To be the best, you’ve got to beat the best, and for the past several years Hysham has been the best when it comes to six-man football in eastern Montana. Savage has the chance to give Hysham its first conference loss in more than three years Friday at 7 p.m. on the road.

“Hysham has been the big dog in the conference the last couple of years. I think they are looked at as the favorite until someone comes along and knocks them off,” Savage first-year head coach Bart Haflich said.

The Warriors, who finished second in the conference a year ago to the Pirates, are coming off a 54-14 season opening victory over Stanford-Geyser Friday. Now Savage has its sights set on the defending Eastern C champs. “I was happy with how we played in our first game. Overall, we put together a strong effort,” Halfich said. “I told the kids to enjoy the victory that night and then wake up that morning thinking about Hysham.”

Defeating the Pirates won’t be easy, but it will take a complete fundamentally sound effort.

“Hysham is a really well-coached team that doesn’t beat themselves. They don’t make small mistakes or have unneeded penalties. If you beat them, it’s because you earned it,” Haflich said. “We’ll have to be focused for four quarters.