Team Preview:
Written By: Sven Alskog

The offseason prior to the 2018 campaign has followed a similar course for the Skyview Hawks as a year ago.

To start, excitement is again high with the return of First Team All-State quarterback Wyatt Storer and First Team All-State linebacker and playmaker out of the backfield Tyler Crowe.

Validating some of that excitement, the Hawks also won the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl 7-on-7 passing tournament for the second year in a row by knocking off Nampa in the championship.

Now the task turns to moving up to the 5A classification and remaining a threat after a 10-1 mark a season ago. Based on what comes back, especially on offense, there should not be much concern over Skyview remaining competitive and challenging for a playoff spot and maybe more.

“Our quarterback Wyatt Storer is returning for his third year starting and our running backs Tyler Crowe and Daniel Lopez have three years of varsity between them. Plus, we return four starting offensive linemen. We throw the ball well in our balanced attack. With Wyatt, we throw really well,” said head coach David Young.

Dominant receiver DeMonte Horton is a go-to receiving threat that Storer will miss, however incoming pass-catcher Frank Morin and returner Wade Carpenter should help give the signal-caller some options to throw to. Carpenter was a 4A Second Team All-SIC selection a year ago.

When Skyview is on defense the Hawks will continue to be an aggressive unit that swarms to the football.

“We return quite a few guys that have rotated through our defensive line from last year. Tyler Crowe returns for his third year running our defense from his linebacker spot. We are an aggressive, blitzing defense and we do not plan to change this year,” added Young.

Payton Smith, Logan Davis, Will McGahey and Nathan Haynes will also see time in the defensive line rotation, with Noah Beltz moving into a linebacker spot behind them.

A focus area for the coaching staff is the defensive secondary.

“Our defensive backs will need to gain experience in a hurry,” said Young.

Seniors Max Lott and Frank Morin will have a big say in the success of the defense from their safety positions, while Lopez mans one of the corner spots.

Both sides of the ball show good promise.

“I have already talked about our returning skill players on offense and our returning linemen quite a bit. I would start there with those two units to lead our season. I am excited to see how our defense comes together [which] is where we lost the most players,” said Young.

With the season set to get underway shortly, the last thing to do is show that the hard work in the offseason was worth it and surprise some 5A SIC opponents along the way.

“I am most excited to see how we transition to 5A. Will we step up and compete? I believe that we will. We have been prepping for this as coaches for four years. We have put our players through one of the toughest summers of Skyview football to get them ready,” added Young.

Skyview kicks off the 2018 season with a home game against a quality Borah football team in week one.