Category Archives: Picks

Get in your DeLorean, set the flux capacitor for Aug. 30, 2024, and crank that baby to 88 mph. When you’ve gone back a few weeks, ask someone which 12 Wyoming high school football teams will still be undefeated by the halfway point of the regular season.

After they get over the shock of the fact that we’ve made time travel possible in just one short month, you might get them to throw out some predictable guesses — Sheridan, Cody, Star Valley, Big Horn, Mountain View, Lingle…

Then, because you have knowledge they don’t, casually drop Saratoga into the conversation.

Of the dozen teams still with a zero in the loss column (Meeteetse, Encampment, Snake River, Pine Bluffs and Campbell County are the others, along with the aforementioned “predictables”), Saratoga’s no-loss start to 2024 might just be the most surprising. And the most overdue.

The Panthers are on their third head coach in three years, but new coach Jared Mason has things pointed in the right direction for a program starved for success. Saratoga hasn’t had a winning record since its six-man days; it hasn’t had a playoff berth since 2020 and hasn’t had a playoff victory since 2007.

Yep, that Saratoga is now the Cinderella undefeated team of Class 1A nine-man.

Last week’s victory was pretty easy for the Panthers, a forfeit against Guernsey. An 8-6 nail-biter against Lusk is the only tight game that Saratoga has had this season, with 50-8 (Wind River) and 67-7 (Cheyenne South’s JV) victories notched over the first two weeks.

This week, the Panthers play, well, the Panthers, as Wright makes the trip to Saratoga. Saratoga has actually won the last two games in this series by a combined score of 10-0 (yes, you read that right), with a 4-0 victory two years ago and a 6-0 W last year.

For karma’s sake, a 5-0 victory to make Saratoga’s record 5-0 would be fitting. Nevertheless, I’m sure Saratoga would take the victory no matter the final score to keep the winning streak going.

A 5-0 start is not unprecedented in Saratoga. But it’s been a while. Even a 4-0 start has been 20-plus years in the making.

The last time Saratoga started 4-0 came in 2003. However, after a 21-17 loss to Cokeville in game No. 5, the Panthers faltered down the stretch, going 1-3 to close out the regular season and losing to Big Horn in the first round of the Class 2A playoffs.

Prior to that, Saratoga’s best start — and best most recent season — came in 1982. That season, the Panthers racked up an 8-0 regular season, beat Moorcroft in the Class B semifinals and narrowly lost (7-2) to Lyman in the B championship game, finishing 9-1.

That was the most recent peak for the Panthers’ program. Since then, Saratoga has not reached a title game. And the Panthers have reached the semifinals just two other times, losing to Sundance in 2005 and Big Horn in 2007 in their only two other opportunities to reach the season’s final game.

This year’s Panthers still have challenges ahead. After Wright, the Panthers face 4-0 Pine Bluffs, 3-1 Southeast and 4-0 Lingle in the final three weeks of the regular season.

For now, though, the Panthers can enjoy this moment — and just maybe extend it further than anyone outside Carbon County, or anyone without a time machine, could have anticipated a month ago.

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At just past halfway in the regular season, some trends have started to emerge. Some other games that have my attention this week because of, or in some cases in spite of, those trends include:

Sheridan’s streak watch continues this week as the Broncs travel to Cheyenne Central. With 36 consecutive victories in their rearview, victory No. 37 would set the state record for longest unbeaten streak, breaking Worland’s 34-0-2 run from 1953-56. I don’t like to use the word “unprecedented,” because too many people often misuse as “I can’t remember any others like this but I’m too lazy to see if it’s actually the first time.” But a Bronc W would make the word the exact right one. ICYMI, I’ve mentioned this streak more than a few times here already this season, but hey? In more than a century of high school football in Wyoming, a streak like this has never happened. So I’ll indulge and enjoy this while it lasts. …

A couple of Class 3A teams with high expectations hit roadblocks in the first week of conference play, with Powell falling to rival Cody and Riverton coming up just short against Douglas last week. Their games this week will be good gauges for how the rest of the year might go, with Riverton venturing to Buffalo and Powell hosting Star Valley. …

Worland is turning into that 2A monster everyone thought they might. The Warriors have won three in a row to start West Conference play, allowing a total of six points in that stretch. Last week’s 27-0 shutout of Lyman was the most impressive in the bunch. This week’s Warrior foe is Lovell, and I’m intensely curious to see how that game goes — particularly if Worland gets caught looking ahead to Week 6 and undefeated Mountain View waiting there. …

If Lusk gives us any indication, the 1A nine-man East Conference championship chase should be pretty interesting. The Tigers play at Pine Bluffs this weekend, and after two close games in a row (an 8-6 loss to Saratoga and a 27-24 victory against Southeast), the Tigers’ outcome in this one will be yet another barometer in a conference that’s proving to be full of parity. …

After two victories the past two weeks by a combined nine points, Greybull gets the chance of the season this week when the Buffs host Big Piney. Winner gets control of their own destiny in the 1A nine-man West. Can Greybull’s good fortune continue against the defending champs? …

The Class 1A six-man North Conference has the most differentiated conference standings. Combined, the top four teams — Burlington, Midwest, Meeteetse and Riverside — are a combined 9-0 in league play. The bottom three — Hulett, Kaycee and Ten Sleep — are a combined 0-9. Something, finally, has to give when Burlington plays Meeteetse this week.

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This week’s schedule brings up an interesting trivia question: When is the last time a Class 4A-level school forfeited a game before it was played? That’s what Cheyenne South has done this week, forfeiting its game against Campbell County in Gillette due to what the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle’s Jeremiah Johnke said Wednesday was “due to the number of injuries limiting player availability.”

As it turns out, South’s forfeit loss is a 4A first. According to the research I’ve done, none of the current teams in Class 4A has ever — EVER — forfeited a game in advance, dating back to 1894.

That previous statement comes with several asterisks and caveats. A couple times, 4A teams have had to forfeit a game after it was played; hey, it happens. And many games at the big-school level have been straight-up canceled, with no winner or loser declared. The most recent one of these involving a current Class 4A school came in 1968 when then-Class B Upton canceled its game with Campbell County, which was then in Class A. Prior to that, the last big-school cancellation came in 1961, when Sheridan and Natrona failed to play each other for the first time in decades because weather wiped out what was supposed to be both teams’ season finales.

Before 1948 and the formation of classification football, such cancellations were much more common. Games were easier to let slide because without classifications, or even “official” conferences, games could go down as canceled instead of forfeited. This was/is a clerical conundrum more than anything. Asterisks and caveats, etc., etc.

