SE 1B story lines

The traditionally strong league – winners of eight state championships in 13 years – has been down a bit of late. Last season the SE 1B was swept out before state by Northeast 1B teams in qualifying. St. John-Endicott, under athletic director and second-year coach Bob Clements, a 20-year assistant, went undefeated. Sunnyside Christian was winless, but the rest of the league was bunched in between, a game separating them. Expect parity again.

Outlook: Tight race

Coaches expect the league to be as tight this year as last. “I think for the most part teams were pretty young,” Garfield-Palouse coach Scott Thompson said. “Every team was pretty even and I look for that again.” Clements graduated or lost six starters from last year, although he expects to remain competitive. He said Pomeroy has two good running backs. Colton was a playoff team last year and coach Clark Vining said they should be in the hunt again. “We want to get past the quarterfinals,” he said.

Players to watch

Colton’s strong-armed quarterback, Josh Straughan, threw and ran for 4,129 yards and 42 touchdowns last year. For his career he’s completed 63 percent of his passes for 6,861 yards and 73 touchdowns. QB Justin Aune at LaCrosse-Washtucna is another dandy. Among the top running backs are St. John-Endicott’s Cole McCanna, Garfield-Palouse’s Riley Hodges and Pomeroy’s Tory Knebel.