Prescott's road to defending the 3A state crown it won in 2016 faces a lot of roadblocks.
Glen Rose appears to be the Curley Wolves' biggest challenger in 5-3A.
Harmony Grove Haskell, Centerpoint, Gurdon and Jessieville are playoff candidates, and Horatio coach Robert Collum is looking for his Lions to surprise some folks.
PRESCOTT
Coach Tommy Poole is not ruling out another run for the state championship, but even he can't see his team improving on last year's 15-0 run.
Seventeen seniors graduated, but seven offensive starters and five defensive returnees indicate the Curley Wolves must be dealt with again.
Receivers Ka'Darius Pearson and Cameron Cox could be among the best in 3A if quarterbacks Cade Haynie and Ryan Johnson perform as expected.
The Wolves' defense ranked among the best in 3A last year allowing only 14.2 points per game.
GLEN ROSE
The Beavers lost a three-point heart-breaker to Prescott or they would have been 10-0 going into the playoffs.
Glen Rose's unbeaten junior high team could end up with several players making contributions to the varsity in 2017.
A lack of team speed and experience could keep the Beavers from overcoming Prescott again.
HARMONY GROVE HASKELL
Twelve starters return from a team that went 7-5 and two rounds deep into the playoffs.
The Cardinals only lost 34-31 to Glen Rose, and senior quarterback Hunter Hilson returns this fall after passing for more than 2,200 yards and 25 touchdowns.
Haskell is aiming for its fourth straight winning season.
CENTERPOINT
The Knights' defense held Prescott to a season-low 20 points and returns six of those starters.
What Centerpoint lacks in size, they more than make up for with experience and team speed.
Senior Oscar Flores heads a group of impressive linemen and defenders. The Knights did graduate record-setting quarterback Keenan Owens.
GURDON
No doubt the Go-Devils are looking forward to 2018 and going back down into Class 2A.
However, Gurdon should improve on last year's 3-7 record with seven starters back on each side of the ball.
The Go-Devils played great defense most of the season, and the return of 3-year starter senior B.J. Brewer at end probably means more of the same from Gurdon's defense.
JESSIEVILLE
The Lions' season ended on a sour note in 2016 with three straight loses, including the first round of the playoffs to Elkins.
Coach T.J. Burk has five starters back on both sides of the ball, and is optimistic about improving on last year's 6-5 record.
Jessieville has its senior quarterback (Adam Saveall) back to lead the offense and Dale Scott heads a defense that didn't allow more than 26 points in a game.
HORATIO
Second-year coach Robert Collum is not ruling a playoff run out of the picture.
His first team finished 3-7, but the return of five offense starters and eight on defense has Collum excited.
The Lions need to start fast and build momentum going into their 5-3A race. Numbers are up, and Horatio's gone back to the flexbone on offense.
BISMARCK
These Lions have more starters back than anyone in the league, and they'll need them to improve on last year's 0-10 mark.
Bismarck has lost its last 17 games as a matter of fact. The Lions have only won seven games in their last seven seasons.
Coach David Keithley hopes a more experience defense will add up to some success.