Written by: Will Hoenike
The 2023 Glenns Ferry Pilots look to be a junior-dominated squad that should provide some explosive plays on offense this fall as a member of the 1A Division 1 Snake River Conference.
The team graduated just two members of last fall’s squad but, unfortunately for new head coach Erick Stewart, Chase Stewart and Emmett Martin just happened to be 2/3 of the Pilots’ offensive and defensive lines last season. Filling those openings will be critical to the team’s outlook this fall.
Junior quarterback Landon Stuart returns after throwing ten touchdown passes last fall and pass-catchers who hauled in 68 of his 72 passes also return. That group is led by senior Landon Mills (21 catches in 2022), junior Allen DeLeon (21 catches), and junior Josiah Valencia (11 catches). The latter two combined to catch all ten of Stuart’s touchdown passes so there is optimism that the Pilots can improve upon the 15 points per game the team averaged last season.
The team also returns its leading tackler from a year ago, senior linebacker Blake Chafin. As a junior, he averaged nearly 11 tackles per game. Valencia returns to fill another linebacker spot after collecting ten tackles for loss last fall.
Coming off of a one-win season from a year ago, Glenns Ferry has the tools to be more competitive, week-in and week-out, than last fall. However, in the challenging Snake River Conference, the team may still be a year away from breaking through. Over its final five games, the Pilots face five teams that reached the 1A Division 1 playoffs last season – Murtaugh, Raft River, Carey, Lighthouse Christian, and Oakley.