Eagles tabbed for fourth

Editor’s Note: This preview of the Badger Small Conference was compiled by Wissports.net. Check our previews from across the state at their website.   2023 Recap: Mount Horeb/Barneveld ran away with the Badger-Small title last year, going a perfect 7-0 in the league. The Vikings advanced to Level 3 of the Division 3 playoffs before falling to Green Bay Notre Dame.  Monona Grove and DeForest tied for second, while Stoughton also snuck into the playoffs despite a 3-4 league mark. The Vikings then advanced all the way to the state semifinal game. Note: DeForest, Fort Atkinson, and Monona Grove move from the Badger-Small to the Badger-Large this year. Edgewood and Lakeside Lutheran move into the Badger-Small from the Capitol Conference. The Badger-Small is a six-team league that is paired with the East Central, and all Badger-Small teams will play two crossover games against East Central teams that will count in the standings.   2024 Preview Predicted Order of Finish: 1) Mount Horeb/Barneveld 2) Stoughton 3) Lakeside Lutheran 4) Sauk Prairie 5) Edgewood 6) Portage   Players to Watch Boden Frosch, WR, Sauk Prairie — Frosch was a unanimous first-team all-conference selection last year when he was among state leaders with 63 catches for 1,047 yards and 12 touchdowns. Kaycee Guzman, RB, Lakeside Lutheran — Guzman was the hero of last year’s state basketball tournament for the Warriors and also earned second-team all-conference as a running back. His role in the offense is expected to increase. Chris Kiel, WR/DB, Mount Horeb/Barneveld — Kiel is an explosive playmaker for the Vikings, hauling in 52 passes for 1,073 yards and 13 touchdowns a year ago. He was also a standout in the defensive secondary. Jackson Kitzmiller, OL/DL, Edgewood — Kitzmiller earned first-team all-conference in the Capitol last year on defense to go with second-team laurels on offense. Owen Preimesberger, RB/WR, Mount Horeb/Barneveld — Preimesberger was the third-leading receiver on the team last year and also saw action in the running game. Griffin Rousseau, OL, Stoughton — Rousseau continues the offensive lineage at Stoughton, earning first-team all-conference recognition last year. He gave a commitment to Illinois in the off-season. Landon Schultz, QB, Sauk Prairie — Schultz took over the starting quarterback spot last year and threw for 1,566 passing yards to go with 17 touchdowns. He was also second on the team in rushing yards and first in rushing scores. Drew Viney, QB, Stoughton — Viney put up solid numbers last year, throwing for 2,337 yards with 21 touchdowns. He’ll need to cut down on the 13 interceptions, however. 2024 Team Previews 1) Mount Horeb/Barneveld  The Vikings have produced some excellent teams under a few different coaches in the last 15 years or so, and the 2023 Vikings were right up there with any of them.  MH-B went unbeaten in the regular season en route to a dominating Badger-Small title. The Vikings went to Level 3 of the playoffs, where they lost a 26-21 heartbreaker to Notre Dame in the final minute.  “The strength of this team will be experience and skill,” said MH-B head coach Bret St. Arnauld. “We have a lot of players returning especially on defense where we only lose three starters.  “Offensively we will have a new face at quarterback (Brooks Hendrickson) but he has incredible arm talent. It is tough to replace a Big Ten talent on the offensive line like Austin Leibfried, but with four offensive linemen who played significant snaps last year the outlook upfront is a positive one. We have playmakers on both sides of the ball, with eight All-Conference players returning, the biggest one being honorable mention all-state wide receiver Chris Kiel.”   2) Stoughton  The Vikings certainly went through its share of ups and downs in the 2023 campaign. The Vikings finished just 3-4 in the Badger-Small, and 4-5 overall. It was just enough to sneak into the playoffs, where the team received a No. 7 seed.  From there, the Vikings went on the best postseason run in school history, winning road games at Greendale, Waterford, and Monroe before bowing out against Grafton in a close state semi-final showdown.  So which Stoughton team will we get in 2024? The one that was a sub-.500 regular season squad; or the one that went to the state semi-finals?  With seven starters back on offense and five on defense, head coach Jason Becker certainly hopes it is the latter. Drew Viney returns to lead the offense at the quarterback spot after passing for more than 2,300 yards. A couple of his top targets, receiver Jay Johnson and tight end Mason Richter, also return.  Up front, Illinois recruit Griffin Rousseau headlines the offensive line unit that has several veteran players. Another Nelson (Max) and Empey (Gatlin) are on their way up from the JV squad as well.   3) Lakeside  Lutheran  The Warriors were third in the Capitol Conference last year, dropping tough games to Lodi and Columbus. Lakeside made a nice postseason run, winning road games at Evansville and Platteville before falling to Catholic Memorial in Level 3.  It turned out to be the last season for longtime head coach Paul Bauer, who stepped aside in the off-season, with Matthew Doering taking over the program. “We have four of five returning linemen and a lot of speed and athleticism,” Doering said.  The top two rushers are gone from last year, but look for more involvement from Kaycee Guzman, the hero of the team’s basketball state tournament. Lakeside brings back a total of six starters on offense and five on defense, and will make the transition to the Badger-Small this year, which will present some new challenges.   4) Sauk Prairie  The Eagles have shown improvement the last few years under head coach Randy Wallace, and finished 4-5 overall last year. Sauk Prairie just missed out on the playoffs, though, via tiebreaker with a 3-4 league mark.  The passing game should be a strength with the return of dynamic receiver Boden Frosch, who hauled in 63 passes for 1,047 yards and 12 touchdowns. Landon Schultz saw plenty of time at the quarterback spot a year ago and threw for 17 touchdowns, entering 2024 as a real breakout candidate.  Sauk Prairie could be a sleeper team to push into the top half of the league standings.   5) Madison  Edgewood  The Crusaders missed out on the playoffs a year ago, finishing 2-5 in the tough Capitol Conference. Edgewood played a lot of close, competitive games, but just couldn’t get over the hump.  Now, the Crusaders return to the Badger Conference in the Small Division, where they could push for one of the last playoff spots available to the league.  Head coach Jesse Norris returns quarterback Gannon Bagstad, who gained valuable experience as a sophomore last season, but must be more efficient this season. Jackson Kitzmiller is a standout up front on both sides of the ball, and Aydon and Ashton Fickell will play bigger roles this year as juniors.   6) Portage The Warriors looked good in a couple opening non-conference victories, but things got tougher in the conference schedule, when Portage finished just 1-6. There were several close calls, however, as the team was generally competitive even in the losses.  This will be the second year under head coach Chris Rice, which should help as the team continues to adjust to the Wing-T offense.  “Our kids should be able to play faster and have better knowledge of what we are trying to do on both sides of the ball,” Rice said.  Just two starters return on offense, but a number of other returnees saw valuable time. There are three starters back on the defensive side of the ball.