Once again, Kenai Peninsula schools have 3 state titles to defend

The Kenai Peninsula will once again have three state titles to defend when the prep football season kicks off this weekend.

In 2024, Soldotna won the Division II state title, Homer won the Division III state title and Seward won the nine-man state title.

That matched 2023, when both the Stars and Seahawks also won, and Kenai Central won at Division III.

2024 was even better for the peninsula than 2023, though, with all five peninsula schools playing for a state crown. Homer topped the Kardinals for Division III supremacy, while Seward defeated Nikiski.

Soldotna, which finished 10-1 last season and won the Railbelt title, kicks off first when the Stars host Palmer in Railbelt action Friday, Aug. 15, at 6 p.m.

Homer rode the No. 4 seed out of the Mid Alaska Conference last season to the state title, finishing with a 5-5 record. The Mariners travel to Houston for a nonconference game at 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 15.

Kenai Central finished third in the Mid Alaska Conference last season and also had a 5-5 record. The Kardinals were supposed to host Kodiak in a nonconference game Friday, Aug. 15, but that game was canceled because the Bears don’t have enough players yet.

Kenai will have to wait until Friday, Aug. 22, to open the season with a 7 p.m. nonconference game at Redington.

Nine-man football is entering its third year. Nikiski, which finished second in the Denali Conference at 5-3 overall, and Seward, which finished 8-0 last year and won the Denali Conference, played for the first two state titles.

That rivalry will resume at 3 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 16, at Nikiski with a nonconference game.

The following is a closer look at the peninsula’s football programs:

Soldotna Stars

Head coach Galen Brantley Jr. enters his 19th season at the helm of the Stars, and 28th overall season as a high school coach, as the all-time wins leader in Alaska at 166-10.

The Stars have won 14 state titles, with Brantley Jr. winning 13 of those.

Brantley Jr. said the Stars lost a lot of talent in the 15 seniors that were on last season’s roster. Four starters return on each side of the ball.

The program has won at a high rate by replacing talent each season. The head coach said that’s the expectation this season.

“Even though we graduated a huge group of talented seniors, we feel like we’ve done a pretty good job of developing the next guy that’s ready to step into those roles and kind of keep things going,” Brantley Jr. said.

Senior Andon Wolverton was the Division II Dynamic Player of the Year last season and also a first-team running back.

Wolverton tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the state championship game last season. Brantley Jr. said Wolverton has been cleared for contact, but the plan is to increase his reps slowly.

“It’s just a matter of time until he’s healthy and ready to go,” Brantley Jr. said. “We feel like he’s one of the best players in the state.”

Senior Theo Huff was a first-team guard, while junior Koda Lepule was a second-team guard.

Senior Matthew Schilling, a first-team defensive back and second-team return specialist, was in the rotation last season at tight end.

Senior Owen Buckbee will start for a second season at quarterback.

“Having a quarterback that’s a returning starter is always a huge asset,” Brantley Jr. said.

Senior Elias Brantley started at center last season before a season-ending injury. Brantley Jr. said there also is offensive talent coming up through the program in junior fullback Chase Hall and junior lineman Carter Hillyer.

On defense, Huff and Lepule both return to start on the line, while Schilling will head up the secondary. Senior Dax Walden also started on defense last season and will start on the offensive side of the ball.

Senior linebacker Wyatt Williams and junior cornerback Zack Kemp also saw varsity time last season and Brantley Jr. said they are ready for starting roles.

Brantley Jr. also said special teams can be overlooked in high school football, but the Stars are loaded there.

Senior Luke Hillyer was the second-team kicker last season. The Stars don’t punt often, but Brantley Jr. said Schilling is a great punter and senior Bryan Berg is a great long snapper.

“The snapping, punting, kicking, holding — all that stuff is as good as we’ve ever had,” Brantley Jr. said.

The coach also is happy with the way players are assuming leadership roles after losing so much leadership last season.

“This is just a really nice group of kids,” he said. “It’s been pretty smooth so far.”

Lathrop and Soldotna have played for the past five Division II state titles, with the Stars taking three of those contests.

Brantley Jr. expects the Malemutes to be solid again after getting a lot of young players experience last season, even calling Lathrop the favorite on paper.

“There’s slowly some other teams that are starting to creep,” Brantley Jr. said. “I think a good example is last year, when the playoff picture wasn’t decided until the end of the year.”

The coach said Palmer is definitely one of those teams getting better and better. He expects a test Friday.

“Their skilled kids are as good as anybody in the state, including us,” he said.

Kenai Central Kardinals

The Kardinals started last season with 17 seniors on the varsity roster and a state title to defend, but then battled injuries all season before falling to Homer in the Division III state title game.