Still, only a handful of times has even a current 3A-level school forfeited a game prior to kickoff. The last time I can find a 3A-level team forfeiting a game that wasn’t related to a disease outbreak happened in 1948, almost 76 years ago. The only forfeits involving 3A-level teams, on either side, in the long history of Wyoming high school football are these:

• Douglas won two forfeited games in 2021 against both Torrington and Rawlins during COVID-19 outbreaks at those respective schools.
• Rawlins won against Kemmerer at the end of the 1955 season via forfeit. Kemmerer hadn’t beaten another varsity program in four years at that point.
• Buffalo forfeited its season finale against already-conference-champion Newcastle at the end of the 1948 season due to low numbers and injuries. (This is the game cited above.)
• Torrington won by forfeit against Douglas at the end of the 1942 season, a season probably ended early due to wartime travel restrictions.
• Buffalo, like Douglas, also forfeited its 1942 season finale. The Bison forfeited to Newcastle due to “lack of funds as well as the absence of many students caused by their working in beet fields of that vicinity,” the Newcastle News Letter Journal said on Oct. 29, 1942.
• Both Powell (against Cody) and Douglas (against Lusk) picked up forfeit victories on Nov. 11, 1940, for unspecified reasons.
• Finally, Torrington beat Lingle by forfeit in 1925 after Lingle’s game with Gering, Nebraska, got pushed back a week due to weather. Lingle opted to play Gering instead of Torrington, as the Trailblazers already had a game scheduled that week with Morrill, Nebraska.

So it’s safe to call South’s decision this week unprecedented, too, just like Sheridan’s winning streak. But just as unprecedented, too, is the Bison’s losing streak, and apparently so too is their injury and depth situation. I’m not here to critique South’s decision; I’m here to point out its rarity, its unprecedentedness that’s forcing me to make up words like unprecedentedness to describe it.

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Now comes everyone’s favorite part of the week, the picks. I offer straight-up picks, with the projected winner in bold, because that’s difficult enough. You’ll never see a point spread predicted here. Sorry and/or you’re welcome.

Thursday
Class 2A
Kemmerer at Lyman
Interclass
Lingle at Cheyenne East sophs
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne East at Kelly Walsh
Laramie at Natrona
Sheridan at Cheyenne Central
Thunder Basin at Rock Springs
Class 3A
Evanston at Cody
Jackson at Green River
Lander at Douglas
Riverton at Buffalo
Star Valley at Powell
Torrington at Rawlins
Class 2A
Burns at Wheatland
Cokeville at Thermopolis
Lovell at Worland
Moorcroft at Big Horn
Mountain View at Pinedale
Newcastle at Glenrock
Tongue River at Upton-Sundance (at Upton)
Class 1A nine-man
Lusk at Pine Bluffs
Shoshoni at Wind River
Wright at Saratoga
Wyoming Indian at Rocky Mountain
Class 1A six-man
Encampment at Farson
Meeteetse at Burlington
Saturday
Class 1A nine-man
Big Piney at Greybull
Class 1A six-man
Hanna at Casper Christian
Hulett at Midwest
Riverside at Ten Sleep
Snake River at Dubois
Interclass
Buffalo JV at Kaycee

In addition to South-Campbell County, this week’s game between Guernsey and Southeast has been removed from the schedule, the Cyclones picking up the forfeit victory. For a full schedule including kickoff times, click here.

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Here are the results of my picks from last week and this season:

Last week: 27-4 (87 percent). This season: 107-35 (75 percent).

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We’re halfway through the regular season. What, aside from two unprecedented streaks, sticks out to you so far? Leave a comment here, or hit me up on the Facebook page or on Twitter.

If you like what you see here, consider a page sponsorship. 

–patrick

For more than 60 years, the number “34” has stretched across Wyoming football history like a beacon of hope for what’s possible with the right players, coaches and community.

Laramie’s 34-game winning streak has been untouched since its completion in 1963. Several teams have come close — including Kaycee, Douglas and Snake River all reaching 30 consecutive victories in recent times — but no one had been able to match the Plainsmen’s run of the early 1960s.

Until Sheridan. The Broncs tied Laramie’s 61-year-old record last week with its 34th consecutive victory in a 29-7 showing against Natrona. Along the way, the Broncs have won three consecutive Class 4A titles.

So how does the Broncs’ streak compare to the Plainsmen’s?

• Streak started: Laramie, Sept. 25, 1959, Laramie 34, Torrington 6; Sheridan, Oct. 1, 2021, Sheridan 27, Natrona 0.
• Average margin of victory: Laramie, 26-5; Sheridan, 45-14.
• Shutouts: Laramie, 14; Sheridan, five.
• Length: Laramie, 1,448 days across parts of five seasons; Sheridan, 1,091 days (as of Thursday) across parts of four seasons.
• Closest games: Laramie had five games end with scoring margins of seven or fewer points: 13-7 vs. Canon City (Colo.) Abbey, 1959; 13-7 vs. Scottsbluff (Neb.), 1960; 13-6 vs. Rawlins, 1961; 14-12 vs. Torrington, 1962; and 13-7 vs. Natrona, 1962. Sheridan has also had five such games: 24-21 vs. Cheyenne Central, 2022; 34-27 vs. Thunder Basin, 2022; 42-39 vs. Cheyenne East, 2022; 28-22 vs. Natrona, 2022; and 44-37 vs. Cheyenne East, 2023.

This week’s stakes are simple, at least historically speaking. A victory against Cheyenne East on Friday in Sheridan would give the Broncs sole control for the overall state record for winning streak at 35 games.

After that? Well, the next record to break is the state unbeaten streak, which Worland has at 36 games (34 victories and two ties) from 1953-56. Worland’s 1924-28 squads (33-0-2) and Star Valley’s 1964-68 squads (33-0-2) also have unbeaten streaks of 35 games, streaks that Sheridan could tie on Friday.

And after that? Well, our friends at the Stateline Sports Network say the Broncs’ streak is the seventh-longest active winning streak in the nation and is the longest active streak anywhere west of the Central Time Zone. Sheridan trails Marion (Ohio) Local, Garden City (New York), Pelham (New Hampshire), Tioga (New York), Bennington (Nebraska) and Phoebus (Virginia), with Marion Local’s 52-game streak leading the way.

And after that? Well, the national record is 151 consecutive victories, set by California’s De La Salle from 1992-2003.

And before that? Well, East.

