The 75th playing of the Montana East-West Shrine Game will take place this June in Great Falls and will be played at Memorial Stadium. The game itself is one of the oldest of its kind in the country and to be selected in any capacity is a tremendous honor.

This past Wednesday Chinook Head Football Coach, Mike Jones, and senior standout, Toby Niederegger were recognized at a banquet held at the Duck Inn in Havre for their selection to the East/West Shrine game.

Jones was picked to be a part of the East coaching staff led by Head Coach Mark Sampson. Jones will be an Assistant Coach on the defensive side of the ball. Niederegger was selected to the East Roster as an Alternate and hopes that eventually he will be added to the active list.

The banquet recognized all the local athletes and coaches in our area and each player received a plaque recognizing their selection. "This is such a great honor. The head coach of the East this year is Mark Sampson and to be able to work with him and learn just some of what he has to offer is going to be great. I think we have a great staff and a great roster and I am excited to be able to be there this summer," said Jones afterwords.

Niederegger had a huge career for the 'Beeters and to see his efforts be rewarded pleases his head coach, "I think it is awesome that Toby was nominated and selected as an alternate. I really hope he is able to get the call to head down there. Toby is such a great athlete and competitor. It would be really awesome to see him compete with some of the best football players from around the state."

The dinner itself is a big deal, "The Shriner's put on a great dinner to honor the athletes from the local area that were invited to the Shrine game this year. It was a great introduction into the Shrine game as well as a reminder of why they put this game on. We were able to hear some of the background and stories of the Shriner's Hospitals and how they continue to help children with orthopedic issues among other things," said Jones.

In addition Jones will be in Butte later this spring to be a part of the Red Team Coaching staff for the Bob Cleverly Eight-Player All-Star Game.

The Clev, as it is often referred to, has long been the premier All-Star event to feature the best Class C Eight Player football has to offer in the state of Montana.

The game is played each year on the campus off Montana Tech University in Butte. The teams generally consist of 28 players per side. Teams are made up of a combination of the four divisions, rotating year to year. North/South versus East/West and are designated Red Team and Blue Team.

Jones will have three of his players joining him in Butte. Senior Oskar Pula and senior Drake Berreth will join Niederegger as Chinook representatives on the Red Team. Jones will be an assistant Coach for the offense in Butte.

On the Field Jones looks to continue the success the 'Beeters have had and hopes to see more players playing in the game in years to come. "We have a good solid core coming back next year and they are hungry and ready to hit the weight room and practice field. We are going to Bozeman team camp June 6-8 and are looking to have solid numbers participating.