PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Northwest Conference loaded with skill-position players

“The strength of this conference has to be the skill players,” Sehome coach Kevin Johnson said. “Especially at the 2A level, but even the 3As and the 1As. Between Burlington-Edison having a couple of exceptional running backs returning, Lynden reloading, Bellingham returning a couple of exceptional backs, really you can go right on down the line.”

At the head of that line is likely Ferndale quarterback Casey Locker. The conference’s returning most valuable player totaled more than 2,000 yards of offense last season, both rushing and passing, and scored 26 touchdowns. Those are numbers he could surpass in 2008. He’s more comfortable with the Golden Eagles’ offense and that will give the team even more options with their playbook.

“I actually know the plays for once,” Locker said. “I know what I’m doing. The last couple of years at camp I was a little out of it, but now it’s a lot easier. We have all of our running backs coming back, and we all have a good idea of what we’re supposed to be doing.”

Locker will be joined in the backfield by Max Hannah, Spencer Hannah, Jordan Crim and Jordan Finkbonner. Those five combined for more than 2,500 yards on the ground last season. Ferndale also has the luxury of returning most of its offensive linemen.

“Obviously when you have this many returners and you had a good team last year, people are expecting you to do big things,” Ferndale coach Jamie Plenkovich said. “But we cannot get caught up in thinking that we’re better than we are. We have a lot of work to do.”

Of course, there are more teams in the NWC than just Ferndale. Seven teams from the conference reached the postseason last year, including Burlington-Edison which finished second in the state in Class 2A. But if that’s going to happen again it will be the skill players who carry the load.

“It’s hard to predict things this season because I think everybody has those skill guys coming back,” Blaine coach Jay Dodd said. “But you just don’t know how good the other pieces are. Everybody is just going to try and fill in around their skill guys and see what happens.”

Bellingham is a team that falls into that category. The Red Raiders return 1,000-yard rusher Jeremy Rick, but will play him at quarterback. He’ll be joined by Michael Gonzalez and Reid Chivers in the backfield.

Lynden, which reached the Class 2A state quarterfinals last season, is also heavy on skill players and light on returning linemen. The Lions graduated four of their five starting offensive lineman, but are strong at running back and on the defensive side of the ball. Ditto that for Lynden Christian and Blaine, which lost nearly complete offensive lines.

“We’re a bit of the polar opposite of last year’s team,” Lynden Christian coach Dan Kaemingk said. “Last year we returned an offensive line and were looking at skill guys to fit into spots. This year it’s a little bit the other way. We have those skill guys, and we’re trying to put together a line.”

Defensively, the conference is seeing a similar trend. A host of standout defensive backs and linebackers are returning, headlined by Lynden’s Taylor Creighton and David Gaylord, but the NWC seems thin on returning defensive linemen.

“When you look at the league I think you have to say that a lot of skill guys are coming back,” Squalicum coach Reed Richardson said. “I think if there’s one position that is just outstanding it’s probably defensive back. The Northwest Conference is loaded with DBs.”

Not every team in the conference is faced with a glut of skill players, however. Teams like Sehome and Nooksack Valley bring back most of their offensive and defensive lines. That should help both of those teams as they attempt to turnaround their fortunes. Others, like Meridian and Squalicum, have a more balanced mix of linemen and skill players, but still have a lot of experienced players to replace.

“Seemingly to me there are some real dangerous skill guys in our league,” Johnson said. “Offensive line wise I think that’s where a lot of the teams, even the real top-end teams, have question marks. The guys who have been there for a while are gone. Now it’s time to see who is going to step up.”

Reach Joe Sunnen at joe.sunnen@bellinghamherald.com or 756-2862