OTHELLO - The Othello Huskies have been a mainstay in the 2A state playoffs.

Othello has qualified for the state tournament 17 straight years, the longest such streak at the 2A classification.

To do so in a league like the CWAC that field perennial powers Ellensburg and Prosser makes the streak all the more impressive.

Last season, Othello advanced to the quarterfinals of the state playoffs while Ellensburg and Prosser each advanced to the semifinals.

"Regardless of the league it's all hard," head coach Roger Hoell said. "There's so many great teams and people that are well coached with great athletes.

"It's just too hard to do, but luckily for our kids they've bought into it and believe in it and that's the expectation now. It becomes something that's almost like required now if you're going to be a part of it to get to the state playoffs."

A year ago, Othello finished 8-2 overall and 7-2 in the CWAC.

The two blemishes came against, of course, Ellensburg and Prosser.

Othello was also eliminated from the state playoffs by the Bulldogs, 20-13.

Both those regular season games - as well as the state playoff game - were on the road a season ago. Now, the Huskies will host both schools, however, payback isn't what drives Othello.

"You have to play it year-by-year," Hoell said. "We'll see where we're at when we play them.

"You know they're going to be great football games anyway 'cause we always have to play each other to get in the state playoffs or play each other in the state playoffs ... It's hard to say right now until you play the games, but every year is different and you can't use payback as something to motivate you because you have different kids."

There was a slight shuffle in the CWAC this year as West Valley (Yakima) jumped up to the 4A Columbia Basin Big 9 conference, replaced by Quincy who came from the 1A Caribou Trail League.

Hoell likes the steadiness of an even numbered amount of opponents.

"It's nice to have a 10-team league," he said. "It's fun to play West Valley as it's going to be fun to play Quincy as well."

Adrian Garza returns as the starting quarterback. The sophomore will look to improve on a freshman year that ended in the state quarterfinals.

"He's a natural athlete," Hoell said. "I don't think anything bugs him whether bad or good. He has a real great temperament about him - doesn't get rattled. You can only hope for the best because he's got a year of experience under his belt. Kid can only get better."

Othello also boasts a capable backup quarterback in junior Alex Garcia who started some games as a sophomore.

"That's another luxury," Hoell said. "Something invaluable ... To have the kind of backup we have 'cause he's made tremendous strides."

The Huskies begin their season Friday against Connell - a strong 1A program from the SCAC East.

Hoell and the Huskies are ready to begin their march back to the state playoffs for the 18th straight season.

"We have great kids, we have huge numbers," he said. "Over 100 kids turned out this year. This is the most since we've been here in 21 years and it's just a great group of kids."