The Thunderbirds are working on a streak of their own, already 3-0 with victories against Laramie, Cheyenne South and Thunder Basin. Moreover, East has been Sheridan’s most consistent threat during the streak. Most critically, East has been Sheridan’s opponent in the past two Class 4A title games. Across Sheridan’s past 19 games, East is the only one to stay within single-digits; technically, across those games, only East has stayed within 19 points of the Broncs, doing so twice in losses by seven and 11 points. In its past 24 games, East has a record of 20-4; all four losses were to Sheridan. And while Sheridan enters the game ranked No. 1 in the WyoPreps coaches and media football poll, East is ranked No. 2.

If anyone can interrupt the Broncs on their historic trek, it’s the Thunderbirds.

No team would love it more.

Similarly, Sheridan would love it to break the record against the team that’s been its biggest threat.

It’s the kind of matchup deserving of this kind of milestone, either way it turns out.

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The rest of the Week 3 schedule is filled with games that I’d pay money to see. A few of those:

It’s odd that both Laramie and Rock Springs have their only victories this season against Cheyenne Central, a hard-luck 0-3 team that’s had losses by two points and by seven points (twice). It’ll be interesting to see how they match up this week in Sweetwater County. …

It’s the last week of nonconference play in 3A, and with only three remaining undefeated teams in the class, two — Buffalo and Cody — will play each other this week. The other? Star Valley. …

The 2A West continues to be one of the most interesting conferences in the state. Mountain View (42-35 against Lovell) and Cokeville (13-8 against Lyman) had arguably the biggest victories last week, and now they get to play each other. Thing is, so do Lovell and Lyman. And both Worland and Kemmerer are now hanging out as 1-0 in league play, too. Most even conference in the state? (By the way, I missed seven games last week in my picks, and four of them were in Class 2A.) …

Newcastle and Big Horn had the two biggest victories in the 2A East last week in terms of margin of victory, with Big Horn beating Wheatland 55-0 and Newcastle beating Upton-Sundance 48-6. They’ll play each other this week in Big Horn, and it’ll be a big one. …

In an odd quirk to the schedule, Wheatland gets its fourth consecutive road game to start the season in its trek north to Sundance to play Upton-Sundance. Wheatland has six road games and three home games this year and won’t have its home opener until Week 4 against Glenrock. Star Valley also has a weird streak like that, as the Braves’ trip to Teton, Idaho, this week is the second of four straight road games. The Braves, at least, got four at home and five on the road this season. …

Saratoga has had a fast start, going 2-0 while outscoring opponents 117-15. Among nine-man programs, only Lingle (124) has scored more, and only Pine Bluffs (12) has allowed fewer. I’m exceptionally curious to see how the Panthers stack up against 1-1 Lusk at home on Friday.

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On to this week’s picks, where anything can happen. Not with the picks, though. I can only pick one team per game; in fact, I have to for this to work, so I indicate that with bold. It’s on the field where anything can happen. That’s where the real fun is anyway. Go touch grass, or turf, this weekend.

Thursday
Class 1A nine-man
Rocky Mountain at Greybull
Interclass
Shoshoni at Natrona sophs
Wyoming Indian at Thermopolis JV
Friday
Class 4A
Campbell County at Natrona
Cheyenne East at Sheridan
Cheyenne South at Cheyenne Central
Kelly Walsh at Thunder Basin
Laramie at Rock Springs
Class 3A
Buffalo at Cody
Evanston at Lander
Green River at Riverton
Powell at Douglas
Class 2A
Burns at Glenrock
Cokeville at Mountain View
Lovell at Lyman
Moorcroft at Tongue River
Newcastle at Big Horn
Thermopolis at Kemmerer
Wheatland at Upton-Sundance
Worland at Pinedale
Class 1A nine-man
Guernsey-Sunrise at Lingle
Lusk at Saratoga
Pine Bluffs at Wright
Class 1A six-man
Casper Christian at St. Stephens
Hanna at Farson
Hulett at Meeteetse
Midwest at Kaycee
Snake River at Riverside
Interclass
Dubois at Natrona JV
Interstate
Bear Lake, Idaho, at Jackson
Rawlins at Middle Park, Colo.
Star Valley at Teton, Idaho
Torrington at Yuma, Colo.
Saturday
Class 1A nine-man
Southeast at Wind River
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at Ten Sleep
Interclass
Evanston JV at Big Piney

Encampment is off this week. For a full schedule including kickoff times, click here.

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Here are the results of my picks from last week and this season:

Last week: 22-7 (76 percent). This season: 60-19 (76 percent).

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What pops out to you about the Week 3 schedule? Disagree with any picks? Leave a comment here, or hit me up on the Facebook page or on Twitter.

If you like what you see here, consider a page sponsorship. 

–patrick

Separated by just 33 miles and one county line, Thermopolis and Worland were destined by geography to be rivals.

For more than 15 years, though, the two teams have had to put their football rivalry on hold, a rivalry that dates back to the start of both programs and to the origins of the sport itself in Wyoming.

It didn’t take long for the bad blood to start in this rivalry. In fact, it took less than a month, during both programs’ first seasons.

Thermopolis won the first game between the programs on Oct. 12, 1921, by a modest score of 32-19. Worland won the rematch, played on Nov. 11 of the same year, by the less modest score of 109-7. Yes, 109-7. Apparently, some dude named Meadows went ham for Worland, scoring 12 touchdowns and kicking 11 extra points, scoring 83 total points in one game.

A rivalry was born.

They’ve only had one sustained gap in their rivalry — from 1976 to 1979, when Thermopolis was struggling as a Class A team and Worland was a Class AA contender, they took a short break. They renewed the rivalry in 1980; Thermopolis needed only one season after that to win the rivalry game once again. (They also didn’t play each other in 1933, when Worland failed to field a team.)

They stuck with it, playing 97 total games in the rivalry — Worland winning 58, Thermopolis 34, five ties. But since 2008, the Warriors and Bobcats have not played each other on the gridiron.

When the two teams stopped playing after the 2008 season, you could say it was time. Worland had won 12 in a row in the rivalry, including two playoff games. Thermopolis hadn’t, and still hasn’t, beaten Worland since 1998.

Oh sure, the rivalry has continued in other sports. And in football, they’ve sprinkled in a Zero Week contest here and there, a scrimmage to break a sweat and see someone other than a teammate.

Worland’s offseason move from Class 3A to Class 2A, where Thermopolis had long been classified, prompted the official renewal of the rivalry. There were other casualties, too; to get its rivalry with Thermopolis back, Worland had to give up longstanding series with Lander (90 games), Riverton (88 games) and Cody (88 games). Worland’s series with Powell, 81 games rich, continued only through a nonconference game last week.

But Thermopolis is back on the Warriors’ schedule, and vice versa. Neither has played any other opponent more. The delayed 98th chapter will be written Friday.

