Class 1A Football League Predictions & Previews (League A & B)
Class 1A only has 5 leagues this year and we will break them into two articles. We will touch on every team in Class 1A. I will be giving my league predictions on who finishes where inside the league and on part 2 I will give the 16 teams I think make the playoffs. This is all for fun and I do not wish bad on any teams. Good Luck to all teams this season.
Western Slope League (A)
1. Meeker
2. Cedaredge
3. North Fork
4. Moffat County
5. Olathe
6. Grand Valley
7. Roaring Fork
League A is the old Western Slope league plus adding Moffat County from Class 2A and Roaring Fork bringing their Football program back. Meeker is my pick to pick to win League A. Meeker went 8-3 last season winning the Western Slope League. Meeker lost in the quarterfinals and will look to make a deeper run this year. Meeker offensively returns a lot of key pieces including QB Cade Mills, RB Said Rodriguez, and RB/WR Tucker Chinn. Defensively Meeker should have a top defensive unit returning 9 of their top 13 tacklers from a year ago but they do lose their top tackler from last season. A couple key defensive returners are Jonah Christenson and Wesley Thompson. Cedaredge is my pick to finish in 2nd and compete for the league title. Cedaredge went 6-3 last season and missed the playoffs. Cedaredge will hope a strong returning core will help them get into the playoffs. Cedaredge offensively returns QB Logan Sanders and a key target in WR Liam Martin. Cedaredge will search for a new RB1 but look for RB Makai Salazar to jump into that spot. Defensively Cedaredge will have a few holes to fill losing their top 4 tacklers from last season, but they do return 8 of their top 13 tacklers. A few players who could step up this year for Cedaredge are Shane Smothers and Cole Wyatt. North Fork is my pick to finish in 3rd place and be a playoff contender. North Fork went 6-4 last year with a trip to the playoffs and hope to make a run for it again this year. North Fork will have some holes to fill offensively losing over 2000 yards of total offense. North Fork will have a leader back on offense in RB Alex Csere but other players must step up around him like Tate Fister and Bronson Hall. Defensively North Fork was also hit hard by graduation losing 8 of their top 13 tacklers from a year ago. North Fork will look for leaders like Payson Miller and Colter Scriver to lead a younger defensive unit. Moffat County is my pick to finish in 4th and challenge the top 3 teams. Moffat County makes the move from Class 2A down into Class 1A. Moffat County went 1-8 last year and hope to rebuild the program back to its 2023 style. Moffat County should have plenty back to challenge the top teams in League A. Offensively QB Jax Nelson, RB Owen Hill, and WR Gavin Zulian all return for Moffat County. Defensively, Moffat County should take a massive step forward returning 11 of their top 13 tacklers including their top 7 tacklers from last season. Leaders like Jose Silva and Troy Daigneau should lead Moffat County. Olathe is my pick to finish in 5th. Olathe continues to rebuild their program and found success last year, going 4-4 and finishing in 4th place in the Western Slope League. Olathe should improve again and challenge the top teams. Offensively Olathe returns QB Garrett Keith, RB Hunter Lynch, and WR Colton Snell. Defensively look for Olathe to also improve, returning 10 of their top 13 tacklers but they do lose some leaders losing their top tackler. Look for Bridger Vincent and Kyler Gardner to jump into leadership roles this year. Grand Valley and Roaring Fork round out League A. Grand Valley went 0-9 last season and will hope to build and find success this season. Grand Valley was led by a lot of sophomores a year ago so look for them to take a big step forward this year. Offensively, Grand Valley returns QB Sawyer Ostermiller along with WR Trenton Sandidge. Defensively Grand Valley will return the core of their defense returning 7 of their top 13 tacklers. Leaders like Peyton Farris and Kyzen Hougland look to get the Cardinals going in the right direction. Roaring Fork did not have a team last season. They are hoping to get the program going again and be consistent. Roaring Fork had a 2021, 2022, and 2024. In 2024 they went 3-6.
