Category Archives: Picks

One of the most unique situations we’ve ever seen in Wyoming high school football comes to us Friday in, of all places, Ethete.

Chiefs Intertribal Stadium will host a Class 1A 11-man West doubleheader on Friday, with the host Chiefs playing Rocky Mountain at 2 p.m. for a playoff spot and nearby Wind River taking on Cokeville at 6 p.m. in the game that will decide the conference’s top seed for the playoffs.

It’s bizarre that both games are being played at the same location; a weird set of circumstances that made Wind River’s home field unplayable all season long led to that.

It’s also bizarre that the location for a pair of games with postseason implications is Ethete.

The Wyoming Indian Chiefs haven’t played a game with playoff implications in the final week of the season since 2002, the only time since the program’s only playoff appearance in 1996 that the Chiefs have been a part of any postseason discussions heading into the last week.

In 2002, the Chiefs were one of several teams pursuing a Class 2A playoff spot in the days of power ratings. At 3-4 and in potential position to take the seventh or eighth seed in 2A, they needed to win their game against rival Wind River to keep those postseason hopes alive. But Wind River won 40-12 in Pavillion, as the Chiefs finished 3-5 and tumbled to 11th out of 12 schools in the final 2A power ratings.

Since then, the Chiefs have entered every Week 8 scenario knowing that they weren’t in the postseason hunt.

This year wasn’t supposed to be WIHS’s year, either. The Chiefs have yet to play any varsity opponents this season. They’re 1-3 this season after games against JV teams from Natrona, Wind River, Cody and Shoshoni. They’ve forfeited every conference game so far to make room for sub-varsity matchups that are more conducive to developing a program that’s long struggled for both numbers and relevancy.

When the 2018 schedule finally solidified, only one other 1A 11-man West school — Rocky Mountain — decided to pit its varsity against the Chiefs’ varsity.

Meanwhile, Saratoga’s inability to field an 11-man team this season left the West Conference with five teams. And as things have played out this season, all it will take for the Chiefs to qualify for the playoffs is one conference victory. That’s what they can earn on Friday against Rocky Mountain.

Sure, the Chiefs will be heavy underdogs. But on Friday afternoon, they will meet the Grizzlies on the field as equals, with a chance to extend their season.

That alone will make the day pretty special in Ethete.

Throw in another game on the same field that night that will decide a conference champion, and you’ve got the perfect atmosphere for a fantastic, and unique, day of football in Wyoming.

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Ethete isn’t the only place where playoff seedings are in play. In all, 18 games this week — including all five in Class 4A — will have some influence on the playoff seeding. Of those 18, 11 will have direct influence on who qualifies for the playoffs and who doesn’t.

However, only two games — Burns at Thermopolis in the 2A East and the aforementioned Rocky Mountain at Wyoming Indian game in the 1A 11-man West — are direct winner in/loser out scenarios.

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Four top seeds still need to be determined, as 4A, the 2A West, the 1A 11-man West and the 1A six-man East will use Week 8 to determine their champions.

In 4A, the most influential game on determining the top seed is Sheridan traveling south to play Cheyenne East, the only game that has two of the top four teams facing each other. On paper, East has the advantage, having won five in a row since an early loss to Thunder Basin. However, Sheridan has won four in a row after early back-to-back stumbles against Natrona and Thunder Basin in consecutive weeks.

Natrona’s game with Rock Springs and Thunder Basin’s game with Laramie will also influence the top half of 4A seeding, but East-Sheridan will be 4A’s marquee game in Week 8. …

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Mountain View and Greybull will meet to determine the conference champ in the 2A West. Last year, Greybull beat up on Mountain View pretty handily in Week 8… and Mountain View won the state championship three weeks later. This year’s competitiveness should be a bit different with more on the line. …

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The 1A six-man East title is also up for grabs this week as Hanna meets Guernsey to help decide it all. Hanna wins the conference outright if it can continue its unbeaten season. Guernsey wins the conference outright with a victory and some help from NSI, who would need to beat Kaycee to avoid a three-way split for the conference championship. Otherwise, with Guernsey and Kaycee winning, it’ll be coin flip time. Personally, I’d prefer a Ro-Sham-Bo over a coin flip to decide who finishes where. …

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Pinedale is in a weird position this week. The Wranglers’ conference season in the 2A West is done; they’ll play Wheatland this week. You can forgive the Wranglers, though, if their focus is more on Kemmerer than on Wheatland. Kemmerer hosts Lovell this week, and the math is simple: If Kemmerer wins, Pinedale is out. If Kemmerer loses, Pinedale is in. Distraction level=high. …

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Another team in a weird position is NSI. Just like Lovell last year, there’s a scenario where NSI could be in the playoffs with a loss but out of the playoffs with a victory. The Wolves could coin flip their way into the 1A six-man East’s No. 4 seed with a loss and a Hulett loss to Lingle, but if NSI wins AND Hulett wins, NSI is out. So will NSI forfeit or throw their game this week to gain a shot at a playoff game? Nope… because the Hulett-Lingle game is Friday, NSI will have a lot better understanding of its playoff fate by the time the Wolves play Kaycee on Saturday — and if the Wolves are still in the hunt by then, they’ll have to win Saturday to stay alive. …

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On to some picks for Week 8. When I say bold, you say projected winner….

Thursday
Interclass
Shoshoni at Natrona sophs
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Cheyenne South
Kelly Walsh at Gillette
Laramie at Thunder Basin
Natrona at Rock Springs
Sheridan at Cheyenne East
Class 3A
Douglas at Riverton
Green River at Cody
Jackson at Powell
Star Valley at Evanston
Torrington at Rawlins
Worland at Lander
Class 2A
Burns at Thermopolis
Lovell at Kemmerer
Lyman at Big Piney
Moorcroft at Glenrock
Mountain View at Greybull
Newcastle at Buffalo
Pinedale at Wheatland
Class 1A 11-man
Cokeville at Wind River (at Ethete)
Lusk at Pine Bluffs
Rocky Mountain at Wyoming Indian
Southeast at Big Horn
Tongue River at Wright
Class 1A six-man
Farson at St. Stephens
Guernsey-Sunrise at Hanna
Hulett at Lingle
Riverside at Burlington
Saturday
Class 1A six-man
Kaycee at NSI
Snake River at Dubois
Open: Meeteetse, Midwest, Saratoga, Upton-Sundance.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, as well as results from past weeks, click here. Click on “Week 8” on the top of the page for this week’s schedule.

