to believe.
"This year is kind of the year we've all been looking forward to," said senior quarterback Gradin Sukut. "We're showing a lot more this year than we had in the past, that's for sure."
Sukut is one of a handful of veteran players that got significant playing time early, and Schillinger said that allowed the team to learn on the fly and overcome sharp growing pains over the course of the past few years.
And these Eagles have traits of a savvy group. Against Glendive, Sidney was trailing 28-7 at halftime but rallied in the second half thanks to a resolve to overcome what Sukut said was "a rough half in which nothing went our way."
Then there was the 600-mile, cross-state trip to Polson for a non-conference game on Sept. 11. The Eagles handled the logistics of that jaunt like a mature group.
"If you've got to go across the state, you've got to handle the trip well," Schillinger said. "No matter who you play against, you've got to be able to handle the trip and not let it defeat you before you get over there. That was good for our kids to see."
Sidney's core consists of (but is not limited to) Sukut, who plays quarterback and free safety; senior Brody Keysor, a receiver and outside linebacker; Aaron Schmitz, a junior running back and linebacker; and senior Thor Fulgham, who plays on both sides of the line.
Sidney has talent, no doubt. But there's also a certain moxie that goes along with it.
"Our DNA kind of fits with what Sidney, Montana, is all about — more of a blue-collar, tough town," Schillinger said. "That kind of goes back to years ago when we had a really good football program, but also the wrestling program and also just the way of life here with the way people work and so forth.
"I would say toughness, blue-collar type kids that work hard, that are active, that do a lot of different sports, that are not single-sport kids. So I think it's their competitiveness and willingness to just work hard and do what it takes."
And then there's Schillinger, whose pedigree is well documented. A graduate of Baker High School, Schillinger won the 1999 Class B state championship under his uncle and legendary coach, Don, before going on to play football at Dickinson State.
His previous high school coaching stops included Billings Central, Livingston and Missoula Sentinel, to go along with college stints at Dickinson State (twice), North Dakota and Montana.
Jace's brother Shann, a former standout safety at Montana, is now the head coach at Division II Mary (N.D.)
Schillinger acknowledged that the Eagles have grown and improved under his tutelage, but he won't say that they have "arrived" just yet.
"I always think this — until we're able to beat one of those top teams, or until we're able to play one of those teams close .... we haven't played Billings Central close in the two years that I've been here," he said. "Until we actually play them close, it's pretty hard to say we're a contender.
"The Frenchtowns of the world, the Hamiltons, the Whitefishes, the Billings Centrals, those teams at Lewistown, they're in it a lot because I think they have great programs. I think they have great coaches, and I don't think anything's going to change in that regard. Those guys are still going to be the mainstays until we get some other teams in there that can go in and knock them off."
Sidney hosts longtime rival Miles City on Friday, travels to Lockwood the following week then closes the season against Billings Central and undefeated Hardin in the final two weeks of the regular season.
