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Idaho State Journal | 2015 football preview
From left: senior linebacker/defensive end Hunter Eborn, junior defensive end Aisa Kelemete, senior defensive tackle Wayne Kirby and sophomore defensive tackle Tommy Togiai.
fearsome foursome
By Madison Guernsey | @MGuernsey_ISJ
Highland’s front line is like a twisted nightmare. Four sets of glaring eyes you can’t avoid. A half ton of mass only temporarily contained by gravity. Then it all swarms like a pack of rabid hyenas until you’re on your back in a daze. The hyenas cackle and dance away, providing momentary solace before the big hand of the onslaught clock ticks toward doom.
There’s a lot riding on Highland’s defense this season. The Rams lost 10 offensive starters and have an entirely new offensive line than their 12-0 5A state title team. But their defense, which held teams to under 13 points a game, returns seven starters. The once balanced, dominant squad that put up over 43 points per game and
won seven games by at least three touchdowns in 2014 is now a strange, uncalibrated scale with an unproportionate amount of weight on the Rams’ defensive line. Last year’s defense severely bottled up opposing rushing attacks and forced teams to abandon the run game entirely. Highland held Bonneville to six total yards and minus-24 on the
ground, both top-5 marks in school history. With the reputation preceding them and an onus to shoulder another state championship run, the Rams’ front four is basking in the hype. “No pressure, really,” said senior defensive tackle Wayne Kirby. “We’re excited about it. We’re going in confident.”