By Noah Ploff – Featured Image by Mason Holstein
It’s almost time to begin one of the most anticipated times of the entire high school year. It’s football season. Montgomery county has a history of being competitive and proud of their football teams. Students show up to watch their friends and classmates, and parents and fans show up to cheer on the teams.
State Championship Recap
Last year two Moco teams survived their way to the state championship game, Sherwood in 3A/4A, and Quince Orchard in 4A. Only Quince Orchard came out victorious, as they defeated Wise 26-21. This year every Montgomery County team has prepared and is ready to fight for the ultimate prize in high school football. Here is a preview of some of the teams across Montgomery County.
Top Contenders
The reigning champs in Quince Orchard are gearing up for another possible undefeated season, as they bulk up their team, with a qb transfer from Saint Frances, and an offensive lineman transfer from Churchill. Coach John Kelly hopes to lead his team to a three-peat.
Northwest, who is usually a powerhouse in Montgomery County, just came off of a down year. They’ll look to get back on track and prove that they still belong to be seen as a dangerous threat among the county and throughout the state.
Sherwood will look to continue their hot streak and find themselves back in the state championship game. A big issue last year for the Warriors was their pass coverage and missed tackles. If Sherwood wants to be crowned as state champs this season, they’ll need to fix these issues and boost their offensive firepower.
Churchill had one of their best seasons in the past few years. They went 11-2 and lost to Wise in the state semifinals by a score of 46-7. Churchill had a very good season last year, but they need to take the next step and be able to compete against the known powerhouses, such as QO and Wise.
Paint Branch had a good season last year despite losing on of their top players to injury but is getting a lot younger this year with a lot of key players graduated. They do have star running back Alijah Bah returning and will be counting on him.
Programs Looking to Rebound
Walter Johnson has a plan to improve their less than stellar record from last season. The Wildcats managed 4 wins last season, something they will definitely look to improve on. WJ will have to move past the several transfers they lost, and will need to greatly improve their defense, as they surrendered over 40 points on multiple occasions.
Damascus had a solid season, finishing with a respectable record of 7-4. Damascus has been right around this spot in the past several years and will need to climb on the back of head coach Josh Klotz and steamroll their way over the competition to defeat their opponents and reach further in the playoffs than in years past.
Now we get to a school that is notoriously poor at football. In the past 5 years Watkins Mill has won a total of 2 games. That is a fact that doesn’t fully sound real and shouldn’t be real. Watkins Mill has had below average offense and defense in recent memory and they’ll look to prove everyone wrong and find a way to get themselves a few wins this season.
There are some other underperforming teams last year that’ll look to make strides in this upcoming season such as Gaithersburg, Clarksburg, Rockville, Richard Montgomery, and more. These teams will try to put the past behind them and look toward the future to come out anew.
Season Outlook and Support
All of these schools, as well as the schools not mentioned have been working hard over the summer and in the offseason. Students, staff, and fans will and should continue to attend games and show up for the players in order to make this one of the best high school football seasons in memory.