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

Last week: 29-3 (91 percent). This season: 185-53 (78 percent).

The picks are in for the final week. How do you think it’s all going to shake out? Post a comment, because I’d love to know what you think.

–patrick

Three — A — West! (clap clap clap)

Is — the — Best! (clap clap clap)

3A West (clap) is the best (clap) come on people yell it! (clap clap)

Clapping yet? You should be.

Because the 3A West has been the best football conference in Wyoming in 2018.

Now, when I say “best,” I don’t necessarily mean the best football, although the top four teams in the conference have been playing exceptionally well this season (more to come on that).

Instead, I mean “best” as the most interesting, the most intriguing, the most watchable football Wyoming has to offer in 2018.

Two games this week will pair the four top teams in the conference, as Cody travels to Afton to play Star Valley and Evanston heads north to face Jackson. Right now, Star Valley’s at the top of the heap at 3-0 in conference play, with Cody, Jackson and Evanston all at 2-1, trying to figure out the best way to move forward.

Moreover, the four squads are a combined 21-6. Three of those losses came to Idaho programs. The other three came against each other.

Those three games between them so far have been, shall we say, weird? Cody beat Evanston 46-26; Jackson beat Cody 27-7; Star Valley beat Jackson 32-14. However, comparing scores in the 3A West is a dangerous game, friend-o. By comparing the scores of these three games, we’d think Star Valley has a distinct advantage.

Look deeper, though. Star Valley barely eked past Powell 14-7 two weeks ago; Evanston had to hold on like crazy to beat Green River 19-14 last week; Jackson got pushed by Green River 33-23; Cody struggled with Powell before surging late to win 22-10. Powell and Green River are both 0-3 in conference play.

In short, no one has the advantage they think they have.

So… what’s the difference between the 3A West and the 3A East, where the conference records are literally the same from top to bottom (3-0, 2-1, 2-1, 2-1, 0-3, 0-3)?

Well, there’s the fact that the 3A West is 10-4 in games against the 3A East this year. Also, Torrington has been crushing teams in the 3A East and has eliminated pretty much all drama about who will emerge with the top seed.

The 3A West has both uncertainty and quality, and that makes it really fun to watch. Especially this week. (clap clap clap)

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Outside of the 3A West, this week’s schedule is honestly kind of meh. It seems like there’s a lack of interesting games; outside the 3A West, there’s only six games that pit teams with winning records against each other (Laramie vs. Sheridan, Buffalo vs. Big Piney, Lusk vs. Big Horn, Pine Bluffs vs. Upton-Sundance, Farson vs. Burlington, Kaycee vs. Hanna). The six-man games are the best of that bunch.

However, the way Farson and Hanna have been cruising through the season, their games against Burlington and Kaycee, respectively, may be little more than slightly more difficult challenges than usual on their way to conference championships. …

That leaves Pine Bluffs facing Upton-Sundance as the big game of the week. Even that game leaves something to be desired as it’s more or less for the No. 2 seed from the 1A 11-man East. Still, it should be an excellent matchup and one of the best games of the week. …

While the Lusk-Big Horn game also pits two teams with winning records in the 1A 11-man East, the real story out of the 1A 11-man East could be Wright. With winnable games against Southeast and Tongue River in the last two weeks, watch for the Panthers to make a run late in the season here, potentially stealing that No. 4 seed from Lusk thanks in part to their 13-6 victory against the Tigers last week. With that momentum, Wright could push push the team it faces in the first round of the playoffs. …

On a purely competitive standpoint, the game between one-win Riverside and one-win St. Stephens may be the most even game of Week 7. Legit excited to see how it turns out. …

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The picks for the week are here. The team I think will win is in bold. But you play to win the game, not to be picked to win the game.

Thursday
Interclass
Natrona sophomores at Shoshoni
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Natrona
Cheyenne East at Rock Springs
Gillette at Cheyenne South
Laramie at Sheridan
Thunder Basin at Kelly Walsh
Class 3A
Cody at Star Valley
Evanston at Jackson
Lander at Douglas
Powell at Green River
Riverton at Rawlins
Torrington at Worland
Class 2A
Buffalo at Big Piney
Glenrock at Thermopolis
Greybull at Lyman
Kemmerer at Mountain View
Newcastle at Burns
Pinedale at Lovell
Wheatland at Moorcroft
Class 1A 11-man
Lusk at Big Horn
Pine Bluffs at Upton-Sundance
Wind River at Rocky Mountain
Wright at Southeast
Class 1A six-man
Farson at Burlington
Guernsey-Sunrise at Lingle
Meeteetse at Dubois
Saturday
Class 1A 11-man
Wyoming Indian at Shoshoni JV
Class 1A six-man
Kaycee at Hanna
Midwest at Hulett
St. Stephens at Riverside
Interclass
Evanston JV at Cokeville
Sheridan JV at Tongue River
Open: NSI, Saratoga, Snake River.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, as well as results from past weeks, click here. Click on “Week 7” on the top of the page for this week’s schedule.

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

Last week: 27-5 (84 percent). This season: 156-50 (76 percent).

Comment if you want. You’ve got free will.

–patrick

Rivalry Week is in full swing on Friday: Capital Bowl. Energy Bowl. Oil Bowl. Bridger Valley Bowl. Thunder Bowl. Cody-Powell whatever-it’s-called. Sublette County something-or-other.

They’re all secondary this week to a 3A West rivalry game that normally doesn’t have much intrigue but is bubbling over with it this year.

Jackson hosts Star Valley on Friday, and that’s important because Jackson and Star Valley are the only two remaining teams unbeaten in 3A West Conference play.

And even though league foes Evanston and Cody will make it interesting the next couple weeks, the Jackson-Star Valley winner will be way ahead of everyone else for the conference title and home-field advantage in the 3A playoffs.

