HELENA — In 29 years of coaching high school football, Helena Capital head coach Kyle Mihelish said he’s never seen seven guys from the same team, in the same class, all commit to the same school.
That is until Wednesday afternoon’s signing day when seven Bruins signed letters of intent to attend and play football at Montana Tech.
“I think this puts 14 Capital High kids on the Tech roster,” Mihelish said following the signing-day ceremonies. “Sometimes in recruiting it’s a ripple effect. Off the 2022 team, (Tech head) coach (Kyle) Samson was able to get quite a few guys up there. And then these guys kind of followed suit after this season.”
Fresh off November’s Class AA state championship, these seven Bruin seniors — Jack Gollehon, Merek Mihelish, Dylan Almquist, Jake Zeeman, Cole Graham, Daniel Larson, Jackson McMillan — said they’re excited to keep playing football together.
"It’s really cool,” said Gollehon, an offensive lineman. “This last year was really enjoyable. And so, I think it’s going to be great to come back. We’re going to be better. And to be able to play college together, that’d be cool.”
Included in this year’s Capital-to-Tech pipeline was quarterback Merek Mihelish, Montana’s 2024 Gatorade player of the year. Merek Mihelish de-committed from NCAA Division I Montana before ultimately signing with NAIA Montana Tech — a decision he said his football brotherhood made easier.
“Obviously, you want to go to college with your friends,” said Merek Mihelish. “And going to college with your friends while playing football is going to be fun, too.”
And if you ask any of the seven signees, they’ll tell you their connection extends beyond the football field.
“I mean, it’s pretty strong,” said Almquist, a wide receiver. “Most of us, we’ve been playing at least since high school. Some of us longer. And so, we’ve really built a great relationship with each other, really care for each other, (and want) see each other succeed.”
