The Lakers fell short of earning a third straight trip to state last year, falling to Osseo 17-14 in the Section 5-6 crossover game. Prior Lake has plenty of talent back to make another state push, but it does have some holes to fill.

"We have another really good group," said Lakers coach Matt Gegenheimer, who team was 7-3 overall last year, 6-1 in the South Suburban Conference. "We have a lot of competition for starting spots. I think we have good depth. We're hoping for another good year."

This will be the Lakers final season in the SSC. Next fall, the new district football format starts with Prior Lake in the 16-team West Metro District with all five Lake Conference teams, nine from the North Suburban Conference and Shakopee.

Rosemount, last year's state runner-up, is the defending SSC champion and the favorite to repeat. Lakeville North, Lakeville South and the Lakers are expected to be in the hunt.

Prior Lake opens the season at home Aug. 29 versus Lakeville South. The Lakers are at Rosemount Sept. 5. Both games start at 7 p.m.

Gegenheimer expects the Lakers' defense to be formidable. Offensively, there are a few question marks. Who will play quarterback? How will Prior Lake replace the big-play ability of running back, Blake Weber, an all-state selection, who is now at the University of Minnesota.

Three quarterbacks are vying for the starting job - seniors Lucas Olson and Kyle Delarosby and junior Jimmy Larson.

"They're all getting reps and we're confident in all three," said Gegenheimer.

Senior Alex Hart is back on offense for the Lakers. He's a two-way player at fullback and linebacker. He's a north-south runner, who is best between the tackles and he knows how to find the end zone with 13 rushing touchdowns last year.

Seniors Cullen Sowder and Jacob Rosonke will get time in the backfield, along with juniors Andrew Owodunni and Lawson Zenner and sophomore Jacob Hitz.

"We're replacing a big playmaker like Weber with a bunch of good kids, who don't have a ton of Friday night experience other than Alex," said Gegenheimer.

Senior Sam Schultze and junior Ben Ward are the Lakers' receivers, while junior Hunter Sandness will start at tight end. The offensive line will be led by seniors Joey Schons and Eric Dols, who are back as starters.

"We still have guys fighting for the other spots," said Gegenheimer.

Defensively, the Lakers are deep at linebacker with Hart, along with seniors Josh Dysthe, Russell Chase and Tyson West.

Hart has been a starter on defense since he was a sophomore, while Dysthe fits the linebacker mold. He had a big junior season.

"Josh is so physical; he's a natural hitter and has great instincts for the game," said Gegenheimer. "Alex is also tremendous. We have him playing both ways, so we will be mindful of how many carries he gets on offense. We don't want to wear him down."

On the defensive line will be seniors Zach Herbst, Aaron Williams and Rylee Streifel and junior Jamahl Johnson.

Leading the secondary will be junior safeties Nick Raddatz and Jack Kortes. On the corners will be seniors Desmond Deshay and Payton Anderson and junior Logan Petersmeyer.

"We have a lot of speed in our secondary," said Gegenheimer. Out two safeties can cover a lot of the field. We're excited about them."

For the playoffs this fall, the crossover games have changed. Section 6 gets Section 3 now, so the Lakers will likely have to get through an SSC team to get to state.

Section 6 is loaded at the top with the likes of Eden Prairie, Wayzata, Minnetonka, Edina and the Lakers. Hopkins, Shakopee and Robbinsdale Armstrong are also in the field.