My predictions for Western Slope
League Champion: Meeker
Playoff Contenders: Meeker, Cedaredge, North Fork, Moffat County, Olathe
Dark Horse: Moffat County
Preseason Player of the League: Cade Mills Sr. Meeker
Others to watch for: Said Rodriguez Sr. Meeker, Tucker Chinn Sr. Meeker, Logan Sanders Sr. Cedaredge, Liam Martin Jr. Cedaredge, Makai Salazar Jr. Cedaredge, Alex Csere Sr. North Fork, Payson Miller Sr. North Fork, Tate Fister Jr. North Fork, Jax Nelson Jr. Moffat County, Owen Hill Sr. Moffat County, Jose Silva Sr. Moffat County, Hunter Lynch Jr. Olathe, Garrett Keith Sr. Olathe, Bridger Vincent Jr. Olathe, Sawyer Ostermiller Jr. Grand Valley, Trenton Sandidge Jr. Grand Valley, Peyton Farris Sr. Grand Valley
Southern League (B)
1. Centauri
2. Monte Vista
3. Rye
4. Buena Vista
5. Bayfield
6. Trinidad
7. Ignacio
League B is a new league this year with teams from the South Central, Tri-Peaks, and a 2A team from the IML. League B had 4 playoff teams a year ago and League B will be one of the tougher leagues in Class 1A with 4 playoff contenders with a possible 5th. Centauri is my pick to win League B. Centauri went 10-2 last year with a trip to the Semifinals. Centauri will lose some key senior pieces taking most of their offensive line and their QB. Centauri though will look for Grayson Hunzeker to step into the QB role, and he has weapons galore with RB Leland Chacon, RB Blake Johnson, and WR Dallyn King. Defensively Centauri will have a few holes to fill, returning 6 of their top 13 tacklers. Players like Donovan Jarvies Caden Casias, and Caden Ruggles look to step into leadership roles this year. Monte Vista is my pick to finish in second and challenge for the league title. Monte Vista went 7-4 last year with a trip to the Quarterfinals. Monte Vista will lose key pieces at WR and in the Secondary but return nearly their entire offensive line. Monte Vista will look for QB Manny Jiron to take another big step forward and for RBs Judah Howe, RB Nehemias Sandoval, and WR/RB Jeremiah McComas to have breakout seasons. Defensively Monte Vista will return 7 of their top 13 tacklers with leaders in Mason Mondragon, John Jake Naranjo, and Lucas Pino looking to lead the way. Rye is my pick for 3rd place and could challenge for the league title and a playoff spot. Rye is coming off a 6-4 season with a trip to the playoffs. Rye offensively will have a big chunk of their offense back losing a few key lineman and WR depth. Rye will return QB Brady Baumgartner, RB Jackson Bjorum, and WR Wyatt Scheid. Defensively Rye will have the most holes to fill returning 6 of their top 13 tacklers but lose their top 3 tacklers from last season. New leaders like Grant Clennin Casen Mittlestadt, and Tyson Boisvert look to lead the defense. Buena Vista is my pick to finish in 4th. Buena Vista was your runners up a season ago falling in the state championship to Limon. Buena Vista lost a great senior, taking with them over 3000 yards of total and 11 of their top 13 tacklers. Buena Vista will turn to the returning starters in Casen Pridemore and Joe Bearss to lead the way early for the Demons. Buena Vista will be looking for new stars to step up with them in Dexter Whitemore and Jesse Arnold. Buena Vista will also turn to a new head coach as well to lead the way. Bayfield is my pick to finish in 5th but are also a team with a lot of question marks coming into the season. Bayfield went 3-6 last season winning their first three games then struggling down the stretch. Bayfield will turn to a new head coach this year and he will look to rebuild the program. Offensively Bayfield will look for Harrison Williams, James Sandoval, and QB Cole McWhirter to lead the Bayfield offense. Defensively, Bayfield should improve this year returning 8 of their top 13 tacklers but they do lose 3 of their top 5 tacklers from a year ago. Cade Grover and James Sandoval look to lead the way for the defense. Trinidad and Ignacio wrap up League B. Trinida went 2-7 last year and will have a new coach at the helm. Trinidad will hope to keep rebuilding the program and challenge the top teams. Trinidad returns key pieces on offense with QB Isaiah Moreno, RB CJ Sandoval, and the core of their offensive line. Defensively, Trinidad should take a big step forward this year, returning 10 of their top 13 tacklers including the leaders in Connor Knezel and Andrew East. Ignacio went 2-7 last year and finished 5th in the South Central. Ignacio will return the core of their offensive line but lose the skill position players behind them taking over 2000 yards of total offense. Ignacio will turn to new players like William Mendoza-Lechuga, Brandon Blevins, and Shaun Sanderson to step into bigger roles this season. Defensively Ignacio does return key players and the defense could be leaned on early to lead the way. Ignacio returns 7 of their top 13 tacklers including key players like Jayden Scott and Dillon Witt.
My predictions for League B
League Champion: Centauri
Playoff Contenders: Centauri, Monte Vista, Rye, Buena Vista
Dark Horse: Bayfield
Preseason Player of the League: Leland Chacon Sr. Centauri
Others to watch for: Blake Johnson Sr. Centauri, Dallyn King Sr. Centauri, Manny Jiron Jr. Monte Vista, Judah Howe Sr. Monte Vista, Mason Mondragon Jr. Monte Vista, Brady Baumgartner So. Rye, Jackson Bjorum Sr. Rye, Wyatt Scheid Sr. Rye, Casen Pridemore Sr. Buena Vista, Joe Bearss Sr. Buena Vista, Dexter Whitemore Sr. Buena Vista, Cole McWhirter Sr. Bayfield, Harrison Williams Jr. Bayfield, Cade Grover Jr. Bayfield, Isaiah Moreno Sr. Trinidad, CJ Sandoval Jr. Trinidad, Connor Knezel Sr. Trinidad, Shaun Sanders Sr. Ignacio, Jayden Scott Jr. Ignacio, Brandon Blevins Sr. Ignacio