While chances are good that the score won’t end up 109-7, that doesn’t mean the game will be any less memorable for those who play in it on Friday.

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Other contests drawing my attention this week more than the usual game:

Conference play starts this week across a litany of leagues — 2A East and West teams, (most) 1A nine-man East (and one game in 1A nine-man West) teams, and (most) 1A six-man North teams will get going with conference games this week. Among the most intriguing are in the 2A West, where Lyman travels to Cokeville and Mountain View takes the trip to Lovell in games that will be critical in the title chase. Also, don’t overlook the Pinedale/Kemmerer matchup; both squads have struggled recently but posted big victories in Week 1. The winner there could be the state’s biggest surprise team this fall. The fourth and final 2A West game? Thermopolis/Worland…

Class 4A continues its early-season grind with two more huge games pairing up last year’s semifinalists, with Sheridan traveling to Natrona and Thunder Basin heading to Cheyenne East. Three of these teams are 2-0, with Thunder Basin the outlier at 0-2. 4A’s only other 2-0 team is Campbell County, who hosts 1-1 Rock Springs in what might be the most intriguing game of the week. …

Streak watch: Sheridan has now won 33 games in a row. A victory against Natrona on Friday would tie Laramie’s 1959-63 state record for consecutive victories. Any guess where Laramie’s streak ended in that ’63 season? That’s right, literally the same patch of earth Sheridan will visit on Friday — the one at NCHS. And guess what the date was when Laramie’s streak ended? Sept. 13, 1963. Sheridan’s visit comes exactly 61 years later, to the date, to the place. This can’t be coincidence. …

Only one out-of-state game is on the docket this week, but it’s a doozy as Star Valley travels to play Sugar-Salem, Idaho. Sugar-Salem has won 25 games in a row and 33 out of its past 34, including three victories over Star Valley. In its 3-0 start so far this season, the Diggers have outscored their opponents 140-6. Conversely, Star Valley has beaten its two (Idaho) foes by a combined 93-13. Maybe this is the Braves’ time? …

In Class 3A, the only team without a victory is Green River. Meanwhile, in the 2A East, the only team with a victory is Big Horn. And in the 1A nine-man West, the only team with a victory is Wyoming Indian. Early season standings are weird. …

Also, real quick, I want to note Hulett’s 85-74 victory against Hanna last week. With a combined 159 points, it’s the second-highest scoring game in state history, behind only Dubois’ 102-60 victory against Ten Sleep in 2015. Hanna’s 74 points also ties the state record for most points scored in a loss, set last year. Pretty remarkable.

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Are you new here? This is where I pick games every week. I bold the teams I think will win. If you’re new here, you probably are reading this. If you’re not, you’re not, because you know how this works by now.

Thursday
Interclass
Cheyenne Central JV at Torrington
Shoshoni at Cheyenne East sophs
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Laramie
Cheyenne South at Kelly Walsh
Rock Springs at Campbell County
Sheridan at Natrona
Thunder Basin at Cheyenne East
Class 3A
Cody at Douglas
Evanston at Riverton
Jackson at Buffalo
Lander at Powell
Rawlins at Green River
Class 2A
Burns at Tongue River
Glenrock at Moorcroft
Lyman at Cokeville
Mountain View at Lovell
Pinedale at Kemmerer
Upton-Sundance at Newcastle
Wheatland at Big Horn
Worland at Thermopolis
Class 1A nine-man
Lingle at Lusk
Pine Bluffs at Guernsey-Sunrise
Saratoga at Wind River
Wright at Southeast
Class 1A six-man
Kaycee at Burlington
Interclass
Farson at St. Stephens
Interstate
Star Valley at Sugar-Salem, Idaho
Saturday
Class 1A nine-man
Big Piney at Wyoming Indian
Class 1A six-man
Meeteetse at Dubois
Riverside at Hulett
Ten Sleep at Midwest
Interclass
Powell JV at Greybull

Encampment played Natrona’s JV on Tuesday. Casper Christian, Hanna, Rocky Mountain and Snake River have open weeks.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, click here.

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Here are the results of my picks from last week and this season:

Last week: 26-8 (76 percent). This season: 38-12 (76 percent).

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Who was your surprise Week 1 team, and how do you see them shaping up for Week 2? Leave a comment here, or hit me up on the Facebook page or on Twitter.

If you like what you see here, consider a page sponsorship. 

–patrick

Carbon County will be the hotspot for some of Wyoming’s most interesting games in Week 1.

In the course of one weekend, we’ll figure out not only who Class 1A six-man’s favorite is, we’ll figure out who is that team’s greatest threat.

The fun starts Friday in Encampment, where the Tigers host six-man newcomer Riverside in a game that will help determine how strong both teams’ championship aspirations are this season. Both teams are experienced and talented, and they both want to prove they belong in the conversation for six-man’s best.

As good as Encampment and Riverside will be this fall — and they should both be pretty good, making Friday’s game a must-watch — there’s no doubt that they, and everyone else, are chasing two other programs.

And that’s where the fun continues Saturday in Baggs, where Snake River hosts Burlington in a rematch of last year’s Class 1A six-man championship game and an early test to see who will turn the conversation in their direction.

I mean, come on. This game epitomizes the kind of rivalry that’s been missing in six-man since its rebirth in 2009. Heading into last year’s championship game, the Rattlers had won 30 games in a row and were trying to win a third straight title; they came up one yard short against the Huskies, who avenged a title-game loss to the Rattlers in 2022 to win their first state title since 1994. They provided the kind of six-man championship game Wyoming had never had — evenly matched, well-played on both sides, down to the final possession. Burlington just happened to get one more good play than Snake River.

Saturday, the Rattlers get the chance to try to even the tally, start a new streak and put the focus back on the purple and yellow, which is where it’s mostly been for three years. Of course, Burlington has the crown, and that’s where it will stay until November, and Laramie.

No state champions will be coronated in Week 1. And the two Big Horn County programs making the journey south this week, just like the two Carbon County programs hosting them, aren’t out of anything with a loss. In the grand scheme of things, they’re playing nonconference games that have no effect on playoff chances.

A little psychological advantage, just in case of another meeting later this season, wouldn’t hurt.

And the pace of the chase is a lot more fun when you can dictate it instead of follow it.

