5A SIC football preview: The league’s top threats to knock off a defending state champ

Idaho’s new classification rules brought Nampa back to the Treasure Valley’s second-largest high school football league and kept Ridgevue in the conference. But the preseason rankings look awfully familiar, with reigning state champ Bishop Kelly atop the coaches’ poll for the seventh straight year.

That doesn’t mean the race is already over, though. The Knights backed up their preseason status with a league title just three times in the previous six years

The new 5A SIC, previously known as the 4A SIC, remains full of surprises year after year. So who will bubble up this year? We surveyed the league’s coaches and broke down each team’s chances.

1. BISHOP KELLY

Last season: 13-0, 5-0 4A SIC

Playoffs: Beat Hillcrest 29-26 for 4A state title

Coach: Chris Culig, second season

Career record: 70-9

Base offense (coordinator): Pro style (Kyle Kron)

Base defense (coordinator): 3-4 (Juss Jackson)

Key players: Marcus Powers, sr., OLB; Will Sachse, sr., ILB; Ben Avella, jr., QB; Parker Allumbaugh, sr., QB/RB/DB

Outlook: The Knights put together another perfect season last year en route to another state championship and a second straight league crown. Graduation cost them eight all-state players, including the all-class Gatorade player of the year in running back Peter Minnaert. But Bishop Kelly doesn’t rebuild. It reloads.

Eight starters return from the state’s top defense (11.5 points per game). The front seven remains stacked with Sachse (92 tackles) and Powers (five sacks) leading a dominant linebacking corps. Culig said the Knights don’t have as much size as a year ago, but they do field more speed and are deeper into the playbook in his second year at the helm.

Avella leads four returning starters on offense after a perfect season as a sophomore, throwing for 1,697 yards with 24 TDs and no interceptions. Ty Kaschmitter (635 yards, eight TDs) steps into the No. 1 role in the backfield, and Allumbaugh will fill a jack-of-all-trades role similar to Cooper Cammann’s. The depth at the skill positions extends to a deep receiver group, which ought to make the Knights more explosive through the air. But BK can’t worry about big plays until it replaces its entire offensive line.

2. SKYVIEW

Last season: 7-4, 4-1 4A SIC

Playoffs: Lost to Hillcrest 50-14 in quarterfinals

Coach: David Robinson, second season

Career record: 7-4

Base offense (coordinator): Spread (Matt Hayes)

Base defense (coordinator): 4-3 (Adam Jones)

Key players: Mason Krahn, sr., TE/LB; Henry Downey, sr., QB/MLB; Brodie Fleshman, sr., RB/LB; DJ Rosti, sr., WR/S

Outlook: The Hawks bounced back to contention last fall, winning seven games, their most since 2017. Now Skyview returns 14 starters (seven offense, seven defense) as it looks to challenge Bishop Kelly’s dominance in the new 5A SIC.

That group starts with Krahn, a two-way star committed to Idaho. The three-year starter hauled in a state-leading 15 TD catches last fall and remains one of the state’s most feared linebackers. He’ll start the year with a new quarterback as Downey, last year’s top running back, replaces second-team all-state selection Cache Beus. But Robinson said the Hawks’ physical running game ought to remain potent, with three returning offensive linemen clearing the way for senior Brodie Fleshman.

Krahn and Downey also lead a linebacking corps that returns fully intact. Opponents won’t find much running room against them. So Robinson said Skyview will need some inexperienced corners and safeties to step up and prevent teams from airing it out.

3. EMMETT

Last season: 7-4, 3-2 4A SIC

Playoffs: Lost to Bishop Kelly 28-7 in quarterfinals

Coach: Rich Hargitt, seventh season

Career record: 47-52

Base offense (coordinator): Spread RPO (Hargitt)

Base defense (coordinator): 3-4 (Zane Hines)

Key players: Ryder Scheibe, sr., QB; Sam Buck, sr., OL; Aiden Kitchen, sr., MLB; Casey Coburn, sr., DB

Outlook: The Huskies start the season with a chicken-or-the-egg conundrum. Emmett lost two 1,000-yard rushers to graduation. But it returns four of the five offensive linemen who paved the way for the classification’s No. 2 rushing attack (287 yards per game, 6.2 yards per carry). Emmett hopes the latter group will produce some more gaudy numbers.

Buck, the reigning heavyweight state wrestling champ and a first-team All-Idaho selection, leads the big boys up front at right guard. He, Logan Atwood, Erik Orizaba and Henry Hester will clear the way for junior running back Lincoln Thayne, a potential breakout star. Scheibe also returns at quarterback as the Huskies bring back eight offensive starters.

The defense starts over, with just one returning starter, Coburn. The corner provides a leader and big hitter in the secondary. But the Huskies’ defense will need to grow up fast to make the playoffs for a fifth straight year.

4. NAMPA

Last season: 0-9, 0-6 5A SIC River

Playoffs: Did not qualify

Coach: Ty Thomas, first season

Career record: 0-0

Base offense (coordinator): Spread (Danl Richards)

Base defense (coordinator): 3-4 (Zac Randolph)

Key players: Julian Tapia, sr., OL/DL; Kartez Hernandez, jr., WR/DB; Louie Anguiano, sr., OL/LB; Ryker Good, jr., RB/LB

Outlook: The offseason brought two bits of good news for Nampa. First, the state governing body let Nampa move down a classification again with 6A enrollment numbers (1,473 students). Second, Thomas took over the program and reassembled many of the assistant coaches who made the Bulldogs a regular playoff team.

