Not every area team fits in one of the area conferences. Here's a look at some of the other teams in the area.
While we don't offer full conference previews this year, we will offer coverage during the season. We'll be focusing specifically on: Great 8, Trailways, SWAL, Six Rivers, Ridge and Valley, Southwest, and Southern Lakes. Below are the handful of teams that are in our DMA (Dane, Columbia, Sauk counties) that we will offer full coverage of in 2018.
Great 8 (8-Player)
Last year, Oakfield won it with a perfect record, but this year's conference should be fairly wide-open for the five teams (Elkhart Lake-Glenbuelah and new addition Port Edwards, in addition to the three teams below). Port Edwards went winless last year as an independent, while Elkhart Lake-Glenbeulah played well during a 3-5 campaign.
Oakfield graduated plenty of their top players, so it opens the door for the other teams in the conference a bit. Abundant Life/St. Ambrose has four-year starter Mike Rhatican back at quarterback to lead the way, while Wisconsin Heights, not eligible for the new 8-player playoffs, should be solid again this season with some returning all-conference players. Here are the area teams we are following in 2018:
Trailways-Small
Fall River enjoyed the best season in school history last year, advancing all the way to Level 4. Lourdes Academy and Johnson Creek finished at 5-2, with Deerfield making the playoffs thanks to a Week 9 double-OT win over Lourdes. Here are the area teams we're tracking this season:
Other Area Teams
These are teams that are in the area, but primarily face teams from outside of our coverage area. We'll follow them in 2018:
We will feature most of southern Wisconsin in our coverage this season as well.