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Most every team saw some kind of action last week, with 28 teams tallying their first victory or first loss in Zero Week and many others playing in scrimmages or jamborees. Of the remaining 36 teams, 34 will enter the W or L column for the first time this week, and all 64 will have seen someone across from them on the line who wasn’t a teammate (either last week or this week) by Saturday night. Some other potential showstoppers this week:

The two Class 4A teams who pulled off victories that I didn’t predict for them were Natrona and Rock Springs. They’ll see each other this week in Rock Springs, and I’m curious to see who can keep the early season momentum rolling. …

Riverton’s 7-0 victory against Powell in Zero Week action was a head-turner for me. Is the Riverton revival complete? Well, this week the Wolverines go to Cody, so one way or another, we’ll all find out. …

Whenever Big Horn plays Lovell, it’s never disappointing. With as much parity as there might be in 2A this year, I might just vote the winner of this game No. 1 in my 2A poll next week (he said, knowing that a ton of other 2A teams have potential to be equally as impressive). …

I’m quite interested in how last year’s Class 1A nine-man title-game participants, champ Big Piney and runner-up Wind River, do in their games. Both play in Goshen County, oddly enough, and they’re going against teams in Southeast (Big Piney) and Lingle (Wind River) that figure to be at or near the top of the title chase this year. …

A handful of out-of-state games are super-intriguing, including games with 2A West squads Cokeville (at West Jefferson, Idaho) and Mountain View (hosting Rich County, Utah). …

A late change to the schedule has Evanston hosting Vista Ridge out of Colorado Springs on Friday. The Red Devils were originally scheduled to play South Summit, Utah, this week, but here we are. It’s Vista Ridge’s first game against a Wyoming opponent, so that’s pretty cool. Also playing its first game against a Wyoming team is Holyoke, Colo., which is coming up to play Glenrock on Saturday. …

Coin-flip games this week abound, as they often do in Week 1. I turned to a heads-tails method of picking for several games: Laramie-Kelly Walsh, Greybull-Wright, Kaycee-Farson, Hanna-Hulett. If the pick went against you this week in those games, blame Mr. Lincoln and the penny in my pocket. I’ll certainly blame him if I’m wrong.

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On to the picks. When I bold a team, that means I think they will win. Hopefully your browser is equipped to view different font formats. If it’s not… dude, it’s time to upgrade. Even Netscape and dial-up had bold text capabilities.

Thursday
Class 2A
Kemmerer vs. Moorcroft (at Shoshoni)
Interclass
Cheyenne South JV at Saratoga
Friday
Class 4A
Campbell County at Cheyenne Central
Cheyenne East at Cheyenne South
Laramie at Kelly Walsh
Natrona at Rock Springs
Sheridan at Thunder Basin
Class 3A
Douglas at Jackson
Lander at Green River
Riverton at Cody
Class 2A
Big Horn at Lovell
Burns at Lyman
Tongue River at Thermopolis
Class 1A nine-man
Big Piney at Southeast
Greybull at Wright
Lusk at Rocky Mountain
Pine Bluffs at Shoshoni
Wind River at Lingle
Class 1A six-man
Casper Christian at Midwest
Kaycee at Farson
Riverside at Encampment
Interclass
Newcastle at Buffalo
Pinedale at Rawlins
Powell at Worland
Wheatland at Torrington
Interstate
Cokeville at West Jefferson, Idaho
Preston, Idaho, at Star Valley
Rich County, Utah, at Mountain View
Vista Ridge, Colo., at Evanston
Saturday
Class 1A nine-man
Wyoming Indian at Guernsey
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at Snake River
Dubois at Ten Sleep
Hanna vs. Hulett (at Midwest)
Interstate
Holyoke, Colo., at Glenrock

Upton-Sundance has an open week, while Meeteetse is scrimmaging the Cody JV. For a full schedule including kickoff times, click here.

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Here are the results of my picks from last week and this season:

Last week: 12-4 (75 percent). This season: 12-4 (75 percent).

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What things will you be looking for in Wyoming’s first full week of games? Leave a comment here, or hit me up on the Facebook page or on Twitter.

If you like what you see here, consider a page sponsorship. 

–patrick

I think I’ve used this simile before on this site, but it’s so apt that I’m going to use it again. I have heard the championship game of a season is like the ending of a great mystery novel. It brings closure, resolution, a sense of certainty to all the twists and turns you’ve seen transpire before you.

This weekend, we have some opportunities to see something special in each of the five games. Two teams — Sheridan and Snake River — enter Laramie with 30 consecutive victories apiece behind them. In 3A, the two most dominant programs of the decade meet yet again in a rivalry that, despite the familiarity, never seems to get old. Class 1A nine-man will deliver a champion from two teams, neither of which have ever played in War Memorial Stadium. And 2A could deliver us the best game of the weekend, just as it has each of the past couple years.

You ready?

Class 4A, 4 p.m. Saturday
Cheyenne East (2, 10-1) vs. Sheridan (1, 11-0)
Series record: Sheridan leads 33-15.
Last meeting: Sheridan beat Cheyenne East 44-37 on Sept. 29 in Cheyenne.
Last playoff meeting: Sheridan beat Cheyenne East 34-23 on Nov. 12, 2022, in the Class 4A championship game in Laramie.
State championships: Cheyenne East five, most recently in 2020. … Sheridan 29, most recently in 2022.
Previous title game record: Cheyenne East, 5-4. … Sheridan, 19-7.
The path to the title game: Cheyenne East topped Rock Springs 42-14 in the quarterfinals and outlasted Natrona 17-10 in the semifinals. … Sheridan rolled over its first two playoff opponents, beating Kelly Walsh 59-0 in the quarterfinals and Thunder Basin 62-7 in the semifinals.
The case for the Thunderbirds: In almost every statistical measure, East’s offense may be the best we’ve ever seen. In total yards, attempts per game, touchdowns — East leads it all, by wide margins. Cam Hayes is piling up huge numbers at quarterback; Drew Jackson is one of the state’s top rushers and receivers; a variety of receivers force teams to cover the whole field. The defense, ranked No. 2 in the state, has shown up, as well — and for as fast as East’s offense moves, the fact that its defense has kept up is astonishing.
The case for the Broncs: A huge chunk of the recipe that works for Sheridan is that the Broncs never, ever beat themselves. They’ve had just six turnovers this season, fewest in 4A, while forcing 28, the most in 4A. That’s why teams with more efficient offenses or better defenses on paper struggle when they go up against the Broncs — because if you want to beat Sheridan, you have to be basically perfect in every aspect of the game. That’s the recipe that has led to 30 consecutive victories, eight titles in 14 years and the chance for a three-peat.
The pick: The past seven Class 4A championship games have all been decided by at least nine points. This might be the year that breaks the streak. Couple Sheridan’s 44-37 victory against the Thunderbirds back in Week 5 in Cheyenne with both teams’ dominance against the rest of the 4A field, and you have a game that could be one of Wyoming’s all-time classics. Sheridan 38, Cheyenne East 35.

