Photo By Debra Sorensen - #24 Payton Howe
Preseason Coaches' Poll
T-1. Marsh Valley
T-1. Snake River
3. American Falls
Written by: Brandon Baney
The Marsh Valley Eagles may have been Idaho’s most snakebitten team a year ago. A 3-6 final record doesn’t do justice to how competitive Marsh Valley was a year ago. Consider these losses:
14-6 to Class 2A champion West Side
7-6 to Class 3A champion Sugar-Salem
23-21 to Class 3A quarterfinalist Snake River
36-34 to Class 3A playoff qualifier American Falls
Marsh Valley lost both conference games by a combined four points. The loss to American Falls ultimately cost Marsh Valley a playoff berth, as the Beavers nabbed one of the final at-large berths to the postseason via that win over the Eagles.
“We need to put more points on the board than we were able to last season,” Eagles head coach Doug Armstrong said. “We lost three games in overtime, and all of them we were in scoring position and stalled out on offense. We need to capitalize on those opportunities.”
Needless to say, a very motivated Marsh Valley squad enters 2021 focused and determined. Senior quarterback Hunter Roche returns to lead the offense, and will be joined in the backfield by senior Michael Belnap, who rushed for over 1,000 yards last season. Senior Payton Howe and junior Alex Vaughn are the top receivers, and junior Bradley Belnap will play various roles on offense, as well.
Marsh Valley is flush with talented skill players, but Armstrong said all of that skill hinges on the development of the offensive line. “Our effectiveness on offense will be a direct result of how our front five players perform,” Armstrong said. “We have great skill players and we have depth at the skill positions. If our offensive line can perform at the level we expect it really opens our playbook up and allows us to do more things. But it all starts up front. We need to sustain our blocks and improve our discipline as a unit. We also need to improve our lead blocks in the running game.”
As talented as those skill players are on offense, they may be more talented on defense. Howe and Michael Belnap earned All-State honors at defensive back and linebacker, respectively, and Bradley Belnap is a returning All-Conference performer at linebacker.
“We play team defense and it’s important that everyone understand their role,” Armstrong said. “Then we need our players flowing to the ball as a collective group so that we can limit the yards after contact. We need to work harder at stopping the 3rd down plays and getting our defense off the field.”
Overall, this senior class is one of the strongest in recent memory at Marsh Valley High. Several of these athletes have won state championships in basketball or baseball over the past two years. If the Eagles can find success early, they could be in store for a nice run in the postseason.