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A new wrinkle we added this year, the preseason all-area team wasn't very easy to put together. But I'm sure these guys will make me look somewhat smart.

OFFENSE
QB - Thomas Carter, Sr., Cajon
RB - Dillon Pretzinger, Sr., Rim of the World
RB - Jeremiah Armstead, Sr., Oak Hills
RB - Tyler Ervin, Sr., Colton
WR - Paul Pitts, Sr., Los Osos
WR - Angel Rivera, Sr., Arroyo Valley
TE - Rodney Hardrick, Sr., Colton
OL - Jamal Prater, Sr., Etiwanda
OL - Jordan Smith, Sr., Redlands
OL - Hector Sotelo, Sr., Serrano
OL - Gary Dixon, Sr., Summit
OL - Jesus Cortez, Sr., Chaffey
Util - Devon Blackmon, Sr., Summit
K - Cody Madsen, Sr., Redlands East Valley

DEFENSE
DL - Ethan Hillyer, Sr., Serrano
DL - John Siliga, Sr., Redlands
DL - Devon Lewis, Sr., Redlands East Valley
DL - Kyle Jerkins, Sr., Apple Valley
LB - Devan Hussey, Sr., Colton
LB - Dennis Taylor, Sr., Kaiser
LB - Jamal Wilson, Sr., Miller
LB - Jimmy Musgrave, Sr., Silverado
DB - Ifo Ekpre-Olomu, Sr., Chino Hills
DB - Josh Armstrong, Sr., Redlands East Valley
DB - Desman Carter, Sr., Kaiser
DB - Demontae Kazee, Jr., Cajon
Util - Sateki Finau, Sr., Rancho Cucamonga
P - Jake Van Ginkel, Sr., Upland

If you blinked last year, you probably missed a Silverado scoring drive. With explosive dual-threat quarterback Jemeryn Jenkins throwing to big-play wide receiver Fred Rosser to go along with the shifty running of running back Ayele Forde, the Hawks put up points in a rapid-fire fashion. But with the above three players having graduated, Silverado coach Carl Posey is looking to slow his team's pace a bit.

"It seemed like no matter what we did, we were off the field in two minutes," Posey said. "We'd either break a long touchdown with those guys or we'd go three and out and punt. Either way, our defense was on the field a lot. We did pretty well defensively but we lost almost everyone from that side of the ball last year and I don't want to put that much on that."

Protecting a defense that has lost a bulk of its starters isn't the only reason for Silverado's change in approach. Quite frankly, losing the combined skill of Jenkins, Rosser and Forde is almost impossible to replace and the players set to do that bring different things to the table.

The breakdown of Silverado's 2008 season was unique to say the least. An 0-6 start with a brutal nonleague schedule turned into a 3-7 Desert Sky League co-championship regular season, which subsequently turned into a run into the Eastern Division semifinals.

As 5-8 seasons go, the one the Hawks had was pretty darn good. And with another extremely difficult nonleague slate featuring the likes of Gardena Serra, Silverado, Quartz Hill, Palm Desert and Summit in the works, don't be surprised if Silverado has another seemingly slow start followed by another bang-up finish.