It’s a historic night for Ririe as Bulldogs win their first conference title since 1947 with a shutout of North Fremont

RIRIE – There’s a replica of a banner in the Ririe gym commemorating the Bulldogs’ last conference title in football.

It’s from 1947.

Yes, the original may be gone, but the replica more than highlights the program’s futile football history.

That changed on Friday night.

Ririe continued its magical season with an impressive 20-0 win over North Fremont to not only remain unbeaten at 8-0, but the Bulldogs also clinched the Nuclear Conference title.

The replica banner will now have some company on the wall.

Even if it took 78 years.

“We all wanted this game so bad,” said senior Kolter Lewis, who rushed for all three touchdowns and finished with 196 yards on 26 carries.

“These guys have worked hard since they were fourth graders,” added Ririe coach Josh Huntsman as players celebrated with the championship trophy and took pictures on the field to commemorate the moment.

On paper, this 3A clash was all about the running game. Neither team has been shy when it comes to just lining up and powering their way downfield and forcing defenses to figure out a way to stop them.

That was the case Friday as Ririe’s defense played its best game of the year against a Huskies’ team that has proven hard to stop.

North Fremont (6-2, 2-1) entered the game averaging more than 34 points.

The offense never got going in the first half as the Huskies fumbled twice and turned the ball over on downs in their three possessions.

Meanwhile, Ririe (8-0, 3-0) opened the game with two impressive drives that were capped by a 14-yard touchdown run by Lewis, and an eight-yard scoring run by Lewis.

Things didn’t get much better for North Fremont in the second half as the Huskies turned the ball over on downs, fumbled and punted.

“We knew if we were going to beat this team we were going to have to stop their two rushers,” Huntsman said of North Fremont standout runners Andrew Martin and Owen Reid, who combine to average 214 rushing yards.

“They’ve run the ball well all year long and we thought if we could get those two stopped we would have a good shot at winning this football game,” he said.

Martin was the workhorse with 20 rushing attempts, but he was held to 82 yards. Owens finished with 53 yards on 15 carries.

“Ririe came out and played smart,” North Fremont coach Jason Wright said. “They’re well disciplined … I think Aberdeen has that same kind of mentality and that’s where we have our hiccups. It’s got to be a mindset and we have to be a little more physical. That Ririe team is the most physical team in the state of Idaho.”

Ririe closes out the regular season next week at Salmon.

North Fremont travels to West Jefferson in a game that will determine second place in the conference and impact playoff positioning.