The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

WAITSBUG - With the Southeast 2B District 9 football league down to four teams, non-league games will dominate the Waitsburg-Prescott Cardinals' schedule this year. And those games will be tough.

"This is the toughest schedule we've had since I've been here," said WP coach Jeff Bartlow, who is entering his 16th season as head coach.

With Dayton converting to eight-man football, WP's only league opponents this year will be De- Sales, Tri-City Prep and Asotin. The season begins with a road game at Mac Hi in Milton-Freewater on September 5, and includes several other larger schools, including Orofino, Ida., Kiona Benton and Columbia Burbank.

Bartlow said he still has high hopes for the upcoming season, with a big group of experienced starters coming back this year. "We have a veteran team returning in 2014," he said. "We lost only five seniors, but interestingly, they were all OL/DL guys."

Bartlow said his biggest challenge will be rebuilding the offensive and defensive lines. The only returning starting lineman is Michael Grant, who plays left tackle on offense and inside linebacker on defense.

On offense, senior quarterback Owen Lanning returns after a strong 2013 season. "We expect Owen to shine in 2014," Bartlow said. "He was 106 of 177 for 1,418 yards (passing). I think he will improve those numbers. He has veterans to throw to and is a very good runner too, with just over 400 yards rushing last year."

Bartlow also pointed out that sophomore quarterback Jacob Dunn did an outstanding job last year, leading the JV team to an undefeated season. "Jacob Dunn has an outstanding future at QB," Bartlow added. "He will push Owen for time."

Senior Chance Leroue also returns at running back. "Chance is a four-year starter and one of my best players in my 16 years at Waitsburg," Bartlow said. "He is an all-state candidate."

Left: WP Quarterback Owen Lanning (3) completes a successful pitch-out to running back Chance Leroue (24) during a game in Waitsburg last year. Right: WP Coach Jeff Bartlow celebrates one more score.

Other returning starters include senior wide receivers Devin Acevedo, Luke Alexenko and Talen Larson. Acevedo led the team last year with 44 catches for 612 yards, with five receiving touchdowns.

On defense, WP will bring back the 3-4 setup for the second year. "Our linebackers right now will be the strength of our team," Bartlow said. "We have three veterans in Michael Grant, Chance Leroue and Devin Acevedo."

Bartlow said he hopes to see improvement on defense from last year. "We gave up 284 yards a game (in 2013) and that is too much. We need to be better at stopping the run."

Bartlow said he expects all three league opponents to have very strong teams this year. "Like us, DeSales and TCP are bringing back a lot of starters. They have veteran teams," he said. "Asotin lost a lot of seniors last year, so they'll be less experienced."

Three out of the top four teams in the District 9 league will move on to the District 7/9 playoffs, and the fourth-place team will likely play a loser-out game.