POCATELLO – Wind cuts through the valley that separates Chinese Peak and Indian Mountain, howling bitter air between the goalposts of Century High’s football field. Ryan Fleischmann stands in the corner of the north end zone, covered up in dark attire that would see him vanish if the lights cut off.

Usually on these nights, he’s stationed a few feet behind the quarterback, paying no attention to the ball as he surveys the trenches, handing out critiques as Century’s offensive line coach. On Wednesday, he stood off to the side -- where he likes to be in all aspects of life -- and took a step back from the day-to-day monotony while the Diamondbacks geared up for Friday’s clash against rival Pocatello.

His vantage point of the field was vast, which meant his sons never faded out of his line of sight. Well, perhaps they never have -- which made Ryan Fleischmann’s mid-week reflection all that more revealing. He analyzed and reflected upon the vision he and his wife Meg put into action, the bold decisions and self-rationalized choices that have all been worth it.

Ryan chuckled when his oldest son, Titan -- a 6-foot-5, 250-pound senior offensive lineman -- pancaked a teammate on a run play, nudging the person next to him.

Did you see that?

A little later, his second of four children, Bruin -- a 6-foot-4, 210-pound junior receiver -- made a catch with a defender slung over him, almost hauling it in with his butt on the ground. Awe and frenzy went around the bowl. Ryan just grinned.

I told you he's pretty athletic.

He always knew both his oldest boys were going to be athletic. Mixed genes from Ryan -- a former Idaho State football player -- and Meg -- a former Bengal women’s basketball star -- made that a near certainty. But it didn’t ensure his sons excelling. No, that, Titan and Bruin said, is a credit to their parents.

“I’d say 90% of it is them,” Bruin said.

Ask Ryan and Meg what they did, and every conversation reverts back to the four family rules.

1. PROTECT THE FAMILY

There are a few changes between a regular-season game and a jamboree (a preseason scrimmage). In the latter, officials are whistle-happy, always blowing before the quarterback gets hit. No need for an unnecessary hit in a game that doesn’t matter.

Earlier this year, a Hillcrest pass-rusher didn’t abide. Bruin dropped back at quarterback and was brought down for a hard sack. It wasn’t a dirty hit, but there weren’t supposed to be any hits. The whistle blew. The play should have been dead.

Titan, on the backside of the play, didn't see it. No matter. Century guard Campbell Hicks informed him of the disrespect against his brother. On the next play, that same pass rusher lined up against Titan.

“I waited, wrapped him up and took him for a ride,” Titan said. “I took him like 15 yards away and set him down and said, ‘Don’t touch my quarterback again,’ then I left.”

Added Century coach Travis Hobson: “Practice, games, in the hallway, it doesn’t matter. They’re super defensive and protective of one another. You better know that when you mess with one, you’re messing with both.”

One day when the boys were young, Ryan picked them up from daycare. He knew what happened. But he wanted to hear it from them. He grilled Bruin. No response. He grilled Titan. Silence.

They were in solidarity.

Earlier that day, a kid at daycare was picking on Titan. Angered, Bruin raced over and started punching the kid.

“If that happened, if they protected the family, then they were going to Fred Meyer for a toy or getting to pick out a Lego,” Meg Fleischmann said. “That was huge. We always celebrated that kind of stuff … They always got kudos for following the family rules.”

2. DO IT BETTER THAN YOU’VE DONE IT BEFORE

There’s a running joke in the family that when Bruin and Titan move out, their parents are going to be rich with all the money they’ll save on groceries. That may be an exaggeration -- but not by much.

“It’s at least $400 (a trip), if not more. And we go once or twice a week,” Meg said. “It’s crazy the amount of food that they put away.”

They don’t get carts at Costco, they roll around pallets -- and there needs to be two. They have 15 chickens in their backyard, but they would probably need a whole farms worth to lay enough eggs. A family breakfast may include 36 eggs -- and mom and dad may not get any.

Hobson joked that when the boys were in his class, they’d pop hard-boiled eggs like Tic-Tacs. One time, the Century coach ran into Meg and Ryan at Costco. He was awestruck.