That’s a lot to say for a Jackson-Star Valley game — a rivalry that, most of the time, gives us games that aren’t all that interesting.

The most interesting recent matchup between these two teams came in 2015, when Jackson won a heck of a regular-season game 14-7 but Star Valley won the 3A title without having to play Jackson in the playoffs.

However, the 2015 game was the only time since 1998 that the Braves and Broncs faced off in a season in which both teams finished with winning records. And despite being in the same conference for a heck of a lot of time (every year since 1961 except 1974), the last time a Star Valley-Jackson game directly separated first place from second place in a conference race — prior to 2015 — was in a three-team 3A Southwest Conference in 1990.

A three-team race in 1987 was also decided by this rivalry, but the only other time the Jackson-Star Valley game separated first from second in the 56 years they spent in the same conference was in 1982, when Star Valley’s 20-7 victory against Jackson propelled the Braves to the Class A title game (and a state title), ended a Jackson winning streak at 16 games and prevented the Broncs from a repeat title attempt.

Moreover: Star Valley leads the all-time series 65-16.

The Braves have absolutely owned this rivalry. When they started annual play in 1959, the Braves won the first 10 matchups and 18 of the first 20; they also won 15 in a row from 1990-2003.

Heading into this season, it looked like this would be another easy notch in the win column for Star Valley. Jackson had lost 15 in a row (eventually 16), while Star Valley was one upset loss to Cody away from a potential three-peat of 3A championships.

But second-year coach David Joyce has Jackson moving quickly in a positive direction. The Broncs went from 16 straight losses to five straight victories. Jackson will enter Week 6 ranked second in 3A — all but unfathomable at the start of the season.

And Star Valley is right there with Jackson. Setbacks to a couple of Idaho schools didn’t stop the Braves from winning their first two West Conference games, topping Green River and Powell the past two weeks to set up a suddenly meaningful contest with the Broncs.

For a rivalry that hasn’t had much juice for the past 60 years, it’s fun to see this one take center stage for once.

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The other rivalry games on tap this week will all have their own kind of pulse to them. In descending order from “HIIT workout pulse” to “comatose pulse,” they’re ranked as follows:

1. Big Piney-Pinedale in a 2A West game that will be critical in the postseason chase
2. Cody-Powell as the Panthers try to play spoiler and make a postseason push of their own after two tough losses
3. Capital Bowl between East and Central with the Indians coming off victory No. 1 and East chugging right along
4. Pine Bluffs-Burns in a gift from the scheduling gods to keep this rivalry going
5. Oil Bowl as a wounded Kelly Walsh hosts a confident Natrona
6. Bridger Valley Bowl with Mountain View trying to keep a stranglehold on the 2A West with Lyman in the way
7. Shoshoni-Wind River in a new production of “who cares because the playoffs are guaranteed anyway”
8. Thunder Bowl with Big Horn preparing to thump Tongue River just like the Rams have thumped everyone else
9. Energy Bowl as Sheridan faces Gillette in a game that might be good next year

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Other not-so-rivalry games with my attention this week:

Buffalo is playing a trap game this Friday against Wheatland. Bison need to be careful on that trip to Platte County. However, with a victory, the Bison can be the first team in the state to secure a conference championship, so the motivation should be strong. …

Someone will get their first win of the season when St. Stephens hosts Dubois in six-man. There’s actually only six winless teams statewide — Gillette, Riverton, Southeast, Hulett, St. Stephens and Dubois — and three are in six-man. …

Don’t look now, but Worland is 2-0 in the 3A East. If the Warriors can beat Douglas in Douglas, the rest of the state just may have to take them seriously. …

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As is tradition, here are some picks, with teams I think will win in bold because, you know, tradition:

Thursday
Interclass
Cody JV at Wyoming Indian
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne East at Cheyenne Central
Cheyenne South at Laramie
Gillette at Sheridan
Natrona at Kelly Walsh
Rock Springs at Thunder Basin
Class 3A
Cody at Powell
Green River at Evanston
Rawlins at Lander
Riverton at Torrington
Star Valley at Jackson
Worland at Douglas
Class 2A
Big Piney at Pinedale
Buffalo at Wheatland
Glenrock at Kemmerer
Lovell at Greybull
Lyman at Mountain View
Thermopolis at Newcastle
Class 1A 11-man
Big Horn at Tongue River
Rocky Mountain at Cokeville
Shoshoni at Wind River (at Ethete)
Southeast at Upton-Sundance (at Upton)
Wright at Lusk
Class 1A six-man
Dubois at St. Stephens
Hulett at NSI
Lingle at Kaycee
Midwest at Guernsey-Sunrise
Riverside at Meeteetse
Snake River at Farson
Interclass
Pine Bluffs at Burns
Saratoga at Burlington (six-man)
Saturday
Interstate
Moorcroft at Rapid City Central, S.D., JV
Open: Hanna.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, as well as results from past weeks, click here. Click on “Week 6” on the top of the page for this week’s schedule.

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

Last week: 26-5 (84 percent). This season: 129-45 (74 percent).

Finally, as is tradition, I’d like to invite you to comment on this post and share your thoughts on Wyoming high school football. Or try me on Twitter @wyomingfootball, or join the Facebook group.

–patrick

Through the first half of the regular season, 56 of Wyoming’s 64 high school football teams have at least one loss.

After Week 5, that number will be trimmed by at least one — and the other six teams have their own challenges to overcome at the just-past-halfway point.

The eight teams still unbeaten are Thunder Basin, Torrington, Evanston, Pine Bluffs, Big Horn, Cokeville, Hanna and Farson. Pine Bluffs plays Big Horn in a match-up of undefeated squads — the only game remaining on the schedule for the rest of the regular season that place potentially undefeated teams against each other.

Pine Bluffs-Big Horn was expected to be one of 1A 11-man’s biggest games in 2018, and seeing both teams come in undefeated is not surprising. The two teams staged a classic in last year’s 1A 11-man title game, with Pine Bluffs eking out a 20-16 victory to preserve an undefeated season, a second consecutive state championship and what is now the state’s longest active winning streak at 19 games.

