Players to Watch:
Jayden Wright, Highland
Chase Crane, Madison
Berett Wilson, Madison
Koby Jones, Rigby
Porter Brizzee, Thunder Ridge
Nick Potter, Thunder Ridge
Written by: Keller Sherman
Last year, it was about Madison in the High Country Conference as the Bobcats compiled an undefeated conference record and 20-6 overall record capped off by winning consolation at the state tournament. Following Idaho Falls’s departure back to the 4A High Country Conference, the league will once again feature four teams with the other members of the conference looking to continue catching ground on Madison.
Berrett Wilson and Chase Crane return for the Bobcats. However, they will be without three key seniors in second team all-state and first team all-conference honoree Logan Crane, second team all-conference Riley Sutton, and Rhett Hathaway. Nash Humphreys and Luke Watson are incoming players that 2nd year head coach Shane Humphreys hopes will make an immediate impact. The offense has a lot of high IQ. Passing the ball and utilizing Wilson’s ability to score from anywhere will be a major strength for the Madison offense. The defense sees Crane as a core piece with Humphreys praising him for being a great defender and big motor.
Rigby looks to be the biggest challenger to Madison in the conference this season. A third place finish at state gives Trojan fans plenty of reason to believe that they could be a legitimate threat to win the conference title this season. Kobe Jones will be a key player for Rigby as the Trojans lost three key pieces of all-conference talent in Sam Kunz, Karson Barber, and Taylor Freeman. How will Rigby fare without three of their best players from last season?
From the perspective of returning production, Thunder Ridge might have the edge over the other teams in the conference. Can the Titans utilize it to make some noise this season? 2nd team all-conference honoree Nick Potter highlights this group that also includes Porter Brizzee, Conner Hall, Zach Freed, Jayden Vest, and Austin Marlowe. Incoming players Bowen Rose, Mason Hackbarth, and Hudson Harker. There will be a major hole to fill on the roster with Tao Johnson gone. Lee Toldson has been the sole head coach of a program that has only existed since 2018 and talks about Johnson as an all-around player and one of the team’s best defenders and scorers.
Thunder Ridge’s strengths on offense include their quickness and ability to shoot the ball. Toldson believes the talent is there for his team to execute an up tempo offensive scheme that constantly puts pressure on opposing defenses. He hopes to see the offense improve on getting shots to go, taking care of the ball, and consistently making throws from the charity stripe. The defense will be agile and aggressive, but needs to improve on rebounding. Many games are decided by the team that leads in rebounds and Toldson believes that losing that statistic cost them dearly in the big games. He has a lot to be excited about this season for the Titans as he states “this year, the team has excellent chemistry, a high IQ of the game, and has played together for a long time.” As long as Thunder Ridge can stay healthy, watch out for the Titans to make some noise.
Highland finds themselves in a similar situation to Thunder Ridge. Both teams are looking to prove they can be a threat to Rigby and Madison in the conference race. The Rams finished with a 9-16 record overall and 3-5 in conference. Thunder Ridge’s coach believes the Rams could be a surprise team as he states “they have an experienced group that is very skilled and has the potential and talent to compete with any team in the state.”
Will Highland be the big surprise of the season, or will Madison repeat as conference champions? Rigby is also right there in the thick of things while Thunder Ridge will hope to play a part as well. An exciting conference race is on the horizon in the High Country Conference.