There was a lot of meat, a lot of fruit, a lot of cheese and bread and all that stuff. But, the milk. Oh, the milk.

“We had to buy a whole second fridge … and all of it is milk,” Ryan said with a chuckle. “I’ll never leave Costco without getting at least six gallons of milk. They’ll treat a gallon of milk like most people would treat a Coke. When they open it, a gallon of milk never goes back in the fridge.”

That might seem excessive, borderline scary, to normal people. In reality, at least for a high schooler trying to play college football, putting on weight is a necessity. And because Meg refuses to let them take supplements, insisting on just food and sleep, the boys can go to great lengths.

This summer, the family went on a backpacking trip for a few days. Bruin stayed home from the family trip. This spring, he went on the same adventure and lost five pounds. He wasn’t about to make the same mistake again.

“He was afraid of losing weight,” Ryan said.

3. BE RESPECTFUL

Like most recruits, the pandemic didn’t help Titan’s recruitment. Official visits vanished. No seven-on-seven tournaments to impress coaches. And the FBS interest he garnered pre-pandemic didn’t materialize into an offer.

But Montana State ramped up their efforts to snag Titan. They called ad nauseam. They sent hand-written notes. They wanted each of their coaches to develop relationships with him.

The big offensive lineman took notice.

During the summer, Ryan drove Titan up to Bozeman, Montana. If this was going to be the school he picked, Ryan thought, he ought to at least see it. They walked around the campus, hung out and Titan eventually decided that's where he wanted to go to college.

But, because of COVID, even that, of course, looked odd.

Titan committed via Facetime in the parking lot of Montana State’s stadium. The coaches were in the building above him, all looking out their windows going crazy. Titan was standing about 100 feet below them doing the same.

The family hopes Bruin can have a similar experience this summer. Through that process, the same rules and advice will come. Always appreciate a school recruiting you. Never blow off a coach. Don't self-promote every offer and accolade on Twitter like you’re Jimmy Fallon.

“I hope that some of the teachers say, ‘Your kid is the hardest worker. They’re so kind to the others in class,’” Meg said. “That means so much to Ryan and I.”

4. NO MATTER WHAT, ALWAYS COMPETE

Perhaps Titan and Bruin were destined for greatness. Meg’s father played football at USC with O.J. Simpson. Her three sisters all played sports at the Naval Academy. She starred on the hardwood in Pocatello. Ryan’s dad is a local wrestling legend, and he played collegiate football at ISU.

“We planned they would get scholarships, be nice respectful kids and also competitors,” Meg said. “When Titan committed to Montana State, Ryan and I looked at each other and were like, ‘That was a really long project, but we did it.’

“We were working for that for a long time -- even before they were born.”

When Meg was pregnant with Titan, she and Ryan were known to venture to the football field at Irving Middle School in Pocatello. They would talk all night long, walking around a football field that was often covered with snow.

One night, a pregnant Meg strolled around the track and offered a thought. If it was a boy, she said, she wanted to name him Titan. And if it came out a girl, she wanted to name her Elektra. Titan plays off Ty, the name of Meg’s father. Plus, Meg thought, if a coach is shuffling through VHS tapes (yeah, that part didn’t come to fruition) and sees a kid named Titan Fleischmann, no chance he's not popping in that tape.

Regardless, it didn’t go over well with everyone. Ryan told his mom over breakfast at Elmer’s. She sobbed, scared her grandson would get picked on for a silly name.

It also restricted their options for the next kid to come along.

“The next one can’t be Fred,” Ryan joked. “Fortunately for him, he ended up being big. It would be a hard handle if you’re the smallest kid on the team.”

“It would just be ironic if Titan was small,” Bruin added. “They’re like powerful names, in a way.”

They are — and there’s two likely outcomes that creates.

It can become a backpack full of pressure that follows kids around every day, a constant reminder of what they’re expected to live up to. Or it can be an opportunity, the chance to do great things with the confidence that others before you have trekked down a similar path and succeeded.

“You have to really represent your name,” Titan said.

So far, Titan and Bruin Fleischmann have -- with a little help from the four family rules.