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CITY  (NewsDakota.com)–When head football coach Davy Zinke accepted the job with the Griggs-Barnes County Titans, he knew he had a sizable effort in front of him.

Neither of the nine-man programs that formed the base of the team, the Barnes County North Bison and the Griggs County Central Cougars, had really tasted success in football.  The teams were entering a co-op that covered a lot of ground between schools, and the team had found out it was moving the the “AA” level of football, up two classes in four years.

A year later, with a win over Valley City and playing late into games with quality teams in Region I (eastern division), a region far superior to it’s western counterpart, Zinke has his team moving forward.

That momentum resonated recently when 32 players showed up at the Valley City State University team camp, a number that Zinke described as “shocking” for some in Titan territory, where finding numbers has been a struggle in the recent past.

“This was their first time at the camp,” said Zinke.  “I used to try to build a team.  We have great numbers, but when you have this many underclassmen, you need your seniors to build a nucleus, and that’s what they did at camp.”

“We still have a long way to go, but these kids made the effort and sacrifice to be at that camp, and they played hard as a group,” Zinke added.

The man who stood out was Pete Fehr (Sr., 5’10”, 190), a linebacker who took the ball once as a fullback against Grafton last year and lost both ligaments in his right knee. 

“He came back after recouperating, and he put on a show that was rediculous,” said Zinke of Fehr.  “He got to the ball and was just ferocious.  The head coach from Larimore ran over and tapped him on the head after making a hit during drills.”

The basis of the team is on the line, a sizey, talented group that was young and growing last year.  That group has Zinke reforming his offensive strategy.

“I made a rookie mistake last year on offense.  With (quarterback) Billy (Engel) in there, I left it more open, but this year, we’re going to be more basic.  Call is Bismarck High in the mid-70’s if you want, but our line is right for that.

Griggs-Barnes County will have mini-camp July 17-19th at the East Campus (North Central), and will again play in “AA” Region I this fall.