Monthly Archives: August 2016

Prior to last season, Star Valley last won a state football championship in 1996. Yet, after 19 years without a title, the Braves will be the odds-on favorite to win a second consecutive Class 3A title — even after losing their coach and five all-state players.

However, the Braves’ quest for a repeat championship has plenty of roadblocks, including several in their own conference. After all, the West Conference has the 2015 champs (Star Valley), the 2014 champs (Cody), the 2015 runner-up (Green River) and, lest we forget, the team that won the conference championship a year ago (Jackson).

Meanwhile, a team from the East with a losing record a year ago might be the best team in the classification this year.

Yep, just another year in the crazy mixed-up world of Class 3A football.

Four questions to answer

Can Star Valley defend its title even after losing its head coach? Yes. Although Chris Howell is gone to Utah, his replacement, McKay Young, has been with the program for several years and has already proven himself a capable head coach, going 25-6 at Malad High in Idaho before coming to Afton. The Braves’ transition should be smooth.

Does that mean Star Valley is the favorite to win the 3A title? Again: Yes. The Braves return enough talent — fronted by returning all-state selections Kellen Hansen, Collin McGinley and McCabe Smith — to make another successful run at a 3A championship. But that also means the Braves will be everyone’s target all season long.

Who’s most likely to challenge the Braves for the throne? Douglas. Don’t let the Bearcats’ 3-6 record from 2015 deceive you. This team is loaded for 2016. The Bearcats return all three of their all-state choices and lost little to graduation. Watch out.

Anyone else in the mix? Definitely. Jackson, Torrington, Green River, Riverton and Buffalo have all been mentioned by 3A coaches as having what it takes to compete for a title. Green River in particular, thanks to its run to the title game with a junior-heavy squad in 2015, has the attention of 3A coaches across the state.

Four players to watch

Logan Harris, Torrington. In short, Harris is one of the state’s top linemen. A Casper Star-Tribune Super 25 first team pick as a junior, Harris was second for the Trailblazers in defensive points last year and notched a Class 3A-best 14 tackles for loss. He’s just as valuable on offense.

Blake Waite, Green River. Last year’s 3A West Defensive Player of the Year was the classification leader in defensive points last year. He was everywhere — 64 solo tackles and 69 assisted tackles proves that. As offenses turn their attention to him, his numbers may dip, but his presence will help open up opportunities for teammates.

T.J. Abraham, Powell. Not many players lead their teams in rushing, tackling, punt and kick returns and scoring in the same season. Usually, when they do, they’re seniors. Abraham did that for the Panthers as a junior. He’ll be the focus not only for the Panthers, but for every single one of the Panthers’ opponents this fall, too.

McCabe Smith, Star Valley. Smith, who was also a Casper Star-Tribune Super 25 first-team selection last year, leads the Braves’ charge for a repeat title. A valuable piece of both the offensive and defensive lines, Smith led the Braves with 11 tackles for loss and four sacks a year ago.

Four key games

Star Valley at Douglas, Sept. 16. The most intriguing nonconference game pits the defending champs on the road against a team in Douglas that returns almost every key player from a year ago. The distance it has to travel, and the talent awaiting at the end of that trip, makes this game a double-edged sword for Star Valley.

Torrington at Riverton, Sept. 23. It would be easy to look at both the Trailblazers and the Wolverines and say they’re rebuilding. Far from it. Both have enough talent to compete for the East Conference title — and more — and the conference opener will be telling for both programs.

Jackson at Green River, Sept. 30. Jackson certainly hasn’t forgotten how last season ended. The Broncs will be fired up for this rematch against the Wolves in a game that may be key in deciding home-field advantage in the playoffs.

Green River at Star Valley, Oct. 7. The regular-season game between these two last season came down to the final play. The state championship game rematch wasn’t as thrilling. Even so, both teams will be on edge for this one, especially given their recent history.

Predicted order of finish

East Conference: Douglas, Riverton, Torrington, Buffalo, Rawlins, Lander. West Conference: Star Valley, Green River, Jackson, Powell, Cody, Worland.

Preseason top five: Star Valley, Douglas, Green River, Riverton, Jackson.

Way-too-early title game score prediction

Star Valley 20, Douglas 14. The Braves will start the season as the 3A favorites, but not by much. They’ll need to prove themselves week in and week out. The fact that their coach has experience in the Star Valley system should make the transition easier than a coaching transition normally is — and that gives the Braves the early edge in 3A.

Cheesy 80s pop song that should play over the loudspeakers at War Memorial Stadium after this classification’s title game

Waiting for a Star to Fall by Boy Meets Girl. I think everyone in 3A is waiting for a “Star” to fall…

The last five 3A champions, as well as both of last year’s title-game participants, were West Conference teams. Is this the year an East Conference team shakes things up? Who’s everyone overlooking? How do you see 3A coming together this fall? Leave a comment and let us know!

Next Thursday: Class 4A.

–patrick

Go ahead: Pick any team in 2A.