But it’s easy to forget that they also played a heck of a regular-season game, with Pine Bluffs winning 22-21 in overtime — in Big Horn — during the 2017 regular season.

This year, Pine Bluffs has yet to allow a point, outscoring opponents 130-0 in four consecutive shutouts. Big Horn, though, boasts 1A 11-man’s highest-scoring offense, scoring 47.5 points per game.

Most of the time when matchups like that happen, though, the game will likely be decided on the flipside — how Pine Bluffs’ offense does against Big Horn’s defense.

The winner moves into position to win the 1A 11-man East championship, home-field advantage in the first two rounds of the playoffs and a huge mental advantage.

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Thunder Basin-Natrona was supposed to be the marquee game of Week 5, but then Natrona went and lost to Cheyenne East 22-21 last week, taking a little luster off a game that was one point away from being a showdown of undefeated 4A programs.

Instead, Thunder Basin has emerged as the only remaining undefeated big school, and Natrona is the last major challenge left on the ‘Bolts’ schedule — although, admittedly, 2-3 Rock Springs, 2-3 Kelly Walsh and 3-2 Laramie, the teams remaining on Thunder Basin’s slate, aren’t going to be pushovers.

Thunder Basin’s rise is no surprise. The ‘Bolts needed a year to get their identity set with a new coach and a new program, but since finishing 5-5 last year, they’ve re-assumed the role the Gillette Camels carried before them.

Of course, the Camels’ problem was always finishing — they had 27 consecutive playoff berths from 1990-2016 and reached 13 championship games in that span, but finished just 4-9 in those title games.

If the ‘Bolts can finish as strong as they’ve started, they might start building a new kind of tradition, one inspired by but separate from what’s happened before in Gillette.

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When the schedule came out, I figured one team in the Evanston-Cody game would be undefeated. I just didn’t figure it would be Evanston.

The 3A West is flipped like a dolphin at Sea World. Jackson’s rise from consistent loser to consistent winner happened in like a week; since breaking a 16-game losing streak, Jackson hasn’t lost since, winning four in a row, including last week’s 27-7 upset of Cody.

Now, the defending 3A champs face another unexpected challenge in the unbeaten Red Devils, who have benefitted from improved play as well as a soft schedule — none of Evanston’s opponents thus far have a winning record.

Is Evanston for real? For that matter, is Cody?

Let’s find out.

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Similarly, in six-man, another potential undefeated vs. undefeated matchup was thwarted last week when Guernsey beat previously undefeated NSI in a 79-65 shootout. Consequently, this week’s matchup between NSI and Hanna will have a lot less intrigue around it.

Hanna figured to be primed for a breakthrough season this year, and the Miners haven’t disappointed. In four games — all on the road or at neutral sites, by the way — the Miners have been dominant, outscoring opponents 229-41 and winning every game by at least 32 points.

NSI was off to its best start in school history at 3-0 before tripping up against Guernsey. We’ll see how the Wolves rebound.

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But the best game of the week may be played in Farson, where the undefeated Pronghorns host the one-loss-but-it-was-to-a-team-from-Canada-so-does-it-REALLY-count Meeteetse Longhorns.

I couldn’t understand why everyone was so down on Meeteetse this year. I figured they’d be solid, probably good enough to push the top teams in the West, win more than a handful of games, maybe get a home playoff game. In the past two weeks, they’ve made good on that, beating both Snake River and Burlington — top-tier six-man teams — while making it look easy.

Farson, though, was supposed to be the class of 1A six-man. So far, that’s been the case, with the Pronghorns rolling up a 308-86 scoring advantage on their four opponents while winning every game by at least 47 points.

The Pronghorns get Meeteetse, Snake River and Burlington in consecutive weeks the next three weeks, a perfect opportunity to prove their championship caliber.

Meeteetse, though, has already proven it has what it takes to stay in that conversation despite the doubters.

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And Torrington plays Douglas, and Cokeville plays the Wind River JV.

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Several other games are really interesting this week, but rather than spend time talking about them, I’ll spend time making picks. Bolded teams should win, but 2018 has been far from predictable, so don’t just take these choices with a grain of salt — take them with a salt lick.

Thursday
Interclass
Green River JV at Cokeville
Star Valley JV at Lyman
Friday
Class 4A
Kelly Walsh at Cheyenne Central
Laramie at Cheyenne East
Rock Springs at Gillette
Sheridan at Cheyenne South
Thunder Basin at Natrona
Class 3A
Douglas at Torrington
Evanston at Cody
Jackson at Green River
Lander at Riverton
Star Valley at Powell
Worland at Rawlins
Class 2A
Big Piney at Lovell
Burns at Glenrock
Greybull at Kemmerer
Moorcroft at Buffalo
Mountain View at Pinedale
Wheatland at Thermopolis
Class 1A 11-man
Big Horn at Pine Bluffs
Cokeville JV at Wyoming Indian
Rocky Mountain at Shoshoni
Tongue River at Southeast
Upton-Sundance at Wright
Class 1A six-man
Dubois at Burlington
Lingle at Midwest
Meeteetse at Farson
NSI at Hanna
Interclass
Lusk at Newcastle
Saratoga at Guernsey-Sunrise
Saturday
Class 1A six-man
Kaycee at Hulett
Snake River at Riverside
Open: St. Stephens, Wind River.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, as well as results from past weeks, click here. Click on “Week 5” on the top of the page for this week’s schedule.

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

Last week: 21-9 (70 percent). This season: 103-40 (72 percent).

Which undefeated teams will fall this week? Which winless teams might be ready for a victory? Which teams in the middle are ready for a run? Post a comment and let the world know.

–patrick

When Buffalo moved from Class 3A to Class 2A this season, everyone in 2A mentally made a note — Buffalo and Glenrock will be in the same conference.

That note included an automatic asterisk: When they face each other, it’ll be huge.

Even though the showdown between the Bison and Herders comes fairly early in the season, they’re already the only two teams who remain undefeated in the 2A East standings.

They both notched important victories last week, as Buffalo bopped Burns and Glenrock wore down Wheatland, to set up this matchup of teams both 2-0 in conference play and looking for that opportunity to take the lead for a conference title and home-field advantage through the first two rounds of the playoffs.

