Preseason Coaches' Poll
1. Prairie
2. Clearwater Valley
3. Lapwai
4. Kamiah
5. Genesee
6. Potlatch
7. Troy
8. Logos
Written by: Will Hoenike
Kolby Hix doesn’t have an enormous list of followers on his Twitter account. However, if you scan the list, you see some coaches. College coaches.
People have taken note of the 6-foot-1, 220-pound two-way standout for the Kamiah Kubs. As a junior, he earned 1st-Team All-White Pine accolades as a defensive lineman and a tight end. He’ll compete this fall as a senior for the Kubs and then, in January, he’ll participate in the Dream All-American Bowl at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas, an event that will allow him to be seen by additional colleges and universities.
Not bad for a kid from a central Idaho town of a little over 1,000 people.
The Kubs are coming off a seven-win season in 2020 that earned them a trip to the 1A Division 1 state playoffs. After an opening-round victory, the Kubs fell to eventual runner-up Raft River and enter 2021 hungry for more.
Hix gets the headlines, but veteran head coach Nels Kludt brings back other talented, experienced players. Porter Whipple returns for his sophomore season along the offensive and defensive lines after earning 2nd-Team All-Conference honors for each following his freshman season. Kendrick Wheeler returns for his senior season after earning recognition for his play as a defensive back as a junior and he’s expected to add quarterback to his list of duties this season. Junior Brady Cox performed well in the secondary and was voted 2nd-Team All-State as a punter, and he’ll also play receiver. Everett Skinner, an honorable mention All-Conference lineman as a sophomore, is back for his junior season.
“Our returning offensive line, with Hix, Whipple, and Skinner all returning, should be a strength,” Kludt said. “We want to be a power running team, that should be a good start.”
Kamiah will have to replace the productive tandem of Gabe Eades and Landon Keen in the backfield but have Wheeler and junior Colton Sams ready to slide into larger roles. The offense was explosive at times in 2020, scoring 54 points or more in three separate games, but also slowed at times. Kludt is hopeful that an improved passing game will allow Kamiah to put up points more consistently in the deep and difficult White Pine.
It seems like such an obvious conclusion but, defensively, when Kamiah performed well, it won. As a team that wants to grind out drives on the ground, it needs to keep the ball away from opposing offenses. In Kamiah’s three losses, the Kubs surrendered over 70 points twice (albeit to perennial powers Prairie and Raft River). That’s an area where the Kub coaches expect improvement.
“With ten players returning with starting experience, we should have good depth,” Kludt said. “We hope to be better in coverage and we also want to limit the number of big plays we give up.”
With eight teams playing football in the 1A Division 1 White Pine this year, the Kubs only have one non-conference game – a season-opener at home against Division 2 Timberline on September 3. Then it’s into the fire, metaphorically-speaking, with a conference game on the road against newcomer Logos. The Kubs will also conclude the regular season with a pivotal league game against rival Clearwater Valley in a matchup that could determine playoff seeding, if not an outright playoff berth.