Thomas inherits six starters on both sides of the ball from a sophomore-heavy lineup a year ago. That group includes junior quarterback Dom Almaraz, who took his licks last season but returns another year wiser and stronger. The graduation of running back Josh Peterson (1,213 rush yards, 13 TDs) leaves a massive hole. But Good shows flashes of his big-play potential, and Hernandez poses an explosive threat from multiple positions.

Nampa will rely on many of those same players on defense, too. But look for Tapia (6-1, 315 pounds) to make a difference on the defensive line with his strength, quick hands and leadership.

5. VALLIVUE

Last season: 3-6, 1-4 4A SIC

Playoffs: Did not qualify

Coach: Shea McClellin, first season

Career record: 6-12

Base offense (coordinator): Air raid (Sawyer Murphy)

Base defense (coordinator): 5-2 (Chris Ackerman)

Key players: Ryker Oswald, sr., RB/WR/DB; Cache Hance, sr., ATH/LB; Lamar Davis, sr., WR/DB; Kolby Linder, jr., LB

Outlook: The Falcons start the season with their third head coach in the past three seasons. But they made a splashy hire in McClellin, a former Boise State star, first-round draft pick and Super Bowl champ. McClellin led his alma mater, Marsing, to the playoffs last fall for the first time in 11 years, snapping a 42-game conference losing streak along the way

He starts with considerably more momentum at Vallivue. The Falcons return 14 starters (eight offense, six defense). But McClellin brings a new identity, moving away from Vallivue’s traditional ground-and-pound strategy to an air raid offense.

Senior quarterback Issac Moore returns as a three-year starter and the point man of the new system. He brings several weapons back, including Oswald and Austin Belnap, a former all-state safety. Vallivue also added Hance, a jack-of-all-trades and the reigning 2A WIC Offensive Player of the Year, from Marsing.

6. RIDGEVUE

Last season: 2-6, 1-4 4A SIC

Playoffs: Did not qualify

Coach: Sean Impomeni, third season

Career record: 25-56

Base offense (coordinator): Spread Wing-T (Impomeni)

Base defense (coordinator): 4-3 (Cody Heller)

Key players: Cash McKie, sr., RB/DB; Phil D’Angelo, sr., DE; Caden Warren, jr., DB; Enrique Cabanilla, sr., WR/DB

Outlook: The Warhawks dodged a bullet when the IHSAA allowed them to play down a level with 6A enrollment numbers (1,571 students). Ridgeuve has yet to make the playoffs or post a winning record in its previous eight seasons. But Impomeni said the team starts the fall miles ahead in the weight room and in the classroom.

Thirteen starters (eight offense, five defense) return as the Warhawks look to surprise the rest of the SIC. McKie (783 rushing yards, eight TDs) remains the name bolded on every opponent’s game plan as a three-year starter at running back. He and Cash Spackman provide the Warhawks with a one-two punch. But Impomeni said he’s looking for the right combination and chemistry on the offensive line as camp starts.

The defense remains a work in progress after giving up 38 points a game for a second straight year. A young group suffered through growing pains last season but returns battle-hardened looking to flip the Warhawks’ reputation.

7. COLUMBIA

Last season: 4-5, 1-4 4A SIC

Playoffs: Did not qualify

Coach: Charlie Dotson, third season

Career record: 7-11

Base offense (coordinator): Spread (Hayden Paul)

Base defense (coordinator): 3-3 stack (Zech Taylor)

Key players: Brenton Thueson, so., OL/MLB; Brycen Alford, sr., TE/OLB; Matt Koeppen, sr., FB/DE; Gabe Tanner, sr., RB/DE

Outlook: Graduation hit the Wildcats hard, leaving just six returning starters (two offense, four defense). Those losses include quarterback Jared Payne (2,239 total yards) and running back Ryan Foster (1,052 rushing yards). But Columbia still brings back 33 lettermen on a young roster, one Dotson said that features more speed and awareness around the field.

Sophomore Gavin Healey takes over under center, and Tanner serves as the top option in the backfield. Tanner saw limited action last season (17 carries, 49 yards). But Dotson said his field vision makes him a perfect fit for a big role.

Thueson returns along the offensive line and at linebacker, where he tied for the team lead with 7.8 tackles per game as a freshman. He’s stepped into a leadership role and will rarely leave the field often as the heart and soul of the Wildcats on both sides of the ball.

CALDWELL

Last season: 1-8

Playoffs: Ineligible

Coach: Kip Crofts, second season

Career record: 43-83

Base offense (coordinator): Spread (Jeff Salmans)

Base defense (coordinator): 3-4 (Chris Boncz)

Key players: Ashyten Montiel, sr., OL/DL; Noe Banos, sr., WR/DB; Raul Torres, sr., RB/DB; Ray Lopez, jr., WB/DB

Outlook: The long-struggling program enters its third season as an independent. The designation costs Caldwell its playoff eligibility but allows it to make its own schedule and avoid the league’s powerhouses. The move paid off last season as the Cougars snapped a 39-game losing streak, and Crofts points to several positive signs in the program.

The Cougars return nine starters on both sides of the ball, and he said turnout for summer workouts swelled, allowing the Cougars to potentially platoon offensive and defensive starters.

Caldwell will need to replace a four-year starting quarterback. Junior Zion Perrault steps into the role and brings back plenty of weapons around him. But the Cougars are still looking for options to prove themselves on the offensive and defensive lines.