Here are 16 Tri-Cities area players that fans will want to keep an eye on this fall

A heatwave in the Mid-Columbia this week is forcing some schools to change their kickoff times to help alleviate some of the heat.

The anticipated high temperature on Friday is 104 degrees. So some schools are postponing their Friday night kickoffs back to 8 p.m.

Here are the scheduled Mid-Columbia Conference games this weekend: Chiawana at Kamiakin, Lampson Stadium, set for 8 p.m. Friday; Hanford at Hermiston, set for 8 p.m. Friday; Kennewick at Pasco, Edgar Brown Stadium, at 8 p.m. Friday; Southridge vs. Richland, 4 p.m. Saturday at Edgar Brown Stadium in Pasco.

That last game was moved last week to Pasco because there aren’t enough officials for Friday night; plus remodeled Fran Rish Stadium isn’t quite ready to have a game played in it.

Walla Walla has the lone non-league game, and it’s still scheduled for 7 p.m., Friday, at West Valley in Yakima.

A quick outlook

There is no heavy favorite in the Mid-Columbia Conference this season.

Plenty of teams graduated talented seniors last June, but there is plenty of star power coming back (see list below).

Any one of five teams — Chiawana, Kamiakin, Kennewick, Richland and Southridge — could possibly win the MCC title this season.

Top players in 4A, 3A

Here are 16 players fans may want to keep an eye on this fall:

▪ Judah Bishop, senior, Chiawana. This standout wrestler was a second-team All-MCC pick last year on the defensive line. The Riverhawks will move him back to outside linebacker where he’ll quarterback the defense.

▪ Landon Charlton, senior, Richland. A three-way threat for the Bombers last year as a receiver, defensive back and kick returner, Charlton will be one of many targets for a high-powered offense.

▪ Lucien Cone, senior, Southridge. Cone was a first-team all-MCC wide receiver last season, and a second-team defensive back. Suns head coach Matt Johnson will try to get the ball into Cone’s hands as much as possible this season.

▪ Marco Elizondo, senior, Chiawana. Riverhawks coach Scott Bond absolutely loved Elizondo’s work ethic last season at wide receiver. Expect more of that this season.

▪ Isaya Galvez and Kelani Steward, seniors, Richland. I put these two together for a reason. Team Galvez with fellow linebacker Steward, and the Bombers will have a dominating defense. Galvez and Steward will be the heart of the D.

▪ Fabian Hernandez, senior, Kamiakin. As a junior last season, Hernandez caught his share of passes at wide receiver for a talented Braves team. He’ll be the locker room leader.

▪ Trevor Hoopes, senior, Southridge. The Suns have the skill players, but Hoopes will anchor the line. He was a second-team all-MCC pick last season as a defensive lineman.

▪ Brent Maldonado, senior, Sunnyside. He was a second-team All-Big Nine Conference wide receiver last year for the Grizzlies. But with three-year QB starter Logan Rodriguez graduated, Maldonado may also see time at QB.

▪ Carlos Orozco, senior, Kennewick. Orozco injured his need during the spring Covid season of 2021, so he missed the Lions’ run to the state 3A championship game last year rehabbing the knee. But he did enough as a defensive lineman his sophomore season that he made all-conference. He’s ready for 2022 and champing at the bit.

▪ Jimmy Rush, senior, Southridge. An apt name for a running back, Rush was a workhorse on offense last season. He’s also a very talented hockey player.

▪ Tanner Schuster, senior, Richland. Led all Bombers receivers last season with almost 500 receiving yards. Named second-team All-MCC at receiver. Will play both sides of the ball.

▪ Seth Shook, senior, Richland. The state caliber track hurdler was a second-team All-MCC wide receiver last season, and he is expected to be a top target for new Bombers QB Jace Woodard.

▪ Kade Smith, senior, Chiawana. This three-sport star (state 4A triple jump champ, all conference in boys basketball) will be the main target at wide receiver for new Riverhawks starting quarterback, D.J. Duran.

▪ Gabe Tahir, senior, Kamiakin. Tahir might lead the region with Division I scholarship offers, which includes Penn State, Hawaii, Boise State and Utah State. He’s pegged as a standout cornerback, but Kamiakin coach Scott Biglin will need him as a receiver too. Tahir will get a lot of touches.

▪ Ashton Tripp, senior, Kennewick. The Lions continue their recent tradition of having big, talented linemen. Tripp wasted little time this spring in verbally committing to Washington State University.

Quarterback news

There could be a lot of standout QBs this fall in the MCC. Max Martin is a senior at Southridge who started last year. He has already verbally committed to play baseball at Oregon. … Hanford’s Cole Mullins is battling cancer right now, and he may not be able to play. … D.J. Duran gets to start for Chiawana, now that three-year starter JP Zamora has graduated. … Andre Breedlove, who had some shining moments in the postseason, steps in at QB for Kennewick. … Josh Woodard, who is an outstanding basketball player, turned out for Richland and should be the Bombers’ starting QB.

This story was originally published August 31, 2022 at 12:59 PM.