Class 3A, 3 p.m. Friday
Cody (2W, 10-1) vs. Star Valley (1W, 10-1)
Series record: Star Valley leads 27-13.
Last meeting: Star Valley beat Cody 41-14 on Oct. 6 in Cody.
Last playoff meeting: Star Valley beat Cody 14-7 on Nov. 11, 2022, in the Class 3A championship game in Laramie.
State championships: Cody seven, most recently in 2021. … Star Valley 13, most recently in 2022.
Previous title game record: Cody, 7-6. … Star Valley, 12-10.
The path to the title game: Cody blasted through both of its first two playoff opponents, defeating Douglas 42-14 in the quarterfinals and Evanston 52-14 in the semifinals. … Star Valley ran roughshod over Worland 62-0 in the first round and knocked off Buffalo 30-19 in the semifinals.
The case for the Broncs: Find me a more consistent team than Cody over the past four seasons. I’ll wait. Already, Cody is guaranteed its fourth consecutive double-digit victory season, its fourth consecutive title game appearance. Cody’s offense fits its strengths, and now the Broncs are No. 1 in 3A in rushing, by a lot, and have the No. 1 offense overall. Moreover, the Broncs are 41-3 over the past four seasons. The only worry? All three of those losses have been to Star Valley.
The case for the Braves: It’s almost scary how efficient the Braves have bene this year. Their only loss came to Idaho powerhouse Sugar-Salem, and aside from Powell (24-21), every victory has been by double digits. Their offense is diverse and keeps opposing defenses guessing. And if defense wins championships, as the old cliche goes? Then look no further than Star Valley, which has 3A’s No. 1 defense.
The pick: I mean, here we are again. Dynasty vs. dynasty. Which one is extended, and which one is delayed? Class 3A’s two most dominant programs will extend to a decade of dominance, either way, as one of these two teams will have won the 3A title in each of the past 10 years. For now, I think the way the Braves handled the Broncs in Week 6 is the decider, but, hey — you never know. Just look at last year. Star Valley 30, Cody 20.

Class 2A, noon Friday
Torrington (2E, 8-3) vs. Big Horn (1E, 9-1)
Series record: Big Horn leads 3-1.
Last meeting: Big Horn beat Torrington 33-27 on Sept. 22 in Torrington.
Last playoff meeting: First playoff meeting.
State championships: Torrington four, most recently in 1990. … Big Horn eight, most recently in 2022.
Previous title game record: Torrington, 2-12. … Big Horn, 8-10.
The path to the title game: Torrington won a pair of close ones, beating Cokeville 21-14 in the first round and previously unbeaten Mountain View 25-19 in the semifinals. … Big Horn had little trouble with a pair of West Conference foes, beating Lovell 49-28 in the quarterfinals and Lyman 34-14 in the semifinals.
The case for the Trailblazers: At the halfway point of the season, Torrington was 2-3 and, let’s face it, not a very attractive title contender. Then, just like in the movies, Torrington took off its glasses. Since then, it’s been six straight victories, including two gritty playoff victories against some of the best teams the West Conference had this season. The ‘Blazers’ defense has been stout all season — six of seven conference opponents couldn’t get past single digits — and the offense has been consistent, if not flashy. This is a group that certainly is more confident now than when it first played Big Horn, and even then it was a down-to-the-wire 32-27 loss. That team, but confident? Look out.
The case for the Rams: Remember when Big Horn was 0-1 after a double-overtime loss to Lovell? Yeah, no one else does either. Because nine straight victories have boosted the Rams to Laramie. That run included a 7-0 East Conference mark and suspiciously easy victories against that aforementioned Lovell team and last week’s 20-point win in the semis against consistent contender Lyman. The Rams’ offense is 2A’s best, and the defense — which often sees the field a lot due to its offensive efficiency — does enough to keep the Rams’ W-train a-rollin’.
The pick: The 2A title game the past two years has more or less come down to one play. This game has similar markings, although I’d wager that the scoring will be more robust than those two (which finished 8-6 and 8-7, by the way). Get ready for another thriller, probably pretty similar to the first, with a fourth-quarter break benefitting the team that eventually takes it all. Big Horn 34, Torrington 30.

Class 1A nine-man, 1 p.m. Saturday
Big Piney (2W, 9-1) vs. Wind River (1W, 8-1)
Series record: Big Piney leads 6-2.
Last meeting: Wind River beat Big Piney 28-21 on Sept. 21 in Pavillion.
Last playoff meeting: First playoff meeting.
State championships: Big Piney eight, most recently in 2006. … Wind River one, in 1997.
Previous title game record: Big Piney, 8-2. … Wind River, 1-1.
The path to the title game: Big Piney ousted Pine Bluffs 28-14 in the first round and beat previously unbeaten Lingle on the road 51-27 in the semifinals. … Wind River blasted Lusk 68-6 in the first round and scraped past Southeast 32-30 in the second round.
The case for the Punchers: In these kinds of games — Wind River the No. 1 offense in nine-man, Big Piney the No. 1 defense — it’s easy to get hung up on looking at that matchup. But usually, when these kinds of matchups happen, it’s the other one — Big Piney’s offense vs. Wind River’s defense — that ends up making or breaking the game. That’s where the Punchers may have an advantage, with the No. 3 offense in nine-man that has shown both diversity and consistency. Moreover, Big Piney’s only loss was to Wind River in Pavillion; put them on a neutral field, and things just might be different.
The case for the Cougars: Wind River started slow, through no fault of their own. Their first two opponents (Saratoga and St. Stephens) canceled on them. Entering Week 3, they could have easily been called the least experienced team in the state. But a deep senior class overcame the challenge that might have sunk other teams, and together they’ve won eight in a row. With eventual three-time all-state pick Cooper Frederick leading the state’s No. 1 rushing offense (and No. 1 offense, total), the Cougars have been unstoppable so far.
The pick: Wind River won the first matchup between these two teams this season, and in watching the highlights, I keep coming away with the feeling that the Cougars had fortune on their side. In a 28-21 victory, Wind River got a kick return touchdown and a pick-six to augment their efforts. I keep feeling like game will come down to something similar; whoever creates the unexpected play creates the championship. Big Piney 32, Wind River 27.

