Tough start

MAT-SU — For many teams, the first week of the regular season normally calls for a nonconference match-up to help a squad prepare for its conference schedule.

But the Colony Knights and North Pole Patriots don’t have that luxury.

For the Knights and the Patriots, the race for the postseason starts in week No. 1. North Pole will host Colony Saturday at 6 p.m. in a game that will undoubtedly have an impact on the playoffs that are still two months away.

“North Pole is going to be a very, very tough game,” Colony head coach Jamie Mayo said earlier this week. “Win or lose, its going to be a tough game.”

Colony and North Pole finished the regular season tied at 3-3 in Railbelt Conference play, and the Knights earned the fourth and final Railbelt postseason berth thanks to a tiebreaker.

Both teams are not only expected to be in the playoff hunt once again, but are among teams that could be hosting a first-round playoff games.

“And here we are opening with North Pole,” Mayo said. “It’s going to be a huge game.”

Colony will bring a defense that includes eight returning starters to North Pole. That group is led by senior Gino Paoletti, who earned first-team all-state honors as a junior.

“He’s going to be extremely important to the success of our defense,” Mayo said of Paoletti. “Not just playing, but his leadership abilities.”

Senior cornerback Matt Swan, senior safety Tim Jaronik, senior defensive back Collin Murphy, senior linebacker Balin Babcock, senior defensive end Chris Krieg, senior defensive end Matt Packa and junior defensive tackle Eric Fan also started for the Knights last season.

Wasilla at Chugiak

Wasilla head coach Jim Shetter will return to his old stomping grounds, and lead the Warriors into their season-opener, a nonconfernece date against the Chugiak Mustangs at Chugiak High School tonight at 7 p.m.

Shetter is a former Chugiak defensive coordinator who helped lead the Mustangs to the 1996 state championship.

Both Wasilla and Chugiak advanced to the postseason last year, but suffered losses in the first round.

Palmer beat Wasilla 29-19 in the opening round, and Service needed two overtimes to hand Chugiak a 24-17 loss.

Shetter knows that Chugiak, annually one of the top teams in the Cook Inlet Conference, will prove to be a difficult foe during the first week of the season, but he’s excited about the challenge.

“Playing the big schools is a good test for us to see where we stand and how much we need to work on,” Shetter said last week.

The Warriors return a handful a key players from that playoff team. The group of veterans include senior quarterback and defensive back Adrese LaVern; senior running back and defensive back Chris Crane; senior wide receiver and defensive back Tim Orr; and senior fullback and linebacker Casey Katchinska.

Palmer at South

Two of the top four teams in the state last season will meet today when Palmer faces South Anchorage at Anchorage Football Stadium.

Palmer finished as the state runner-up last season, and South advanced to the state semifinals.

“It’ll definitely be a real interesting matchup,” Palmer head coach Rod Christiansen said earlier this week. “South is always strong. We’ll have our work cut out for us.”

Palmer was hit hard by graduation, but the Moose do return a handful of key starters.

Among the leaders are senior wide receiver and defensive back Mitch Swetzof; senior offensive and defensive linemen Dan Contini and Kevin Priestly; and senior tight end and linebacker J.D. Mitchell.

Delta at Houston

Houston will open its 2008 season on Saturday with a nonconference match against Delta Junction at 1 p.m.

The Hawks and Huskies are former Greatland Conference rivals. Houston is making the move from the Greatland to the Northern Lights Conference this season.

Leading the Hawks are seniors quarterback Jordan Webb and senior wide receiver Bryan Mason, who were both among state leaders last year.

Webb finished the regular season with 733 yards and seven touchdown passes, while Mason posted 485 yards receiving with seven touchdown grabs.

The day will also feature a field dedication ceremony. Houston High School is dedicating the field to Terry Shurtleff, a former Houston football booster club member who died earlier this year.

“He was one of the original guys trying to get this thing going,” Houston head coach Norm Bouchard said of the Shurtleff’s work to help start HHS football program. “He helped raise $30,000 to help get this thing off the ground and we’ve been rolling ever since.”

Starting on Saturday, the Houston High field will be known as Terry Shurtleff Field at Houston High School, Bouchard said.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.