Glenrock and Buffalo have a bit of an odd series history — they haven’t been in the same classification, let alone the same conference, since 2000. But between 2001 and 2008, they played each other six times, with Buffalo winning four of those six. The last meeting in 2008 was a classic, with Glenrock holding on late to beat Buffalo 16-14; that season, Buffalo finished as the 3A runners-up and Glenrock won the 2A championship.

In the intervening 10 years since that game, Glenrock has made three trips to the 2A championship game, finishing 0-3 in those contests. Buffalo has struggled more in those years, but the move to 2A this year came at a time when the Bison were showing signs of a turnaround, including a 6-3 season last year.

You could argue the anticipation for this game is actually more than two years in the making. For the 2016 and 2017 seasons, Buffalo had the enrollment of a Class 2A school but opted up to play at the Class 3A level.

Thus, everyone knew as soon as Buffalo’s move to 2A for 2018 became final that this one against the Herders would mean more than usual. It’s more than just a big conference game; it’s the renewal of a competitive rivalry.

And, after 10 years since the last one and two years later than expected, that game will be played on Friday.

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Some other games that have me looking over my shoulders as if anyone else recognizes what kind of awesome quality we have developing for Week 4:

A huge game is brewing between Upton-Sundance and Big Horn. Right now, the 1A 11-man East is a three-team race between these two and Pine Bluffs. The difference between first place and third place in that conference really hasn’t meant that much in terms of the first round of the playoffs — the third-place team from the East has won on the road in the first round of the playoffs each of the past five years — but in terms of who gets to host in the semifinals, this one is absolutely critical. I’d be more excited for this game if last year’s game was in any way close, but the Rams lambasted the Patriots 53-13 last year in Sundance. …

Cody will likely top Jackson in the meeting of 3A West Broncs. Still, Jackson’s turnaround continues, and if the black-and-orange Broncs can pull off an upset of the defending 3A champs at home, watch the heads turn statewide like owls spotting a field mouse. …

The Gillette Camels will head across town to Thunder Basin to face the ‘Bolts in the Coal Bowl (sorry, Wright and Upton… Gillette’s stealing this rivalry name). It won’t be much of a game, as the Camels are 0-4 and the ‘Bolts 4-0, but rivalries like this are fun regardless, especially young rivalries still developing their own character. …

The loser of the Sheridan-Kelly Walsh game will be 2-3 after Friday. Not too many people saw that coming at the start of 2018; Sheridan has lost two in a row in the same season for the first time since 2007, while Kelly Walsh hasn’t yet capitalized on the momentum of its semifinal appearance last year and lost 14-7 on the road last week to a younger Rock Springs team. …

For some reason, Pinedale-Greybull is a REALLY intriguing game. …

The 1A six-man West is now officially crazy at the top. We’ll see if Meeteetse can keep things rolling against Burlington — a tall order, but doable for the Longhorns after soundly taking down Snake River last week. …

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Here are this week’s picks. Bolded names mean teams I think will win. But life is more complex than that, and we would do well to recognize this inescapable fact.

Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Laramie
Cheyenne South at Rock Springs
Gillette at Thunder Basin
Natrona at Cheyenne East
Sheridan at Kelly Walsh
Class 3A
Cody at Jackson
Green River at Star Valley
Powell at Evanston
Rawlins at Douglas
Riverton at Worland
Torrington at Lander
Class 2A
Buffalo at Glenrock
Kemmerer at Big Piney
Lovell at Lyman
Newcastle at Moorcroft
Pinedale at Greybull
Thermopolis at Mountain View
Wheatland at Burns
Class 1A 11-man
Pine Bluffs at Tongue River
Shoshoni at Cokeville
Southeast at Lusk
Upton-Sundance at Big Horn
Wright at Wind River (at Ethete)
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at Meeteetse
Farson at Riverside
Hanna at Lingle
Midwest at Kaycee
Saturday
Class 1A six-man
Guernsey-Sunrise at NSI
St. Stephens at Snake River
Interclass
Saratoga at Dubois
Open: Hulett, Rocky Mountain.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, as well as results from past weeks, click here. Click on “Week 4” on the top of the page for this week’s schedule.

+++

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

Last week: 20-10 (67 percent). This season: 82-31 (73 percent). I meant to pick Mountain View over Lovell last week, but the bold button slipped on me. However, the bold has the power, and I abide by its choice.

Week 4 is the halfway point of the regular season. So who’s halfway to a championship, and who’s already full-way to thinking about 2019? Leave a comment and we can talk a bit about it.

–patrick

Last year, the football programs at Jackson, Burns, Kemmerer and NSI combined to finish with a win-loss record of 2-31.

This year, those same four teams are a combined 7-1. In fact, as I noted on Twitter last week, Kemmerer and Burns are the last two undefeated teams in Class 2A.

If you’re looking for early turnaround success, look here — to a pair of programs with first-year head coaches who have found early success and another pair with second-year coaches moving the needles in their programs the way they’d like.

Jackson‘s struggles have been well-documented. From 9-2 and 3A semifinalists in 2015, the Broncs crashed to 1-8 in 2016; in 2017, under new coach David Joyce, the Broncs went 0-9. Eventually, they lost 16 in a row, including this year’s season opener against across-the-mountains rival Teton, Idaho.

But their past two weeks have produced emphatic victories, as the Broncs thumped Bear Lake, Idaho, 41-13 two weeks ago and Pinedale 35-10 last week. Now, Jackson faces 1-1 Worland to gauge how well they’ll fare in 3A this fall — and it might be the toughest game of the week in the state for me to pick.

Ever since a surprising first-round playoff exit after an undefeated regular season in 2013, Burns has been struggling to find success in the win-loss column. In the four seasons after that, the Broncs went 2-6, 0-8, 2-6 and 1-7. New coach Brad Morrison didn’t inherit a program in disarray, though — most of his players this year were part of those struggles and had the edge in experience at the varsity level.

That edge has shown in the first two weeks, as Burns ripped through Wright to open the season and outscored Moorcroft in a 41-30 shootout last week. Now, the Broncs are 2-0 for the first time since that 2013 season; however, to keep the momentum going, they have to defeat 2A newcomer Buffalo, in Buffalo, on Friday. That’s a tall test for a developing program.

