Joliet coach George Warburton said his team has yet to put together four good quarters of football this season.

Today would be an opportune time for it.

The J-Hawks (6-2), fresh off the school's first playoff win since moving to the Class C 8-Man ranks in the late 1970s, face a huge challenge today when they face unbeaten Drummond (9-0) on the Trojans' home field.

"Drummond is a traditional power in Class C … they're talented, they're experienced and they're well-coached," said Warburton. "It's a big challenge for us, no question.

"But at the same time, I feel like we haven't had that complete game yet where we put together four solid quarters of playing to our potential. Our kids understand that, and they feel like if we do that we can play with anybody."

Elsewhere in the Class C quarterfinals today, Wibaux (9-0) hosts Fort Benton (9-1), Centerville (9-0) hosts Twin Bridges (8-1) and Sheridan (9-0) hosts Charlo (8-1).

Joliet earned its first-ever trip to the Class C playoffs last season in Warburton's first year as coach, losing to Denton in the first round and finishing with a 7-2 record.

Led by seven seniors and eight juniors, the J-Hawks have put together another solid season and capped it with a 39-26 win over Scobey last week in the first round of the playoffs.

"It's been a lot of fun," said Warburton, who played football at Rocky Mountain College from 1998-2002. "We came into the season with a lot of expectations after last year. The kids had a great work ethic in the offseason, hitting the weights and going to camps.

"All that offseason work gave us a lot of confidence coming into the season, and the kids have played well."

Offensively, the J-Hawks have been led by senior quarterback Zach Wogamon and senior tailback Jess Graber.

The 6-foot-1, 165-pound Wogamon has thrown for 777 yards and 11 touchdowns and rushed for 249 yards and seven TDs, while the 5-8, 180-pound Graber has run the ball 115 times for 1,129 yards (a 9.8-yard average) and 20 touchdowns.

"We have great athletes, and we try to run an offense that utilizes them as much as we can," said Warburton. "Jess Graber is the fastest kid in Class C (Graber won the 100-meter dash at last spring's State C track meet in 11.32), and he runs with some power, too.

"Zach does a good job both running and passing, and (tight end) Jordan Luoma has been a great weapon for us at receiver. He's a strong kid with real soft hands."

Warburton said the addition of defensive leader Michael Robinson - a 6-foot, 180-pound junior who has 135 tackles on the season - to the offense in recent weeks has provided Wogamon with another weapon.

"We've added kind of a fly motion where we bring Michael in motion, and it's been a big plus," he said. "Michael has run the ball 14 times and he's scored six touchdowns."

While Joliet is enjoying its first taste of playoff success, Drummond has made a habit of winning in November. Coach Jim Oberweiser's Trojans are a remarkable 67-6 in the past seven seasons - with four of those losses coming in a 4-4 season last year - and won Class C championships in 2003, '04, '05 and '07.

The Drummond offense is led by senior quarterback Neil Mannix and junior brother Bryan, who's rushed for 782 yards and nine touchdowns. Neil has thrown 13 TD passes and run for 12 TDs.

"They have some great offensive players that we definitely need to corral," said Warburton. "Coach Bergen (defensive coordinator Simon Bergen, a teammate of Warburton's at RMC) has done a great job of putting our kids in position to make big defensive plays all season.

"If we can do that (today) and play mistake-free football, we've got a chance to compete. We're excited for the opportunity and we want to make the most of it."