In The Hunt- Title Contenders (ND)

This is the North Dakota Contenders article. Like the others I have written, this one will be the teams I feel will have the greatest chance to make the State Title run in 2021 as well as the reason why I believe so. Also, as I mention in other articles, this one is 100% my opinion and not solid facts, I base everything off the film I see and make my opinions off of that. Here are my picks for 2021 Contenders: <em>Class AAA- West Fargo Sheyenne Mustangs (8-1)</em> The Mustangs seemed to have a pretty balanced attack on both offense and defense. They put up some big scores over the course of the year, and defense did not give up a lot, or made enough stops to win games. While they graduated a lot of their key players, they will return a good core of players for the 2021 season. Key Players Lost: <strong>RB [player_tooltip player_id="56234" first="Barika" last="Kpeenu"], WR Jahheem Leake, DT [player_tooltip player_id="56358" first="Abe" last="Hestdalen"], WR Gage Anderson, DE Kole Menz.</strong> Key Players Returning: <strong>QB- [player_tooltip player_id="56479" first="Grant" last="Warkenthein"]</strong> <strong>DB- [player_tooltip player_id="56509" first="Kellen" last="Entz"]</strong> <strong>FB/LB- Matthew Treib</strong> <strong>OL- [player_tooltip player_id="119069" first="Brennan" last="Sellheim"]</strong> <em>Class AA- Hillsboro/Central Valley Burros (8-3)</em> Hillsboro/Central Valley had a good year, winning some big games and only dropping a few heartbreakers. In both their wins and losses, the defense did not give up many points, and their offense played well in their wins. While they did not make the Championship game this year, I feel they will return a great group of starters to get them to the big game next year. Key Players Lost: <strong>LB [player_tooltip player_id="56394" first="Kaden" last="Pastian"], QB/DB [player_tooltip player_id="56396" first="Sam" last="Preston"], WR/P Nathan Rage.</strong> Key Players Returning: <strong>DL- Barrett Willison</strong> <strong>LB- Jack Paulsrud</strong> <strong>FB- [player_tooltip player_id="101158" first="Cole" last="Hebl"]</strong> <strong>OL- Masyn Fandrich</strong> <strong>DB- [player_tooltip player_id="101163" first="Riley" last="Olsen"]</strong> <em>Class A- Grafton Spoilers (8-3)</em> Grafton put up some lopsided scores this year, their losses coming to Langdon Area/Munich, Hillsboro Central Valley, and Lisbon, all finished well in playoffs. They also have a lot of key players set to return in key positions for the 2021 season. Key Players Lost: <strong>WR Stevan Garza, RB Luis Balderas, WR [player_tooltip player_id="56429" first="Damon" last="Reyes"].</strong> Key Players Returning: <strong>LB- [player_tooltip player_id="56490" first="Esgar" last="Rios"]</strong> <strong>OL- Chago Galvaz</strong> <strong>DL- Eli Lopez</strong> <strong>QB- [player_tooltip player_id="56511" first="Robert" last="Parsons III"]</strong> <em>Class 9-Man- LaMoure- Litchville/Marion Loboes (9-1)</em> Only in three games did the Loboes score less than 50 points. They won a lot of shootouts, only giving up more than 10 points in four games. They scored 65+ points in four games, and the defense pitched two shutouts. They will return some big-time key players for the 2021 season. Key Players Lost: <strong>RB Brett Wendel, DL James Johnson.</strong> Key Players Returning: <strong>TE/DB- [player_tooltip player_id="56561" first="Colton" last="Ness"]</strong> <strong>WR/DB- Charlie Bowman</strong> &nbsp;