The wyoming-football.com preview of the 2024 season begins today with a look at Class 1A six-man. Previews for each classification will run on Thursdays for the next few weeks, leading up to the start of the season.
Four questions to answer
Will it be Burlington’s title to lose? Yes, if you’re only looking at the returning all-state players each team has. The Huskies return four all-state players. Snake River returns two; Riverside, a six-man newcomer, has one. Everyone else, combined, has none. Logic dictates that Burlington’s talent surpasses the rest of the classification. The defending champs, though, won’t be handed a title by acclaim. Several contenders are lurking.
Like who? Like almost, everyone, but most specifically Snake River. For now, the tiers in six-man are clear — Burlington and Snake River, then everyone else. That said, several teams have strong senior groups, including Encampment, Casper Christian, Kaycee and Midwest. Several other teams, including Hanna, Hulett, Farson and Meeteetse, are talented but young, and any one of them could be a surprise with the right mix of timing and growth.
You mentioned Riverside? Yeah, watch out for the Rebels. Moving from a playoff berth in Class 1A nine-man to six-man, playoff-eligible, with a strong and sizable group of seniors will make Riverside an automatic contender. They’ll need some time to adjust to the six-man game, but they’ll be a much more experienced team by Week 8 than they will be at Week 1, making them the kind of team no one will want to see in the postseason.
Anything new we should be on the lookout for? How about some new coaches? Both Dubois and Ten Sleep will have new leadership this fall, with former assistant coaches Dan O’Brien taking over the Rams and Corey Rice leading the way for the Pioneers. Both teams will have thin — or nonexistent — senior classes this year, so success may come slowly. For now. (Side note: This will likely be Ten Sleep’s last year on its current field, as a new school and field are under construction. A neat video, with the groundwork for the new field shown at the end, is here.)
Preseason class MVP
Joe Bassett, Burlington. The Huskies’ leading tackler last season plays with physicality and anticipation — a good combination on defense. Watch for his role on offense to also increase; he had more than 1,000 all-purpose yards in 2023, but this year, his playmaking ability will be even more in demand for the defending champs.
Preseason class breakout player
Jaciel Giron, Snake River. The last program that needed more depth was Snake River… but here comes Giron. The senior is back with the Rattlers after missing last year, but in his freshman year — fourth on an undefeated Rattler team with 48 tackles — he gave us a peek of what he could do. As a senior, he could be the piece the Rattlers need to make another run at a trip to Laramie.
Other players to watch
Bridger Cozzens, Snake River. It’s hard to do more than Cozzens did last year. He ran for 1,513 yards (11.5 yards per carry) and led the Rattler defense with 125 tackles and five interceptions. He’ll be the target of opposing game plans all season, but he is one of the handful of players in six-man who can handle it and still produce.
Curtis Strohschein, Riverside. An all-stater at Class 1A nine-man last season, Strohschein was a defensive terror last season. His offensive production will be interesting to watch in six-man, though, as he moves from a lineman position to a sport where anyone could end up scoring a touchdown.
Weston Gotfredson, Burlington. On a deep and talented Husky team, it’s hard to stand out, but Gotfredson did his part in Burlington’s title run last year. He was everywhere on defense, notching both tackles and turnovers, and was also Burlington’s top yardage receiver and deep threat in the passing game with 500 yards even.
Gage Palmer, Midwest. The Oilers have been pointing toward 2024 for quite a while, and with a thin but athletic and talented senior class, this just might be the year they break into the playoff hunt. Palmer, Midwest’s only returning all-conference player, is a big part of why. Last year, he led Midwest in tackles on defense; on offense, he ran, passed and caught the ball with equal effectiveness.
Four key games
Burlington at Snake River, Sept 7. Neither the Huskies nor the Rattlers expected a state title rematch to come so soon in the season, but here we are. It’s a good litmus test for both teams, and the winner is the automatic favorite, at least early in the season, to win it all in November.
Encampment at Casper Christian, Sept. 28. Both the Tigers and Mountaineers have high hopes this season — Encampment thanks to a deep playoff run last year and a solid set of seniors, Casper Christian thanks to more experience at six-man and a roster full of returners. The winner here will have a legit claim to a home playoff game, if not more, by the time the season wraps up.
Riverside at Burlington, Oct. 18. The Rebels are the big wild card in six-man this year; they return several players and should be one of the classification’s deeper team. But if they can’t beat their regional rivals, then they’ll have to take the long way if they have any hopes of reaching Laramie.
Snake River at Encampment, Oct. 26. This key South Conference game got held off until Week 8. In a year with a lot of turnover, this game between the Carbon County rivals is still a critical piece of the state title puzzle. And, thanks to its kickoff time, it may literally be the last regular season game to finish in 2024.
Predicted order of finish
North Conference: Burlington, Riverside, Kaycee, Meeteetse, Midwest, Hulett, Ten Sleep. South Conference: Snake River, Encampment, Casper Christian, Dubois, Farson, Hanna.
Preseason top five: 1. Burlington; 2. Snake River; 3. Riverside; 4. Encampment; 5. Casper Christian.
Way-too-early title game score prediction
Burlington 52, Snake River 44. Colliding dynasties is interesting. And what’s weird about these two is they both have the potential to be even better teams this year than they were last year. Obviously, nothing is guaranteed, but a third straight Husky-Rattler showdown is looking entirely possible for the six-man title game.
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–patrick