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 Preston Indians
2023 IN REVIEW:
4-6 (runner-up in 4A South East Idaho Conference)Lost 48-28 to Pocatello in first round of Class 4A playoffs
COACH’S RESUME:
Head Coach: Craig Cunningham, third seasonOverall record: 5-14Assistant coaches: Craig Anhder, Cody Traveller, Darrin Hodgkiss, Justin Perry, Tyron Sturgess, Casey Judd, Russ Peterson, Kyle Lords, Ryan Cook, Tyrel Winder, Patrick Gilbert, Riley Cunningham, Austin Ward, Dakota Atkinson
RETURNING STARTERS
5 on offense4 on defense
It may finally be Preston’s time.
Pocatello lost 29 all-league and five all-state players to graduation. Century is still in rebuilding mode. And no team will have more all-league returners (seven) in the now 5A South East Idaho Conference than the Indians.
So it appears like this may be their best shot to walk away with the league title for the first since 2011. But championships are never won on paper.
“That’s been the focus the entire offseason,” Preston head coach Craig Cunningham said. “That’s always our goal. We’ve set the bar high and we just have to find a way to get it done.
Yeah, 100%. That’s the expectation.”
One that hasn’t been met in quite some time.
Preston has posted just one winning season since the aforementioned 2011 campaign. That was the same year of its last playoff win − a 28-21 first-round victory against Twin Falls.
Since the lone state title in 1993, the Indians have only reached the semifinal round twice (2001, 1994).
“Well, the biggest hurdle we’ve face is the classification placement we’re in,” said Cunningham who coaches at the third smallest school in the new 5A classification. “We’re always playing teams that outnumber us by one and a half times.
“Numbers help you in a program like football because of the kids you need and the depth it gives you. So that is an uphill battle for us. We are figuring out ways to deal with it and we think we have a pretty good plan going into this season that’s going to give us a shot.”
Carter Perry figures to be at the center of that.
The sophomore took over the starting quarterback job and earned all-league honors less than three months after battling cancer.
“I’m so excited to watch him. He’s grown physically. He’s grown emotionally. He’s a leader. He’s everything you would want in a quarterback for a program,” Cunningham said. “I saw a picture at the beginning of the summer of Carter from last year, and if you put that picture side by side to him now, you wouldn’t even recognize it’s the same kid. He’s about 35 pounds lighter than he is now.”
Perry won’t have any shortage of weapons to work with either.
Senior Reggie Larsen, whose broken finger early on last season, gave way to Perry, is moving over to wideout. It’s a position that more suits the all-state basketball player, according to Cunningham.
Joining him in that receiving corps, are fellow seniors and basketball players Cruz Harris and Jake Schumann. All three of them stand well above 6 feet. Both Harris and Larsen are 6-foot-4-inches with Schumann, who earned all-conference honors at the position a year ago, just a touch below at 6-3. Harris was a first-team all-league defensive lineman last season, as well.
“I love basketball players because they make great football players,” said Cunningham with a laugh. “I think we’re gonna be hard to defend.”
Junior Conner Iverson is slated to be the primary ball carrier. Freeman Sturges, an all-league player from a year ago, is the only returning player along the offensive line.
Cunningham isn’t worried about it, though.
“Our o-line has been developing quite well during the summer,” Cunningham said. “At our full contact camp that we went to, we were happy with the progress that they made in a short amount of time. So I think we’re gonna be right where we want to be as we get started. As the season progresses, they’re just gonna get nothing but better.”
Senior linebackers Jaxon Merrill and Tegan Zollinger were both all-league players at the position a year ago. Cunningham is also excited about Sam Pabawena, defensively. He feels the senior defensive lineman could have a breakout year playing alongside Harris.
“We have good depth at linebacker this year, we feel,” Cunningham said. “I think we’ll be able to be fairly stout against the run and I think we’ll be able to pressure quarterbacks with our d-line and our linebacking crew. So it is encouraging.”
But is it going to finally be enough?
“We’re just gonna aspire to greatness and find a way to get better and build upon what we did last year,” said Cunningham whose team has already come a long way from the 1-8 record just two years ago.
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