Jake Brand, now in his fourth season at head coach, said the program started the season with 80 players, but finished with 45 due to all the injuries.

Brand said it was very tough to see so many players get hurt last season, but he said Kenai has players that now have experience despite the senior-laden team last season.

“A lot of those guys, fortunately and unfortunately, had to be thrown in as sophomores last year,” he said. “They’ve really had time to grow.

“So our offensive line and our defensive line should be our strength and is certainly the deepest part of our team right now.”

Senior Daniel Bettis didn’t need injuries to get on the the field last season and made second-team all-Division III at defensive line.

Brand said Bettis moved down from Fairbanks as a sophomore and played a big role on the 2023 title-winning team.

“He’s been a real steady presence and just a great kid and a great leader ever since,” Brand said.

Juniors Jamal Barnes, Blake Morris, Brandon Blake and Jackson Taliesin all earned valuable experience last season.

“We’re a junior heavy team,” Brand said. “Before all the 17 to 20 seniors that graduated last year, they were a junior heavy team in 2023, so it’s not such a bad deal.”

Junior Garrett McCanna will take over at quarterback for offensive coordinator Blake Taplin.

“I know our offensive coordinator is really, really excited to be working with him,” Brand said. “He’s a great kid and a great leader.”

Senior Kainoa Taylor will get the majority of touches at running back. Brand said Taylor showed the ability to break big runs last season.

Brand also said other juniors will step up after waiting in the wings on junior varsity last season in wide receiver and cornerback Kyron Gonzalez, wide receiver and free safety Eli Smith and running back and defensive back Gunnar Stanley.

Brand said the offseason workouts were different with so many seniors gone.

“A lot of kids really just worked hard on faith alone, and the families too,” he said. “And now that we’re practicing and have games coming up, I think everyone can see the bigger picture.

“I just want to express how much I appreciate how hard the kids in my program work, and also the families and their support.”

Brand said the bummer is that with the Kodiak game is canceled, Kenai is on the road the next four weeks, then home the final three weeks.

“We promise that we love the people of Kenai, but they’re going to have to wait to watch us play football in person,” Brand said.

In Division II, Brand said as the defending champ, Homer should be one of the better teams. Redington also returns a ton of talent at the skill positions.

“And then I think Barrow, Houston and us are going to be fighting to see how fast we can reload, because I know we all lost quite a bit of senior leadership between those three squads,” Brand said.

He said with just 13 players ready to go in Week 1, Kodiak faces a long road to success, but should get better and better as the season goes on.

Nikiski Bulldogs

Mark Smith takes over the program as it goes into its third season of nine-man football.

Smith has plenty of experience at the school and in football. He’s been at Nikiski for 13 years, starting as a teacher and now working as the head custodian.

About eight years ago, he also served as a football assistant for three years.

“The main reason I took a break from coaching is because we had started to have a bunch of little kids and wanted to focus on family and stuff,” Smith said. “So my boys are getting older now, and it just seemed like a good time for our family to kind of step into this role.”

With 18 players on the roster this season, Smith also wants to build the program.

“Hopefully next year is where we’ll see some of the bigger numbers of kids playing, and there’s a good middle school group coming up,” he said. “And so my hope is that we can throw our best out there this season, and hope this is a big first step in changing the culture of football.”

Smith is excited to have Paul Nelson, Tim Johnson and Stephen Hartley as assistants. All have extensive experience in the program.

The Bulldogs lost nine seniors from last season’s squad and have no seniors on the team this year. Smith said four starters return on each side of the ball.

There is a strong core of juniors.

Rex Wittmer was first-team offensive line and defensive tackle in the Denali Conference. Kaiden Parrish made the second team at fullback and return specialist, while junior Breaker Schmit made the second team at defensive tackle and honorable mention at center. Junior Trigger McCaughey made the second team at utility player.

Junior Ryder Maguire will slide into the quarterback position.

“We do have smaller numbers this year, but the group we do have is working really hard,” Smith said.

He said one area the team is shining is fundraising. Smith said budget cuts have added $5,000 to $7,000 to a program that used to cost between $25,000 and $30,000.

“That’s a big, stressful burden that we’re having to do a little extra on,” Smith said. “But they’re doing great at fundraising, and we’re finally starting to look like a football team at this point.”

Smith said a number of players don’t have enough practices yet to play against Seward, so 13 will suit up for the game.

“Our mind-set for the first game is to patch it together the best we can, knowing it’s not going to be perfect,” he said. “We want our kids to have the mind-set of playing the whole game and giving it their best shot, and then regroup whatever the results are.”

The Denali Conference this year includes Seward, Monroe Catholic, Interior Grappling Academy and Valdez.

