The high school football season in Idaho begins on Aug. 23. So to get you ready, we’re counting down with at least one local team preview every day until kickoff.
Up next: The Highland Rams
2023 IN REVIEW:
11-1 (first place in 5A Southeastern Conference)Defeated Coeur d’Alene 35-28 to win Class 5A state championship
COACH’S RESUME
Head Coach: Nick Sorrell, 3rd seasonOverall record: 17-5Assistant coaches: Dane Beorchia, Bryce Metcalf, Akilah Lacey, Atari Callen, Cade Ackley, Tony Manu
RETURNING STARTERS
0 on offense0 on defense
Highland pulled off one of the most improbable state championships in recent memory a year ago.
Seven months after a fire ravaged much of the school, the Rams won their record-breaking 12th title − the most in Idaho history among all classifications.
“It was a pretty special ride,” Highland head coach Nick Sorrell said. “We had a great group of kids, just great support all the way through and it’s just one of those storybook endings.”
But it all came at a cost.
They lost 32 seniors, including 28 all-league and seven all-state players − the most Sorrell can recall during his time at Highland, which now goes back 23 years as a player and an assistant coach.
However, tradition never graduates at Idaho’s most storied program. So even with a lot of fresh faces, the standard will remain the same this season.
“It’s what Highland is. It’s the history. It’s the tradition. As we build this program from the freshmen to the JV and then up to the varsity level, we’re getting these kids ready for this specific moment. When it’s their time to shine,” Sorrell said. “So we’re just going to reload. That’s what we do. These kids know that and they’ve worked hard to get to his point to earn their spots now on the field. So with that kind of tradition and excellence and work ethic, that’s what this program is all about.”
The Rams were counting on the return of their multiple-time all-league and all-state corner Kai Callen. He had been a starter with them since his freshman year. But Callen, whose father is still on staff, elected to transfer across the country to Carrollton High in Georgia in January for his senior year. He committed to James Madison, a two-time FCS national champion, which was ranked as high as No. 19 in the country at the FBS level last season.
Carson Bates will fill in for him. It won’t be the first time the senior corner will have to do that. He was called upon when Callen went down with an injury in the state title game . Senior safety Chase Zweigart will also be a part of a revamped secondary.
“It’s a significant loss. It was like, ‘Kai is on that side of the field, that’s taken care of. We can focus our defense a lot on the other side to help these other guys out. Now we don’t have that,” Sorrell said. “He could jump a route and take it back to the house for six at any time and then of course, he played on offense, which gave us some playmaking ability over there. But I’m excited for him and the opportunities that he’s getting where he’s at down in Georgia.”
So that leaves Highland with no full-fledged returners.
But it still brings back a pair of all-league players in senior defensive lineman Markell Bowens and junior linebacker McKay Galo. The two both played a role in last year’s title by regularly rotating in and providing several spot starts.
Seniors Lana Alverico (WR), Jett Richards (WR) and Alfonzo Moreno (OL) saw significant time on varsity last season, as well. All five will have big shoes to fill.
Bowens will anchor a defensive front that is now without two all-conference players, including Trayson Bagley, who’s at the University of Puget Sound.
Galo steps in to replace the program’s second all-time leading tackler in Colton George, who’s headed for nearby Idaho State after his two-year LDS mission to Costa Rica.
Moreno hopes to fill the void left by all-state guard Bruce Gallo, while Alvarico and Richards will battle for targets with the departure of first-team all-league wideout Rhidge Barela.
Alverico was the No. 2 behind Barela last year. At 5-foot-7-inches, 135 pounds, he has a similar build to him, too.
“You’re going to look at him on the field and say, ‘Did Rhidge come back?,’” said Sorrell with a laugh. “He’s kind of got that same skillet. He’s quick. He’s shifty. He finds a way to get open. He’s not a big kid, but he is out there to compete and he’s going to do whatever he can to get that ball in his hands and he’s pretty dynamic when he does get the ball in his hands.”
Richards actually beat out Alverico for that spot a year ago. But an injury sidelined him for most of the season.
“Jett is kind of the master of the entire offense,” Sorrell said. “He knows every single position, quarterback on down. He’s going to be that guiding light for everyone else.
“They can look to him as a little bit of a security blanket because of his leadership skills. It’s going to allow those other kids to take a little bit off of their shoulders early on.”
Particularly Keaton Belnap.
The 6-0, 205-pound junior transfer from Marsh Valley has the tall task of replacing Drew Hymas under center. Hymas was a two-time all-state quarterback and the hero of last year’s state final. Sorrell feels that Belnap is up for the challenge, though.
“Day one he came in and he’s been a bookworm in terms of getting into our offense and trying to understand all the nuances,” Sorrell said. “He’s got two years to grow in this offense. So I’m really, really looking forward to what he’s gonna put out on the field and the kids have really kind of bought in around him as a leader, especially as a newcomer. Because he’s got all the physical tools you can ask for in a quarterback. He’s gonna turn some heads.”
Cedric Mitchell has his work cut out for him, too. The sophomore running back replaces reigning Class 5A Player of the Year, Jackson Riddle, who racked up nearly 2,000 yards from scrimmage and 21 touchdowns a year ago. He is now across town at Idaho State.
But if Mitchell’s family pedigree is any indication, he could be Highland’s next big star. His father Isaac Mitchell was inducted into the ISU Sports Hall of Fame last year. He was an All-Big Sky Conference player, one of only two Bengals to record 80-plus yard scoring plays in a single season and signed with the NFL’s Buffalo Bills in 2004.
“He’s a different type of runner,” Sorrell said of Cedric. “He’s not as thick as Jackson. But he’s got that same explosiveness and if he gets by you, he’s gone. He’s got that breakaway speed.
“He’s going to be young, there’s going to be some inexperience there as well. But there’s a lot of talent with him.”
So the Rams still expect to be in contention for another state title. They haven’t repeated in 26 years.
“Our expectations are always to be back in the state title game,” Sorrell said. “We’ve talked about just the history and the tradition that Highland’s built upon. So these kids understand that when they come to Highland, it’s not good enough to just make the playoffs. That’s our mentality, that’s our thought process and that’s what we’re striving for.”
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