Written by: Will Hoenike
The Castleford Wolves are coming off of a nine-win season that saw the team reach the 1A Division 2 state semifinals before falling to eventual state champion Kendrick. Duplicating that success will be a challenge for head coach Brian Lowry and his players but there is plenty of talent remaining for the Wolves to make another run.
Gone is all-state standout Eric Taylor, powerful lineman Evan Fontes, and versatile Declan Nunes, among others, and filling those shoes will not be simple.
However, Lowry and his staff welcomes back versatile and explosive senior Ethan Roland. As a junior, Roland moved around the field and accumulated nearly 1,500 yards of offense and 23 touchdowns for Castleford. He’ll be joined in the backfield by senior Gabe Mahannah, who a second team All-Sawtooth Conference performer as a junior. They’ll be integral offensive pieces behind two-way standout lineman Gus Wiggins. The senior earned All-Sawtooth honors for his play along the offensive line as well as linebacker on defense.
The Wolves defense posted four shutouts in 2021 and held two more opponents to one score each. Senior Jose “Pancho” Alvarado returns as a starter along the defensive line with Wiggins and Roland at linebacker. Castleford also brings back a pair of all-conference honorees in the secondary in senior Santi Alvarado and junior Jaime Ramos.
Castleford finished second in the Sawtooth Conference behind perennial powerhouse Carey last fall. However, Carey has moved up to 1A Division 1 this season, leaving Castleford as one of the teams jockeying for the conference title in 2022. Camas County and Dietrich are usually mentioned in the same conversation with Castleford and the Wolves face those two teams in back-to-back games – both on the road. Castleford travels to Fairfield to take on the Mushers on September 30 before hitting the road again on October 7 to face Dietrich. The team then wraps up the regular season with consecutive home games against the Hansen Huskies and Shoshone Indians before the 1A Division 2 state playoffs.