Hinsdale Seven Contributed Heavily to 2018 Scottie Football Season

Seven young men from Hinsdale made up nearly one-third of the Scottie football roster this past season. That being said, you could assume that as a group they were key players for the Scotties. You could also say, arguably, they were the core players of the team.

As a group, the boys are fairly unassuming and come across as honest, respectful and attentive. They also seem to have a good grip on reality and display a notable level of humility.

Of the seven, four are 16 year-old sophomores:

The youngest of three boys, Wes Leatherberry is following in the footsteps of his older brothers, Justin and Austin, on the football field and has four years of experience on the gridiron himself. Leatherberry, who typically steps on the field as a left tackle, started in seven of the nine games and filled in a major gap for the Scotties this season on the defensive line. When asked to describe their teammate, the boys shared a phrase coined by Glasgow's Chevy Boos, "He's a quarter-ton of fun!" One of Leatherberry's most notable plays from the season was a four-five yard run during the game vs. Colstrip, followed by a fumble, which Leatherberry good-naturedly pointed out, happened out-of-bounds.

Jon Taylor comes from a family of athletes. His two older sisters, Whitney and Sacarra Molina, have had success at the next level playing college basketball. His brothers were also involved in sports, and his older brother, RJ Taylor, played football for Rocky Mountain College after high school. Jon himself has played three years of football. His teammates enjoyed having him on the team and specifically noted his talent on special teams. It's a bit of a specialty for the sophomore. "If there was an MVP award for special teams," said assistant coach Josh McCrossin, "it would go to Jon." Taylor contributed in other ways as well. McCrossin also noted two pivotal tackles Taylor had. "Two of his tackles were touchdown-saving tackles on kickoff in the fourth quarter," he explained. "Those two tackles definitely helped us win those games."

Loden Idler has played football for three years, with just one year on the high school gridiron. He is the oldest in his family with three younger siblings. Idler was likely one of the most prominent of the seven on the field, mostly because of his quickness and maneuverability. "Loden is the 'clutchest' JV player that ever lived," said Lee of his teammate. "He's super-shifty."

The rest of the group concurred, labeling him probably the fastest kid on the team. One of the most remarkable achievements for Idler this season was when he and John McColly had back-to-back pick sixes in their game vs. Wolf Point. Idler also had several other notable plays, including three 15-yard and one 22-yard receptions and an extraordinary 67-yard rushing touchdown vs. Harlem.

Jesse Lee is the last of Hinsdale sophomores on the team. He is a brother to two girls. This last season was his second season playing as a Scottie. Lee had to be encouraged to play this season by coach McCrossin, and the team was that much better for having him. Lee had an impressive 84-yard touchdown run in one of the JV games of the season and scored the game-winning touchdown for Glasgow against Baker. His teammates described him as super-athletic and said he's always able to lighten the mood. Although they didn't share any specifics, the consensus was that Lee's stories on the bus were one of the highlights of the season.

At 17 years-old, John McColly is the oldest of the seven. The high-school senior is the oldest of four children and has played football for six years. McColly was essential to the Scotties. With more than 450 total yards recorded this season, he undoubtedly made an impact in each game he played. McColly had several touchdowns during the season, including the pick-six he had in Wolf Point. He scored the game-winning touchdown in the Scotties' game vs. Conrad, and capped off his season with an impressive 20-yard rushing touchdown during the playoff game vs. Colstrip. "He's a good leader," said Lee of McColly.

Cordell Younkin, a 16-year-old junior, is the youngest of five in his family. Each of his siblings shared in his athleticism, although he is the only one left that is still competing in school sports. This was Younkin's fifth year playing the game. According to his teammates, Younkin really stepped up and filled in when he was needed this season, especially when Tel Aune was sidelined briefly with a medical complication. Younkin said that it took a lot of heart and hard work on his part to fill the shoes of Aune, explaining that their differences in size and weight were the most difficult things to make adjustments for. He managed to generate some memorable runs on the field, though, with a 75-yard run in an earlier JV game, and a solid 20-yard carry in Glasgow's varsity game vs. Harlem.

The youngest of the group is Trey Johnson, a 14 year-old freshman. Johnson is also the youngest of four children in his family. He does have some experience on the field, but this was his first high school season. Johnson was described by his teammates as a hard worker. "He pays attention and listens." McCrossin shared one of Johnson's most memorable achievements. "He had a key block on a run by (Alec) Boland during the game against Cut Bank," he explained. "It was third down with five yards to go. We needed the first down. Trey was able to complete the block and Boland had a seven-yard run to win the game."

When asked about any obstacles they have had to face being part of a co-op for football, the boys struggled to come up with any significant downsides. Mostly, it came down to less time at home, especially when they were doing two practices each day. Because they had to travel nearly 60 miles round trip to attend practices, sometimes days would pass before they saw their families or be able to catch some down time for themselves.

It was also during that time that the boys may have been less than friends. "They spend so much time together doing intense drills and practices," explained McCrossin. "They are on the field knocking each other around constantly. Nobody really talks to each other during those two-plus weeks."

Idler had his own characterization for the two-week stretch of two-a-day practices. "It's like listening to my sisters fight," he said wearily. The annoyances passed as the season progressed, however. Friendships were built and relationships strengthened. "You gotta be friends, or it won't be fun," said Lee.

For the most part, the co-op and playing as a Scottie was a positive experience for the boys. Their parents and the community were supportive, as partly evidenced by the red jersey-shaped yard signs on display as you pull into Hinsdale. "We've made whole new towns of friends from it," said Lee.

Idler remarked on the feeling of playing Homecoming in Glasgow. "It's fun to play when the bleachers are full like that. I mean, we have three towns that come out and support us."

Overall, the boys reflected on the season as fun. When speaking of their team and the coaching staff, they spoke with respect and appreciation, pointing out their teammate's qualities and contributions. They explained that the coaches also made the season fun and said that there was a whole different atmosphere on the team this year.

McCrossin also spoke fondly of them. "I'm very happy with these guys," he said, pointing out that each player this past season earned a letter in the sport. Although each sport has some form of criteria for the athletes to "letter," the Scottie football team essentially earned their letters this past season for their fortitude and dedication. "There is value to these young men sticking it out for the whole season," said McCrossin of the team, noting that the roster dwindled from 38 players to 26 players by the time the season ended.

When told that people are commenting that the Hinsdale seven are the foundation of the team, Idler shared his perspective: "I don't know if people are saying that we were the reason we had a good season," he said. "But we couldn't do it without Glasgow either."