Smith said Seward has a nice reputation as the two-time defending champion, but at this point it’s hard to know much about any of the teams. He said the focus early in the season will be about getting better with each practice and game.

“As we get game films, we’ll be able to actually game plan for certain teams, but for now we’re just trying to play as good of fundamental football as we can,” Smith said.

Homer Mariners

The Mariners lost about nine to graduation, but return a number of key pieces.

Homer head coach Justin Zank, who begins his seventh season with two state titles in his last three years at the helm, said excitement is high.

“Just the way the team’s already starting to come together this early in the season,” he said. “Camp really helped with that.

“We’ve got a good core group of dudes that just want to be together. So that makes it exciting. It makes it fun to be around.”

Zank was the Division III Head Coach of the Year last season, while Jackson Snaric was Defensive Player of the Year and Donovan Milstead was Lineman of the Year.

Milstead, a senior, will be back at defensive end this season. Snaric, also a senior, will be back at cornerback.

Justus Grimes, a junior, made the first team at wide receiver and also will play cornerback. CJ Burns, a senior, was a first-team utility player. He will be the quarterback this year after coming on due to injury in the state title game and helping the Mariners to victory.

“That’s definitely a good group to build on,” Zank said. “But we do have a lot of other solid dudes in the lineup that are going to complement those guys really well.”

The Mariners return seven starters on offense and five starters on defense.

Senior Nikifor Reutov returns to lead the defense at inside linebacker, where he was second-team all-state last season.

Junior Tristyn Bridges will be back at defensive tackle, while senior Jayden Sims moves from outside linebacker to safety.

On offense, junior Berend Pearson and senior Emelian Melkomukov return as pass catchers, while junior Joaquin Jackson is back at running back.

Junior Shea Yatchmeneff and junior Timmy Cisney return on the offensive line.

“I think right now the offense is a little ahead of the defense,” Zank said. “So I think the offense will help to pace games until the defense comes along.

“And I think the defense is going to be really solid.”

Division II is made up of the six teams in the Mid Alaska Conference. Zank said everybody in the division is a threat.

He said Barrow is always big and well-coached. Zank said Kenai lost a lot of seniors, but has great size in young players. Redington has a big group of seniors with a lot of talent. Kodiak gets a late start due to school starting later, but comes on strong. The Mariners don’t see the Bears until Week 8.

Zank said he doesn’t know a lot about Houston, but the Mariners will find out Friday.

“We’ll be in Houston and it’ll be a hostile environment,” he said. “They’ll play hard. They’re always aggressive and they hit hard.”

Seward Seahawks

The Seahawks have won both of the state titles in undefeated fashion since nine-man football was created.

“We know we have a target on our back, but we’re confident because we do the work in the offseason to get ready,” said Tyler Mallory, who is in his fifth year at the helm and has 20 out for the team. “We welcome it. It’s a challenge.

“We know teams are going to give us their best, but our job is to be ready for that.”

Seward lost seven seniors from last year, including five starters on offense and five starters on defense.

Mallory said that’s the way it works in high school football.

“These kids who are returning know the system and know the standard and expectations we have,” he said. “They’ve let the new kids know it along the way — this is what we’re going to do.

“It’s cool to see these upperclassmen taking the lead and saying, ‘Hey, follow me.’”

Senior Emerson Cross made first-team all-Denali Conference at wide receiver and kicker last year, and also earned a second-team nod at defensive end.

Cross will be the quarterback this season after winning a few games in that role as a backup.

“He’s capable of doing it all day long,” Mallory said.

Senior Lane Petersen made first team at defensive back and second team at wide receiver. Senior Micah Brueckner made the first team at linebacker.

Senior Camden Schrock started at linebacker last season and will be a starting running back this season. Junior Cai Turner will be another running back and linebacker.

“Those five — Emerson, Lane, Micah, Camden and Cai — are kind of our leaders, the kids who have stepped up and taken on that leadership role,” Mallory said. “I’m excited to watch them play.”

The coach said he’s also eager to see what other players can do with more opportunity. On the line, junior Brock Barson came out for the team for the first time, while sophomore Kohana Albino also will see an elevated role.

The conference returns Nikiski, Valdez and Monroe Catholic this season, and adds the Interior Grappling Academy.

“We’re super excited about it,” Mallory said of the addition of the Interior Grappling Academy. “That’s been the goal is to grow it, and hopefully this is the first step in getting more teams over the next few years.”

Mallory said Valdez and Monroe will continue to improve as they get more football experience.

Nikiski has faced Seward in the last two nine-man state title games and Mallory always expects a tough game from the rival, starting Saturday.

“We’re going to expect them to play a hard football game and hopefully we’ll come out the winners,” he said.