Four questions to answer
Who’s the one team coaches are singling out as this year’s favorite? Lingle, and it’s not even close. The Doggers have earned a lot of respect, especially after winning their first nine games last year before falling to eventual champion Big Piney in the semifinals. They also return four all-state players from last year, including nine-man’s offensive player of the year, and they also get back Kaiden Riggs, an all-stater who they’d lost to transfer to Torrington and was a huge cog in the Trailblazers’ 2A title last year. Yep, the Doggers are loaded.
Anyone else in the chase? Not really, to be honest. There will be tons of teams ready to step in if Lingle stumbles, chief among them Rocky Mountain and Southeast, as well as defending champ Big Piney and always tough Pine Bluffs. That said, if Lingle plays up to the dangerous word that’s being thrown around the Doggers a lot this summer (you know, “potential”), it’ll be tough going for the rest of nine-man to break the Doggers’ hold on the top spot.
Any favorites out of that group? No, because uncertainty. The challenge in predicting 1A nine-man this year is twofold — first, most of last year’s best teams (except Lingle) had sizable losses to graduation, and second, most of last year’s also-rans return enough players to be better than last year. That kind of turnover could make for a lot of parity, and more experienced teams like Wright, Lusk, Greybull, Saratoga and Shoshoni, and last year’s runner-up Wind River, could be part of the title conversation, too. Expect a lot of parity, and unpredictability, because of that.
What’s new? The head coach at Southeast. One of the most significant coaching changes in recent memory happened over the summer when longtime Southeast coach Mark Bullington retired. He did so as the No. 6 coach in state history in victories with 172. Longtime assistant coach Shawn Burkart is more than capable of helping the Cyclones continue without missing a step, but it will feel weird for a while not having Bullington behind it all.
Preseason class MVP
Louden Bremer, Lingle. Bremer was Class 1A nine-man’s offensive MVP last season after leading the Doggers in both rushing and receiving. He had 1,106 rushing yards and 405 receiving yards, combining for 24 total touchdowns on offense. He was also Lingle’s leading tackler with 104 of those bad boys.
Preseason class breakout player
Carsten Freeburg, Pine Bluffs. As a sophomore, Freeburg found his way onto the field for the Hornets. He was most effective on defense, where had 54 tackles and a couple picks. Offensively, though, he didn’t have as many opportunities. That will likely change this year, as the junior developed into a leader during the basketball season over the winter and should be one of the classification’s most athletic and exciting players this fall.
Other players to watch
Caden Clifford, Big Piney. The number 1,286 — the number of yards Clifford had last season — sticks out like crazy among nine-man’s returners. But he is also Big Piney’s top returning tackler, a huge role that he’ll need to fill on a Puncher team that’s coming off both a state championship and the loss of a huge senior class.
Kaiden Riggs, Lingle. After a one-year stopover in Torrington, where he helped the Trailblazers win a Class 2A championship by running for 1,275 yards and 10 TDs, Riggs is back where it all started for his senior season. He was an all-state pick as a sophomore at Lingle, too, and will be a welcome addition back to an already stacked Dogger squad.
Tucker Jackson, Rocky Mountain. If you had three pick-sixes last year, step forward… and here he is. Jackson led Rocky with six interceptions and was also the Grizzlies’ top receiver with 23 catches for 452 yards (that’s 19.7 yards per catch, by the way). A threat to score from anywhere on the field, on both sides of the ball, Jackson probably won’t score as many defensive touchdowns this year, but it’ll be fun to see the journey.
Ayden Desmond, Southeast. An all-state pick a year ago, Desmond nearly got the Cyclones to Laramie from under center. He threw for 1,097 yards and ran for 714 more and was responsible for 30 touchdowns between the two. He was also a handful on defense, finishing with five interceptions and 70 tackles as one of Southeast’s safeties.
Four key games
Rocky Mountain at Big Piney, Sept. 27. How much did graduation losses hurt the Punchers’ repeat chances? Are the Grizzlies really the West’s heir apparent? We find out in the first week of West Conference games, with the Grizzlies making the long trip to Sublette County and the winner emerging as the West’s best title threat.
Lingle at Southeast, Oct. 10. It would be easy to overlook the Doggers’ Goshen County neighbors this year. However, the Cyclones may represent Lingle’s biggest East Conference challenge this season. While Southeast gets to play Lingle in Yoder, Lingle does get a bye week before this Thursday game to help prepare.
Wind River at Big Piney, Oct. 12. It’s hard to look away from a state championship rematch, but this game will far from resemble the one that happened in Laramie last November. Both teams had heavy losses due to graduation. But that doesn’t mean this one won’t be important for playoff position, something the Punchers and Cougars both count on being a part of in a confusing and muddled West Conference chase.
Pine Bluffs at Lingle, Oct. 18. Not for nothing, but… this Week 7 showdown might feature two undefeated teams. You heard it here first (I’m assuming). If Pine Bluffs doesn’t blow a 24-point lead and doesn’t lose in overtime to the Doggers last season, maybe we’re talking about the Hornets as this year’s frontrunners. So, yeah, it’s safe to say the emotions, and stakes, will likely be high for this one.
Predicted order of finish
East Conference: Lingle, Southeast, Pine Bluffs, Lusk, Wright, Saratoga, Guernsey. West Conference: Rocky Mountain, Big Piney, Wind River, Greybull, Shoshoni, Wyoming Indian.
Preseason top five: 1. Lingle; 2. Rocky Mountain; 3. Southeast; 4. Pine Bluffs; 5. Big Piney.
Way-too-early title game score prediction
Lingle 38, Rocky Mountain 26. On paper, Lingle has one of the best 1A nine-man teams since the classification restarted in 2020. Games aren’t won on paper, though. The Doggers still have to go out and prove they can get the job done, and those other contenders are absolutely ready to pounce if Lingle shows it isn’t up to the task.
Y’all understand what I’m saying? If not, I’m open to explaining. Leave a comment, or drop a line on Twitter or Facebook.
–patrick
I agree that on paper, Lingle is probably the favorite, but that’s paper. Football IQ and coaching is going to play a huge role here. They will get out coached this year and lose a game because of it.