Class 1A six-man, 10 a.m. Saturday
Snake River (1S, 9-0) vs. Burlington (1N, 9-1)
Series record: Snake River leads 7-1.
Last meeting/last playoff meeting: Snake River beat Burlington 55-8 in the Class 1A six-man championship on Nov. 12, 2022, in Laramie.
State championships: Snake River five, most recently in 2022. … Burlington two, most recently in 1994.
Previous title game record: Snake River, 5-1. … Burlington, 2-3.
The path to the title game: Snake River stayed unbeaten with two playoff victories, topping Hulett 74-20 in the quarterfinals and beating Dubois 47-22 in the semifinals. … Burlington beat Farson 64-20 in the quarterfinals and needed a ton of points to outlast Encampment 80-73 in the semifinals in the highest-scoring playoff game in state history.
The case for the Rattlers: It’s simple. In 30 consecutive games, the Rattlers have come out on top in every single one. Snake River has the talent, the tradition and the momentum. In that streak, only two games have ended with one-possession differences; in the past two years, only one team has stayed within 16 points; and this year, the Rattlers’ closest game has been a 25-point victory. As long as the Rattlers continue to look at Saturday as a competition and not a coronation, they should be fine.
The case for the Huskies: Maybe last year, the stage was just a little too big, the lights a little too bright, and losing 55-8 in the championship game was an awakening to just how hard it can be to win a title. The Huskies won’t have such problems this year. No Wyoming team has beaten the Huskies, their lone loss coming to Custer, Montana, and only one game — last week’s 80-73 shootout against Encampment — resulted in a scoring difference of less than 21 points.
The pick: Back in July, I called for a Snake River-Burlington title game. And I even gave a score prediction. Why change that now? Snake River is still at the top of the class, and Burlington, while still a formidable opponent, is still the underdog this weekend. Snake River 49, Burlington 33.

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Here are the results of my picks from last week and this season:

Last week: 8-2 (80 percent). This season: 263-47 (85 percent).

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Well, we’re here. Another season nearly at an end. What are your big takeaways from 2023 — at least so far? Leave a comment here, or hit me up on the Facebook page or on Twitter.

If you like what you see here, consider a page sponsorship. 

–patrick

No superfluous intros this week. We’ve got too much to talk about. So let’s get into the picks, with projected winners in bold, for this week’s semifinal playoff round of Wyoming high school football:

Friday
Class 4A
(5) Thunder Basin at (1) Sheridan: The number 29 looms large in this game. It’s the number of consecutive victories Sheridan has had, and it’s also the margin of victory Sheridan had in its 41-12 Week 4 victory against the ‘Bolts in Gillette. Sheridan has been the most consistent program in 4A for years now — this is their 16th consecutive semifinal trip — and barring what would be one of the larger 4A playoff upsets we’ve seen in a while, I don’t think that will stop this week.
Class 3A
(2E) Buffalo at (1W) Star Valley: Don’t get me wrong. Buffalo has been solid this season. But I don’t know that anyone outside Johnson County has them as title contenders. Then the Bison go and beat Powell in pretty commanding fashion in the first round. I still like the Braves here, but they better be on their toes. Because now, everyone’s putting “Bison” and “title contention” in the same sentence.
(4W) Evanston at (2W) Cody: As I mentioned in last week’s picks, Evanston is now 3A’s Cinderella story. After 15 seasons without a playoff victory, the Red Devils finally have one. And I think this game will be closer than the 48-13 victory Cody put on Evanston in Week 7… but not a lot closer.
Class 2A
(2E) Torrington at (1W) Mountain View: Even with all the parity in the 2A ranks this year, no one has been able to figure out Mountain View. But Torrington has won five straight, and its only loss since Week 1 was a nail-biter to Big Horn. The Trailblazers will be ready for that challenge, and that could make this one close late.
(2W) Lyman at (1E) Big Horn: Both teams showed a pretty amazing resiliency last week. Lyman rallied from a 13-0 deficit to win; Big Horn only led by seven entering the final quarter and won by 21. They’ll both be ready for late-game challenges. I’m only picking Big Horn because of home field — in Lyman, I would have taken the Eagles. Best game of the week?
Class 1A nine-man
(2E) Southeast at (1W) Wind River: I really, really think if there’s a coach in 1A nine-man who can prepare his team for this kind of challenge, it’s Southeast’s Mark Bullington. The Cyclones will absolutely be prepared for what the Cougars bring. I think it’ll be close, and I think the Cougars will need to be playing their best to come out of this with their first trip to a championship game since 1997. But I think they will be up for it. As you can tell, I’ve thought about this game a lot. Best game of the week?
Class 1A six-man
(3S) Dubois at (1S) Snake River: What the Tremblys — coach David and son Wyatt — have helped Dubois accomplish in their final seasons in their roles leading the Rams have been memorable. Those emotions might be enough to help the Rams hang with the Rattlers, who have proven time and again to be the state’s best six-man team this year. Ultimately, though, the Rattlers have won 29 in a row for a reason.
(2S) Encampment at (1N) Burlington: No. Don’t make me pick. I’ve seen this game coming for weeks now, and I’ve tried to parse out what might give one of these teams an advantage over the other. I’ve come up with nothing. Both teams have consistent offenses, solid defenses and winning traditions. They’re both coached well and play disciplined. And they both are deserving of a spot in Laramie. I think Encampment has a slight edge, but don’t be surprised to see the Huskies make it back to the War for a second consecutive year, especially at home. Best game of the week?
Saturday
Class 4A
(3) Natrona at (2) Cheyenne East: The Mustangs have been a bit frustrating — they’ve played well against lesser competition but have struggled to play up to that next level. That included a 45-7 loss to East in Week 1. The Thunderbirds, meanwhile, are on an offensive hot streak. All they have to do is score 32 points against the Mustangs this week to break the state 11-man record for points in a season. The record is 577 (Big Horn in 2018), and East has 546 already this season.
Class 1A nine-man
(2W) Big Piney at (1E) Lingle: Both of these teams should enter this game with every reason in the world to feel confident. Lingle hasn’t lost yet this season, while Big Piney is 8-1 and comes in off a quarterfinal victory where they vanquished the defending state champions. While Lingle has shown a lot of resolve and hasn’t lost yet, I think Big Piney has been more consistent this year, and that might be the difference.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, click here. You can click on “Semifinals” at the top of the page to take you directly to this week’s schedule.

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Here are the results of my picks from last week and this season:

Last week: 18-2 (90 percent). This season: 255-45 (85 percent).

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Who do you have making it to the War? Leave a comment here, or hit me up on the Facebook page or on Twitter.

If you like what you see here, consider a page sponsorship. 

–patrick

It’s long been the case that the strength of Class 3A has been in the West Conference.

The past 12 3A champs have come from the West, and seven of the past eight 3A title games have matched up two West teams.

So far, we’ve seen no indication that 2023 will be the year for such streaks to end.

The East went 3-12 against the West this year, and none of those three victories came against a playoff qualifier — two were against Green River (Lander and Rawlins), one against Jackson (Douglas).