Kemmerer had a unorthodox start to its season, playing in two scrimmages in Weeks 0 and 1, before playing its first game against Lyman in Week 2. Obviously the approach worked, as the Rangers jumped out to a 21-0 halftime lead before beating the Eagles 28-6 in the Rangers’ first conference victory since 2012.

Second-year coach Bart Jernigan helped the Rangers start last year 1-1 before they lost seven in a row to finish the season. But this feels different. The Rangers were efficient and enthusiastic in taking out the Eagles and sent a signal that they could be ready for the postseason if the rest of the 2A West doesn’t take them seriously. This will be put to the test this week against another old conference rival, Pinedale, who’s tied atop the conference standings with Kemmerer (and Mountain View) with an early 1-0 record.

NSI has started 2-0 just two other times in program history — its first two seasons in 2000 and 2001. The Wolves have never started a season 3-0. This from a program that went 0-7 last year. With the Wolves, though, last season never matters; none of last year’s players are on this year’s roster, and even the coach, Antoine Proctor, is new.

This week, NSI hosts Midwest, a team the Wolves have beaten just once in their past five meetings since NSI moved to six-man. After that, the Wolves host Guernsey before traveling to Hanna for a Week 5 game that all of a sudden looks way more important than it did in mid-August.

All four teams could win this week.

All four could be playoff contenders.

All four are showing the past is only a small part of the future.

+++

Some other games that look good on paper:

Thunder Basin has two huge road tests the next three weeks. This week, the ‘Bolts are at Sheridan; in Week 5, they’re at Natrona. In between is the rivalry game with Gillette. After an impressive victory against Cheyenne East last week, though, the ‘Bolts look like a team capable of anything. …

The upset special this week might be Rock Springs — off a huge boost of a double-OT victory — at home against Kelly Walsh, who struggled early last week against winless Cheyenne South. If the Trojans aren’t careful, watch out. …

The luster wore off this week’s game between Green River and Torrington, a rematch of a 3A semifinal from last year, with the Wolves’ loss to Rawlins last week. Was it a surprise that will get the Wolves refocused, or a portent of things to come? …

+++

Here. I picked some games. Bold means projected winner, but the way things have gone for me this season, I wouldn’t get too worked up over any one pick:

Thursday
Interclass
Shoshoni at Riverton JV
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Gillette
Cheyenne South at Cheyenne East
Kelly Walsh at Rock Springs
Laramie at Natrona
Thunder Basin at Sheridan
Class 3A
Cody at Rawlins
Evanston at Lander
Green River at Torrington
Jackson at Worland
Powell at Douglas
Star Valley at Riverton
Class 2A
Burns at Buffalo
Glenrock at Wheatland
Greybull at Big Piney
Kemmerer at Pinedale
Mountain View at Lovell
Thermopolis at Moorcroft
Class 1A 11-man
Big Horn at Wright
Pine Bluffs at Southeast
Tongue River at Upton-Sundance (at Upton)
Wind River at Lusk
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at St. Stephens
Farson at Dubois
Kaycee at Guernsey-Sunrise
Interclass
Cokeville at Lyman
Riverside at Saratoga
Saturday
Class 1A six-man
Hulett vs. Hanna (at Midwest)
Meeteetse at Snake River
Midwest at NSI

Lingle is off this week thanks to Rock River’s season cancelation; Newcastle has already defeated Rocky Mountain by forfeit.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, as well as results from past weeks, click here. Click on “Week 3” on the top of the page for this week’s schedule.

+++

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

Last week: 25-9 (74 percent). This season: 62-21 (75 percent).

Through Week 2, which teams look the best to you? Who are your biggest surprises, either way? Leave a comment and add to the train of thoughts I helped start here.

–patrick

Most weeks, Class 4A football stinks.

And I can prove it.

In the 364 Class 4A games played between 2011 and 2017, 85 finished with a margin of victory of eight points or fewer; 103 finished with a margin of victory of 35 points or more. The average margin of victory in those 364 games was 24.7 points; the median 22.5.

So far in 2018, the 10 4A games have been decided by 7, 7, 13, 15, 44, 47, 52, 59, 59 and 62 points — average MOV of 36.5 points.

Moreover, it’s the same teams that do the winning — and the losing.

Since 2011, Sheridan, Natrona, Cheyenne East and Gillette have combined for 25 winning seasons, one .500 season and two losing seasons (and one of those losing seasons was the Camels’ 0-9 year last year when it played with a bunch of underclassmen due to some unique circumstances). Kelly Walsh, Rock Springs, Cheyenne Central, Cheyenne South, Evanston (now in 3A), Laramie and Thunder Basin have combined for two winning seasons, seven .500 seasons and 33 losing seasons at the 4A level in that same span.

In 2018? Basically, it’s more of the same, with Thunder Basin unsurprisingly taking Gillette’s place in the upper echelon.

Class 4A’s four 0-2 teams (Cheyenne Central, Cheyenne South, Gillette and Rock Springs) have been outscored by a total of 377-32 — and Rock Springs has 20 of those 32. Meanwhile, the four 2-0 teams (Cheyenne East, Natrona, Sheridan and Thunder Basin) have outscored their opponents 384-39.

The idea that the 2-0 teams are all going to face each other this week is a pretty exciting prospect. East journeys north to Thunder Basin while Sheridan heads south to play Natrona.

All kinds of interesting subplots are in play here: Sheridan has won 20 games in a row, now the state’s longest active streak regardless of classification; Thunder Basin hasn’t allowed a point yet this season; Natrona’s 117 points are the most of any 4A school; Cheyenne East is the only one of the four to beat a team with a victory this season.

And then there’s three other 4A games to figure out who’s going to be first-round playoff cannon fodder.

I hope for a time when parity in Class 4A is a thing — when any team can beat any other on any given weekend. This Friday’s 4A games kind of have that feeling, and it’s nice. Don’t we wish every 4A Friday could feel like this?