Chances are good that the team you’ve chosen has won a championship in the past decade.

Wheatland, Big Horn, Lyman, Lovell, Thermopolis, Big Piney, Kemmerer, Glenrock, Mountain View… they’ve all won titles in this classification since 2006. And Burns won one in a different classification in that span.

That’s 10 programs out of 14 that have tasted championship-level success in the classification this decade. It’s easier to count the programs that haven’t won titles the past 10 years than the ones that have.

No wonder it feels like basically every program in the classification has the ability to take home a championship. Within the past few years, most of them have.

Four questions to answer

Defending champion Wheatland has to be the favorite, right? Well… no. Wheatland had a great 2015, but that title season was built with seniors, more than you could count on both hands. Now, the Bulldogs are restructuring, both with personnel and with new coach Tom Waring. They’ll still be in the hunt, but they won’t be the favorites from Day 1 like they were last year.

What team WILL be the favorite on Day 1? No one knows. Really. A strong case can be made for several teams — Greybull, Big Horn, Glenrock, Wheatland, Mountain View, Lovell — but no one team has a better case than any other. Parity may be the rule of the season.

Is this surprising? No way. Not for Class 2A. As noted, nine different programs have won the Class 2A title the past 10 years. Parity atop the classification has defined 2A for a decade, and this year appears no different.

Surprise me: Which team has the best chance to come out of nowhere? Pinedale. The Wranglers have a new coach (Mitch Espeland) and a new approach. As West Conference opponents can tell you, Pinedale was a tough team to beat last fall and was nearly in position to host a playoff game, but some bad bounces left the team out of the playoffs entirely. With nine starters back on both sides of the ball, the Wranglers might just be the surprise team of the classification.

Four players to watch

Garrett Schwindt, Glenrock. Last year’s 2A East Offensive Player of the Year ran for 1,341 yards and 14 touchdowns in 2015. With the Herders’ No. 2 and 3 options in the running game lost to graduation, Schwindt will take on an even bigger role in Glenrock’s option offense. Oh, and he was the Herders’ leading tackler a year ago, too.

Dawson Forcella, Greybull. Forcella was one of the Buffs’ top players on both offense and defense. He ran for 848 yards and 11 scores on one side of the ball and notched six tackles for loss, four pass breakups and an interception on the other. His versatility will be key for Greybull’s playoff push.

Nolan McCafferty, Big Horn. McCafferty is the only returning 2A player who was on the Casper Star-Tribune’s Super 25 first team last year. And it was mostly for his work on defense, where he was the Rams’ leading tackler. That’s likely to continue — after all, he is 2A’s leading returning tackler — but look for McCafferty to also take on more responsibilities on the offensive side of the ball this year, as well.

Jaret Collins, Lovell. Collins was the 2A West Lineman of the Year last season and is back for his senior year. He led the Bulldogs in tackles for loss (6) and sacks (3) last season, but on a Lovell team that lost four of its top six tacklers to graduation, he will be called on to do even more to get the Bulldogs back to the top of the West.

Four key games

Mountain View at Lyman, Sept. 9. The Bridger Valley Bowl is now in Week 2. So, in addition to being the rivalry game, this game takes on the added dimension of being both programs’ first conference game. A victory or a loss here might dictate the course of an entire season.

Lovell at Greybull, Sept. 16. Last year, this game was a squeaker; Lovell’s 18-15 victory gave it the West Conference championship. The stakes for this year’s game could be just as high.

Glenrock at Wheatland, Sept. 23. Games won’t get much bigger than this. Rematch of last year’s title game… regional rivals… contenders for the conference crown again… Yeah, this game has just about everything going for it.

Big Horn at Wheatland, Oct. 21. People tend to forget how efficiently and completely the Rams beat the Bulldogs last year. That’s because the Bulldogs overcame the loss to win the state title, while the Rams cratered in the quarterfinals. Even so, this Week 8 matchup should again have huge postseason implications.

Predicted order of finish

East Conference: Glenrock, Big Horn, Wheatland, Newcastle, Thermopolis, Burns, Moorcroft. West Conference: Greybull, Mountain View, Lovell, Pinedale, Lyman, Big Piney, Kemmerer.

Preseason top five: Glenrock, Greybull, Big Horn, Wheatland, Mountain View.

Way-too-early title game score prediction

Glenrock 20, Greybull 18. The thing about the 2A playoffs this year? Every game could be decided by a single possession. Don’t count on anyone running away with the championship this year.

Cheesy 80s pop song that should play over the loudspeakers at War Memorial Stadium after this classification’s title game

Who Can it Be Now? by Men At Work. For obvious reasons. If you haven’t detected a trend for 2A yet, double-check those reading comprehension skills.

We can always count on 2A to be competitive at the top. So what do you think? Is this another year of dynasty-destroying parity? If so, who’s going to knock Wheatland from the catbird’s seat? Post a comment and let’s try to figure out this riddle together.

Next Thursday: Class 3A.

–patrick