Sho-Ban to host North Gem only home game this year

FORT HALL — When Sho-Ban High School announced its intent to field a varsity football team this year, the news was met with its fair share of detractors.

Due to the number of non-believers, according to head coach Lawrence Nai, the Chiefs (0-2) were able to schedule only one home game this season — the team’s first since 2019. And that lone game will be played Friday afternoon.

Fort Hall and Sho-Ban High School will host the North Gem Cowboys (2-1) at 4 p.m. on the Maxine Racehorse Edmo Field in the East Idaho Sports District 5 Game of the Week.

The Cowboys started their season with a pair of wins, against Utah Military Academy (UT) and the Camas County Mushers, before falling at home to Shoshone High School last week, 52-12.

The Chiefs have yet to score, but they showed signs of offensive life during the second half of their loss to the title-contending Rockland Bulldogs (2-0) two weeks ago during the Rocky Mountain Rumble.

North Gem, led into town by senior captains Craig Yost and Hayden Frandsen, is looking to right the ship with a win over an especially young squad.

Meanwhile, the Chiefs will look to ride the emotion of its home crowd for the first and only time this season and create a little more offensive momentum behind sophomore AJ Graves.