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Seneca Valley head football coach Fred Kim called it the best class he has ever coached. You remember the names: Joe Rankin, George Lerch, Mark Henderson, Xavier Hughes, and countless others.

The defending Class 3A West Region champion does not have that same star power this fall, but do not count the Screaming Eagles out for a second.

"Here at Seneca Valley, every time we step foot on the gridiron we expect to win," Kim said. "We want to win state championships and nothing less is acceptable. We do not have one guy out there who is going to carry the load. The guys are pushing hard and working for the team concept."

Seneca returns only one starting player: Inside linebacker Pierre Hinton (5-foot-9, 185 pounds). But it has several talented underclassmen chomping at the bit for their chance to shine.

Junior Max Nicholson (5-10, 170) will step in at quarterback for three-year starter George Lerch. Despite his lack of varsity snaps, Nicholson has proven to be versatile. Speedy junior wide receiver Dimitri Parker (5-10, 175) was dominant in summer passing leagues and will be a top offensive threat.

Bernard Wolley (5-9, 215) will double as running back and nose guard. He started the final three games of 2008 and led the team in tackles for loss.

That atmosphere, Kim said, could be one of Seneca's biggest strengths this season. And if everyone fills his role successfully, the Screaming Eagles fit together quite nicely.

"We are not going to change anything we do; we are going to play with the same offensive and defensive philosophy," Kim said. "We might scale it down but we will have the same basis behind everything we do. … We will not change anything but we might tailor to some of our strengths."

The Screaming Eagles had a lot of strengths last year, going unbeaten in the regular season and advancing the Class 3A state semifinals. A heartbreaking overtime loss to eventual class champion Westlake thwarted their quest for a record 13th Maryland state title.

"Certainly these [new] guys saw through all of the seniors last year how it is supposed to be done," Kim said. "That is the way we do things. We show the underclassmen the way to practice, the way to perform and the way to execute. Every year we always have our senior class put a stamp and show the younger kids the Seneca Valley way. This year's guys learned a lot from one of the best teams we have ever had."

Seneca Valley

Head coach: Fred Kim, 5th year (48-11 record; 7th overall, 59-19)

League: Montgomery 3A

Last year's record: 12-1

Last playoff appearance: 2008 (25th)

Last state title: 2002 (12th)

Players to watch: QB Max Nicholson, LB Pierre Hinton, WR/DB Dimitri Parker, RB/NG Bernard Wolley

2008 results

Sept. 5 — Watkins Mill (W), 36-0

Sept. 12 — Northwest (W), 6-0

Sept. 19 — B-CC (W), 53-7

Sept. 26 — Paint Branch (W), 27-6

Oct. 3 — Richard Montgomery (W), 41-0

Oct. 10 — Wheaton (W), 49-0

Oct. 17 — Kennedy (W), 50-0

Oct. 24 — Damascus (W), 13-7

Oct. 31 — Churchill (W), 32-21

Nov. 7 — Einstein (W), 49-0

Nov. 14 — Damascus (W), 27-26*

Nov. 21 — Urbana (W), 35-21*

Nov. 28 — Westlake (L), 24-21 (OT)*

* playoff game

2009 schedule

Sept. 4 — at Clarksburg, 6:30 p.m.

Sept. 11 — Churchill, 6:30 p.m.

Sept. 17 — at Einstein, 6:30 p.m.

Sept. 25 — Damascus, 6:30 p.m.

Oct. 2 — Kennedy, 6:30 p.m.

Oct. 9 — at Northwest, 6:30 p.m.

Oct. 16 — Blake, 6:30 p.m.

Oct. 23 — at Quince Orchard, 6:30 p.m.

Oct. 30 — Whitman, 6:30 p.m.

Nov. 6 — at Watkins Mill, 6:30 p.m.