When the playoffs get underway on Friday, the East Conference teams are likely underdogs in all four 3A playoff games. West Conference leaders Star Valley, Cody and Powell — a combined record of 23-4, with three of those four losses to each other — have proven themselves a cut above the rest of the classification. Together, they’re a combined 7-0 this season against the four playoff qualifiers from the East.

And that brings us to Evanston against Riverton, what might be the most interesting playoff game out of the 20 scheduled this week.

Evanston, despite being a No. 4 seed heading up against a No. 1, has every reason to believe it’s the favorite. Most importantly, the Red Devils have already beaten the Wolverines once this season, 34-27 in Week 2 in Evanston. Moreover, Evanston has played competitively in losses to the West’s top three. All of it has led to the Red Devils’ first playoff berth in four seasons, the longest playoff drought broken by any playoff-qualifying team this season.

Meanwhile, Riverton might be the most transformed team in the state from the first half of the season to the second half. After starting 0-4 (against the four West playoff qualifiers, by the way), the Wolverines have since won four of five, including what might have been the biggest win in recent program memory by beating Buffalo 25-14, a game that eventually clinched the top seed in the playoffs for the Wolverines by breaking a three-way first-place tie with the Bison and Douglas.

That said, it’s easy to root for whoever wins this game to be this year’s 3A Cinderella. Both teams are led by a first-year coach who isn’t really a “first-year coach”; Riverton’s Mark Lenhardt has had success as a head coach at both Torrington and Rock Springs, taking them both to state championship games, while Evanston’s Steve Moore has spent two decades on the sidelines with the Red Devils before moving into the top spot heading into this season. Both teams are 4-5 entering this game; it’s simply an odd quirk of the schedule that two of the three teams in the 3A playoffs with losing records ended up facing each other in the first round. And one of these teams will break a long streak without a visit to the semifinals: Riverton hasn’t reached the second round in eight seasons, and for Evanston, the drought has been 15 seasons.

The candle on the Cinderella cake is that Evanston has been the lone team in the West not to benefit from the conference’s dominant run. Across that eight-year stretch of mentioned earlier — the one where in seven of the past eight years, it’s been two West teams playing each other — Evanston is the only one of the West teams that has failed to make it to the championship game.

For now, I like Evanston to win this week.

Truth be told, though, I like whoever wins this game.

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As much as I love the Riverton-Evanston game, by far the most interesting 2023 playoff bracket, top to bottom, belongs to Class 2A.

The only predictable game seems to be Wheatland visiting Mountain View; the Bulldogs did that trip in Week 1 and came back as victims of a 38-0 dissection. The other three games, though, look like they could be all-time classics.

With Mountain View surviving as the only undefeated team in Class 2A this season, the remainder of the classification has been an exercise in parity.

The remaining three games give us six teams who are all legitimate title threats: Tongue River (7-2) at Lyman (7-2), Cokeville (5-3) at Torrington (6-3), and Lovell (6-2) at Big Horn (7-1).

Immediately, Big Horn as the one-loss team stands out from the rest. The only problem? Big Horn faces Lovell in the first round, and the Bulldogs were the only team to hang an L on the Rams’ tally this season. Of all the teams and all the possibilities Big Horn could have gotten in the first round, they got the team that’s already shown they can beat them this year.

Meanwhile, Cokeville has sorted its way through some early struggles to emerge as one of the West’s best teams. Replace “Cokeville” with “Torrington,” and “West’s” with “East’s” in that sentence, though, and you have a perfect description of their first-round opponent.

And finally, the Eagles are 7-2, talented and eager for a bit of redemption after losing games to regional rivals. Wait: Are we talking about Tongue River or Lyman? The answer: Yes.

Combined, these matchups should make the 2A bracket an absolute crapshoot, the most intriguing set of first-round games in any of the five brackets.

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Now, that said, intrigue DOES exist in other brackets, it’s just not as common:

Thunder Basin and Campbell County meeting in a cross-city rivalry renewal was not necessarily something I had on my 2023 preseason bingo card, but here it is — and I’m thrilled. I’m really interested to see how the aftermath of the Camels’ 49-17 victory in Week 5 manifests a month later, and how much closer this game might be considering that Thunder Basin hasn’t lost since, while the Camels are 1-2 since then. …

Lingle has been living a charmed life. The Doggers have won three consecutive one-point games: 29-28 against Southeast, 31-30 in overtime against Pine Bluffs and 21-20 against Saratoga. According to research I did in 2016, I have reason to believe that this year’s Lingle team is the first Wyoming team to ever win three consecutive one-point games. We’ll see if the run continues against Rocky Mountain in the first round. …

Wind River is hosting the program’s first playoff game since 2009, the longest such streak broken this season. …

Natrona is in the playoffs for the 32nd consecutive year, Cokeville the 31st, Big Horn the 25th, Douglas the 22nd. … 

It’s a bit weird, but none of the first-round playoff games are new matchups. Every matchup we have already exists on each team’s series records. Maybe that’s the nature of expanded nonconference schedules and eight-team playoff brackets; eventually, everyone sees everyone.

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Picks, where bold means projected winner and non-bold means projected upset-maker:

Class 4A
(8) Kelly Walsh at (1) Sheridan
(5) Thunder Basin at (4) Campbell County
(7) Rock Springs at (2) Cheyenne East
(6) Cheyenne Central at (3) Natrona
Class 3A
(4W) Evanston at (1E) Riverton
(3E) Douglas at (2W) Cody
(4E) Worland at (1W) Star Valley
(3W) Powell at (2E) Buffalo
Class 2A
(4E) Wheatland at (1W) Mountain View
(3W) Cokeville at (2E) Torrington
(4W) Lovell at (1E) Big Horn
(3E) Tongue River at (2W) Lyman
Class 1A nine-man
(4W) Rocky Mountain at (1E) Lingle
(3E) Pine Bluffs at (2W) Big Piney
(4E) Lusk at (1W) Wind River
(3W) Riverside at (2E) Southeast
Class 1A six-man
(4S) Farson at (1N) Burlington
(3N) Meeteetse at (2S) Encampment
(4N) Hulett at (1S) Snake River
(3S) Dubois at (2N) Kaycee

For a full schedule including kickoff times, click here. You can click on “Quarterfinals” at the top of the page to take you directly to this week’s schedule.

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Here are the results of my picks from last week and this season:

Last week: 24-6 (80 percent). This season: 237-43 (85 percent).

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What first-round upsets do you foresee? Leave a comment here, or hit me up on the Facebook page or on Twitter.

If you like what you see here, consider a page sponsorship. 

–patrick