BOISE, Idaho — After four-straight 5A playoff appearances, the Borah Lions are in somewhat of a rebuilding year.
Players like quarterback Jake Standlee, wide receiver Ellis Magnuson and linebacker Jacob Batubenga and six other all-conference playmakers no longer don the green and yellow.
"It’s definitely tough for the team to lose talent like Ellis, Jake, Chase, Badabinga,” senior three-sport athlete Austin Bolt said. "But I feel like this team has more grind just to be as good as Ellis and them."
That grind includes moving Bolt from wide receiver to quarterback, a position he's never played.
“You’re the center of the offense, not a guy who just needs to make a play whenever the ball gets thrown to you,” Bolt said.
Head coach Jason Burton says though Bolt is transitioning into a completely new role, he's confident in his abilities.
“He’s truly a game-changer," Burton said. "Anytime he touches the ball, he can change the outcome of the game.”
When Bolt is needed in the backfield, senior Alec Gray will take over at quarterback.
RELATED: A week in the life of a Lion
“It’s just one of things where we know [Austin's] going to have a lot of attention on him, and so we figure if we put him in the backfield, you can’t press him or do anything like that, so it gives us a little buffer,” Burton said. “It’s a nice package that we’ve installed in this offseason.”
Bolt and senior Joey Whiting both say they're confident in
“He’s a really good pocket quarterback," Whiting said. "He can see plays come out.”
"Alec is a very smart quarterback," Bolt added. “He’s definitely just going to make it so I can go back to wide receiver and maybe make some plays when we need some yardage.”
While the Lions are confident they'll be able to make a fifth-consecutive playoff run, Whiting says it will be difficult.
"We need to make sure Borah football lives up to its name," Whiting said. “It’s going to be a little bit of a struggle, but I think we can do it.”
GRADUATED
- Jake Standlee (QB - second team)
- AustIn Phomphackdy (RB - first team)
- Ellis Manguson (flex, P - first team)
- Jacob Batubenga (LB - first team)
- Kyle Jones (DL - second team)
- Logan Miller (DB - second team)
- Kade Dilworth (TE - honorable mention)
- Cristian Reyes (DL - honorable mention)
- Innocent Ndayiragije (LB - honorable mention)
RETURNING
- Austin Bolt (WR - first team, LB - second team)
- Alec Gray
- Joey Whiting
2019 Borah football preview
SCHEDULE
8/29 vs. Rocky Mountain - 7 p.m.
9/5 vs. Skyview - 7 p.m.
9/13 at Eagle - 7 p.m.
9/21 vs. Meridian - 11 a.m.
9/27 at Timberline - 7 p.m.
10/3 at Capital - 7 p.m.
10/11 vs. Boise - 7 p.m.
10/18 at Mountain View - 7 p.m.
10/24 vs. Centennial - 7 p.m.
Watch more High School Sports:
See them all in our YouTube Playlist:
Stay up to date and get breaking news notifications: Download the KTVB news app