+++

Some other Week 2 games are more intriguing than usual:

Burns and Moorcroft are both 1-0, facing off for early control of the 2A East in Week 2. It’s good to see Brad Morrison in Burns and Travis Santistevan in Moorcroft having some early success in their first seasons at their respective posts. …

Big Horn faces a key early test of its attempt to win the 1A 11-man crown when it journeys to face 2A contender Greybull. If the Rams can pull this one off, they could be in position to run the table this season. Just don’t tell them. …

Jackson ended its 16-game losing streak last week with an impressive 41-13 victory against Bear Lake, Idaho. The Broncs could make it two in a row if they can knock off Pinedale at home. …

The most interesting game on the schedule just might be the one between 1A 11-man Upton-Sundance and 2A Wheatland. The Patriots and Bulldogs both have aspirations of postseason success this year, and this interclass matchup could be telling for both teams. …

Snake River and Burlington will meet up in the best six-man game of the week. Burlington bopped three-time defending champ Kaycee by 62 points last week, while Snake River is 2-0 to start the season. This one will help set the pace in the West Conference for the entire season. …

Now, the picks. Bolded teams should win, but un-bolded teams have a chance, too (even in 4A):

Thursday
Class 1A six-man
St. Stephens at Meeteetse
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne East at Thunder Basin
Cheyenne South at Kelly Walsh
Gillette at Laramie
Rock Springs at Cheyenne Central
Sheridan at Natrona
Class 3A
Evanston at Riverton
Lander at Powell
Rawlins at Green River
Worland at Cody
Class 2A
Big Piney at Mountain View
Buffalo at Thermopolis
Glenrock at Newcastle
Lyman at Kemmerer
Moorcroft at Burns
Class 1A 11-man
Cokeville vs. Southeast (at Rawlins)
Lusk at Tongue River
Rocky Mountain at Wind River (nonconference, at Ethete)
Wright at Pine Bluffs
Class 1A six-man
Dubois at Riverside
NSI at Lingle
Snake River at Burlington
Interclass
Big Horn at Greybull
Lovell at Shoshoni
Pinedale at Jackson
Saratoga at Farson
Upton-Sundance at Wheatland
Interstate
Douglas at Hot Springs, S.D.
Gering, Neb., at Torrington
Star Valley at Sugar-Salem, Idaho
Saturday
Class 1A six-man
Guernsey-Sunrise at Hulett
Hanna at Midwest
Rock River at Kaycee
Interclass
Natrona JV at Wyoming Indian

For a full schedule including kickoff times, as well as results from past weeks, click here. Click on “Week 2” on the top of the page for this week’s schedule.

+++

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

Last week: 24-10 (71 percent). This season: 37-12 (76 percent).

As we enter Week 2, what are the things you’re seeing that are interesting and worthy of attention? Post a comment and let’s make conversation great again.

–patrick

It’s not uncommon for two teams that played in state championships to face each other the next season.

It IS rare, though, for those two teams to be from two different classifications.

However, that’s what’s happening in Week 1 when last year’s Class 3A runner-up, Torrington, heads northwest to play last year’s Class 2A runner-up, Glenrock.

After scrimmages last week, both teams will start their regular seasons with each other. Heading into this week, it’s one of the most intriguing games on the schedule.

Both squads finished 9-2 last season; they had four opponents in common in Wheatland, Newcastle, Riverton and Lander. Torrington swept the four common foes pretty emphatically; Glenrock went 3-1 with the only loss a 50-48 shootout against Riverton.

And both teams had their seasons end in frustrating fashion — Torrington out-gained Cody but still lost 20-0 for the 3A title, while Glenrock couldn’t maintain a 28-14 lead against Mountain View and fell 35-28 in the 2A championship.

They both have reasons to think that 2018 is their year.

They get to begin to prove that by facing each other.

+++

Meeteetse hosts Hafford, Saskatchewan, on Saturday.

Yes, Saskatchewan as in Canada.

The game will be more than a game: The Saskatchewanians are making the trip for more than just four quarters of football. The trip includes some education and bonding, and even a trip to Yellowstone.

By the way, the Canadians are excited for this trip. You can even buy a T-shirt. I might buy one myself — if they’ll take American money.

Wyoming teams don’t play Canadian teams that often. This will be the fifth such game, the others coming between Sheridan and Regina Riffel, Saskatchewan, in 1993 and 1994; Laramie and Raymond, Alberta, in 1998, and Cody and Raymond in 2000.

The Americans are 4-0.

+++

Other games drawing my attention this week:

Kelly Walsh-Cheyenne East is the premier matchup of the 4A schedule, the only game pitting two teams who won last week. Two weeks ago, I’d have picked KW, but after last Friday, I’m inclined to go with East. …

Mountain View-Cokeville is always a fun matchup. The Buffalos have the upper hand this year, but that doesn’t mean the Panthers can’t make it difficult on them. …

The Tongue River-Moorcroft game scheduled for Thursday was a tough game to pick. It’ll be interesting to see who comes out on top in that one. …

Other decisions that required more thought than usual included Powell-Worland, Rawlins-Evanston and Burlington-Kaycee. All three of those games have game-of-the-week potential, for their own reasons. …

Here are my picks for this week’s games. Teams I think will win are in bold, but hey, it’s early in the season and I’ve been know to pick games wrong before so thank goodness they actually play these things or we’d all be in trouble and it’d be a lot less fun.

Thursday
Interclass
Hulett at Sheridan JV
Natrona JV at Rock River
Snake River at Natrona sophs
Tongue River at Moorcroft
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne Central at Sheridan
Kelly Walsh at Cheyenne East
Natrona at Gillette
Rock Springs at Laramie
Thunder Basin at Cheyenne South
Class 3A
Lander at Green River
Powell at Worland
Rawlins at Evanston
Riverton at Cody
Class 2A
Lyman at Pinedale
Wheatland at Newcastle
Class 1A 11-man
Upton-Sundance at Lusk
Class 1A six-man
Burlington at Kaycee
Dubois at Midwest
Farson at Guernsey-Sunrise
Hanna at St. Stephens
Interclass
Big Piney at Shoshoni
Burns at Wright
Douglas at Buffalo
Greybull at Rocky Mountain
Mountain View at Cokeville
Thermopolis at Big Horn
Torrington at Glenrock
Wind River at Lovell
Interstate
Blackfoot, Idaho, at Star Valley
Jackson at Bear Lake, Idaho
Lingle at Sioux County, Neb.
Southeast at Mitchell, Neb.
Yuma, Colo., at Pine Bluffs
Saturday
Class 1A six-man
Riverside at NSI
International
Hafford, Saskatchewan, at Meeteetse
Open: Saratoga, Wyoming Indian. Kemmerer will scrimmage the Riverton JV on Thursday.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, as well as results from past weeks, click here. Click on “Week 1” on the top of the page for this week’s schedule.

