With the 2013 season now almost two months finished, it’s time to start looking ahead to 2014. (Right?) Of course, any season predictions are premature — even up until the season starts. Most of the fun comes in the play on the field, not the chatter off it. Still, it’s fun to look ahead and think about what MIGHT happen on the field next season…
Class 4A
The big four — Cheyenne East, Natrona, Gillette and Sheridan — have comprised the semifinal playoffs each of the past four years. Although nothing is guaranteed, especially if Kelly Walsh and Cheyenne Central remain competitive, I think one of the big four will win it all again in 2014. For now, I like East to repeat, but the top-heavy nature of 4A makes picking the winner of the state title difficult the week of the game, much less 10 months away….
Early top 5: 1. Cheyenne East; 2. Natrona; 3. Gillette; 4. Sheridan; 5. Kelly Walsh.
Preseason class MVP: Tevis Bartlett, Cheyenne East.
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Class 3A
Powell, on a 27-game winning streak and returning all-staters Carter Baxter and Riley Stringer, is the obvious choice. But don’t be fooled; 3A is more nuanced than that. Douglas will again present a real threat to the Panthers’ title run — and to the winning streak, as the teams meet in Week 1. And don’t forget about Cody. This could be the best Broncs team in years, and they’ll push Powell for conference and state supremacy.
Early top 5: 1. Powell; 2. Cody; 3. Douglas; 4. Star Valley; 5. Riverton.
Preseason class MVP: Riley Stringer, Powell.
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Class 2A
Looking at who’s coming back and who’s not, I have a difficult time seeing anything but a rematch in next year’s 2A title game. Big Horn returns four all-state choices from this year and Mountain View has three; the rest of Class 2A has four returning all-staters combined. I think 2A will have less parity, but the top teams will be better. Lovell is loaded again, though, and also keep an eye out for Thermopolis — the Bobcats were a pleasant surprise last year and have a good young core of players.
Early top 5: 1. Mountain View; 2. Big Horn; 3. Lovell; 4. Thermopolis; 5. Lyman.
Preseason class MVP: Cade Covington, Mountain View.
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Class 1A 11-man
Kind of like 4A, 1A 11-man has a core of teams that just keep making semifinal appearances. Cokeville, Lusk and Southeast have been in the semifinals together each of the past three years. Make it four, as all three squads are ready for another run at a championship. As for who will win it all? Well, in the preseason, they’ll probably be in that order. The surprise team could be Tongue River, which is getting better and has some talent returning from a team used to the rigors of a 2A schedule.
Early top 5: 1. Cokeville; 2. Lusk; 3. Southeast; 4. Lingle; 5. Rocky Mountain.
Preseason class MVP: Jace Petersen, Cokeville.
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Class 1A six-man
In short, six-man is wide open in 2014. No clear favorite exists in six-man, but a few teams stick out because of the talent they have coming back — Guernsey, Kaycee, Dubois and Meeteetse all have enough depth, speed and experience to make title runs, and Snake River, which returns all three of its all-conference selections, could be a darkhorse.
Early top 5: 1. Guernsey; 2. Meeteetse; 3. Dubois; 4. Kaycee; 5. Snake River.
Preseason class MVP: Brady Esquibel, Guernsey.
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I know these thoughts are incomplete. So help me fill out what the 2014 season might look like. Chip in your comments below and let’s start talking about next season. It’s never too soon to talk football!
–patrick
What did Upton/Sundance lose this year? Were they pretty top heavy with older kids?
Hi Dogger1,
US does get some skill guys back — most notably tailback Jett Materi. But the Patriots lost some key guys up front and they’ve got a little work to do to build some depth on the line. That said, I think I’d rank them sixth in the preseason… They should be right in the thick of things in the East and if the line comes together, they should be in pretty good shape.
–patrick
In Class 1A, Lingle at No. 4 might be a reach. With them losing the Hageman duo is a big blow on both sides of the ball. Wyatt and Lane seemed to be about 90-95% of the offense. They will be hard to replace.
Andrew, true. Lingle got better and better last year and really surprised me. Them and U-S and Rocky and Burlington and probably Riverside and maybe even Tongue River are all going to be in the mix for that fourth spot in the semis… Rocky-Tongue River in Week 1 could be a really telling game.
–patrick
So don’t get me wrong Covington is good but Christian Mayer from bighorn scored 5 touchdowns in the state championship and might just be the best wide reciever in the state of wyoming so I probably would have put him as a pre-season MVP.
Lingle did lose some pretty good kids but I think they will surprise a little. Probably not enough to win the conference but I do think they will be decent. Pine Bluffs will still be down and young. Southeast has some shoes to fill also and will depend on how their younger kids develop between now and when the season starts. I think Lusk will be tough again. They lose some good kids but still have a nice core of kids coming back for next year. Should be fun to watch things shake out next fall.
My top teams for each class are a little different:
4a – NC, East, Gillette, Sheridan, Kelly Walsh
3a – Cody, Douglas, Powell, Riverton, Lander
2a – Big Horn, Mountain View, Lovell, Lyman, Thermopolis
1a – Cokeville, Southeast, Lusk, Rocky Mountain, (tie at #5) Tongue River / Lingle
6-man – Meeteetse, Guernsey, Dubois, Kaycee, ???
Have I mentioned yet how excited I am for Powell-Douglas in Week 1?
–patrick
Watch out for the Derick VandeBossche from Lusk. He had 40+ defensive points in the state championship game. He is a defensive monster and his a threat on the offensive side as well.