+++

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

Last week: 13-2 (87 percent). This season: 13-2 (87 percent).

So how about we make this a conversation, and you tell me what YOU think? Leave a comment and let’s talk Week 1 stuff.

–patrick

The two Class 4A programs with more questions hovering over them than any others this offseason? Thunder Basin and Cheyenne Central.

For everyone’s convenience, they’ll play each other in the first game of the year on Friday when the ‘Bolts head south to face the Indians in Cheyenne.

The question marks around Thunder Basin as it enters its second year are sparked by one overarching question.

In their first season, the ‘Bolts stole most of the players from a Gillette Camel team that was supposed to be one of 4A’s top contenders. If anyone should have come out of the gate hot in its first season, it was Thunder Basin.

However, having 90 percent of the available high school football talent in the city of Gillette wasn’t enough to get Thunder Basin past .500 last year. Now, a lot of those key contributors are gone. That brings up questions: What will the ‘Bolts look like in their second year? Will new personnel mean a new approach? And, perhaps most importantly, was Thunder Basin’s .500 finish more attributable to the feeling-out process that comes with a new program, or was it tied to an actual shift in how football functions in the city of Gillette?

In Cheyenne, the Central Indians made one of the biggest offseason splashes by hiring away Mike Apodaca from Silver Creek High School in Colorado. Apodaca had been a successful coach at Silver Creek for more than a decade, but the opportunity to coach his alma mater was too great an opportunity to ignore.

So now Apodaca’s the coach of the Indians — and arguably the red and black will change more than any other 4A team this offseason. The only other new coach in the big-school ranks, Sheridan’s Jeff Mowry, has already said he won’t change much from the previous regime, and the coaching staff remained pretty much in tact for the Broncs. For the Indians, Apodaca’s hiring represents a change not only in personnel but in approach, where most of what was in place has been removed for something that will attempt to make Central a true contender for the first time in almost a decade.

Last year when these two teams met, questions dominated: Right up until the day of the game, questions existed even about the location of the game. Central played Thunder Basin surprisingly tough before falling 34-29.

This year, at least we know where the game will be played.

But there’s arguably more questions around this year’s contest than last year’s.

And that makes it perhaps the biggest 4A game of the week.

+++

While I’m keeping close watch on ‘Bolts-Indians, a few other games are worth noting in Wyoming high school football’s soft launch of 2018:

Three-time defending Class 1A six-man champ Kaycee will have a tough one on its hands when it plays MonDak (Westby-Grenora), Montana’s defending six-man champion, in a halfway-meet game in Broadus, Montana. MonDak was also Montana’s six-man runner-up in 2016 and 2014, so pitting the two dominant regional squads of the mid-teens against each other will be a cool game to watch. It would have been even better if it had been scheduled for last year, though, when both programs were peaking — but hindsight is 20-20. Nevertheless…

Speaking of three-time champs on the road, Sheridan’s first game in the post-Don Julian era will be in Rock Springs as the Broncs take on the Tigers. Rock Springs has floated under the radar a bit this offseason, and with quarterback Graedyn Buell transferred to Cheyenne East, the Tigers could head back to their run-first roots. It will be interesting to see how a rebuilding Sheridan defense handles that kind of challenge. …

Don’t overlook any of the interstate games on Saturday. While Kaycee-MonDak will get the early headlines, the Star Valley-Hillcrest, Idaho, game should be a doozy, and Snake River taking on North Park, Colorado, in a late addition to the six-man schedule should be good, as well. The Friday interstate games aren’t nearly as intriguing, although it will be interesting to see of Jackson can get off the schneid and knock off Teton, Idaho, in Driggs to open the season. …

On to some picks. Just in case you forgot how we do things here, or in case this is your first time here, projected winners are in bold.

Games
Friday
Class 4A
Cheyenne East at Gillette
Laramie at Kelly Walsh
Natrona at Cheyenne South
Sheridan at Rock Springs
Thunder Basin at Cheyenne Central
Class 3A
Riverton at Powell
Interstate
Evanston at Altamont, Utah
Jackson at Teton, Idaho
Lead-Deadwood, S.D., at Upton-Sundance
Newcastle at Custer, S.D.
Saturday
Interclass
Evanston JV at Farson
Lovell at Natrona JV
Rocky Mountain at Powell JV
Interstate
Kaycee vs. Mon-Dak (Westby-Grenora), Montana, at Broadus, Montana
North Park, Colorado, at Snake River
Star Valley vs. Hillcrest, Idaho, at Pocatello, Idaho

Scrimmages and Jamborees
Friday
Big Piney, Douglas, Pinedale at Lander Jamboree
Cody, Moorcroft, Wright at Big Horn Jamboree
Cokeville at Kemmerer
Greybull at Tongue River
Lingle, Midwest at Guernsey-Sunrise Jamboree
Lyman at Rawlins
Mountain View at Green River
Pine Bluffs at Glenrock
Saratoga at Rock River
Saturday
Buffalo at Worland
Burns, Lusk, Thunder Basin JV, Torrington, Wheatland at Southeast Jamboree
Hulett, Riverside at Meeteetse
Shoshoni, Wind River at Thermopolis
Open: Burlington, Dubois, Hanna, St. Stephens, Worland, Wyoming Indian.

For a full schedule including kickoff times, click here.

+++

It’s finally here. Thank goodness. What do you see as the most interesting or intriguing part of the 2018 Wyoming high school football season? Post your thoughts and let’s get full on into the latest chapter of Wyoming high school football.

–patrick