PJ Smith (6) of Oak Hill celebrates with his teammates after he intercepted a pass intended for Brody Adams of Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale during a Nov. 4 game in Wales. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal

It’s gone from Maine’s smallest high school football classification to its most robust — and one region of Class D in particular is brimming.

There’s a load of contenders in Class D South in 2024 with the top teams bringing back a host of talent from deep runs a year ago. The region also welcomes three new teams back from the eight-man ranks this fall.

“You look at a team like ours, and we have a lot of guys who are back on both sides of the ball, but there’s a lot of other teams that are in the same situation as we are,” said Oak Hill head coach Chad Stowell. “You also have some new teams coming in that will add to the league. It should be a competitive year.”

Central Maine is one of the places at the heart of the excitement. There’s two local teams, Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale and Oak Hill, ready to compete for a championship in D South, while another, Maranacook, adds some new flavor to a league that’s suddenly among the state’s most intriguing.

It’s hard to find a central Maine team that ended the 2023 season with more reason for optimism than Winthrop. After a 1-3 start, the Ramblers won six straight before falling in the D South title game to finish 7-4. They did so with only one senior, meaning all 11 offensive starters and 10 defensive return.

Among those returning starters is Cody Cobb, who ran for 876 yards and 11 touchdowns on offense and led the defense with 69 tackles. Carter Rivers, who rushed for 956 yards, gives Winthrop’s run game another dimension. Hunter Reynolds and Brock Dewar, who combined for 44 tackles for loss, lead a stout defensive line.

Joel Stoneton is back as Winthrop’s head coach after previously holding that post from 2004-13. Stoneton spent the next decade as the school’s athletic director and the defensive coordinator under Dave St. Hilaire, who retired in January. Stoneton knew the potential of this group when he took over, and that opinion has only been reinforced since.

“We had a great year at the (7-on-7s) over the summer — we won the big man’s camp up in Skowhegan — so we’re feeling good,” Stoneton said. “I think the juggle is going to be to keep them in check, but we have a really great group of kids, and there’s a lot to be excited about.”

Oak Hill, though, isn’t far behind Winthrop. The Raiders had a similar season arc last year, starting 0-3 before rattling off five straight wins, including a 20-12 win over the Ramblers in Week 5. It took a last-second field goal for Winthrop to knock off Oak Hill 17-14 in last year’s D South semifinals.

Sacopee Valley’s Austin Croteau chases Maranacook’s Cobey Dunn out of bounds during an eight man football quarterfinal game Oct. 21 in Readfield. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal

Quarterback Kai Taylor has transferred out-of-state, but the bulk of Oak Hill’s roster is still back. In running back and linebacker Kaiden Delano, the Raiders have one of Class D’s best players. Braden Dubuc has slotted in nicely at quarterback, and Stowell’s team is athletic on the lines with Logan Langlois and Forrest St. Laurent.

“We’ve got to preach speed on both sides of the ball,” Stowell said. “We return basically our entire defense that really clicked after Week 3, so we’re going to hang our hat on that, and on offense, we’re going to preach balance. If we can make teams have to defend all 11, we feel like we can exploit some matchups.”

Jumping back into the 11-man fray is Maranacook, which had winning seasons all four years at the eight-man level. The Black Bears hope to continue that with two solid running back/linebackers in Jack Crosby and Cobey Dunn, and head coach Skip Bessey also likes the look of his new quarterback, Parker Rand.

“He’s a kid who had never played quarterback before but went to all the passing camps this summer, which I really wanted him to go to,” Bessey said. “I mean, he can throw the ball a mile, so it’s just about getting his footwork down and learning the reads in our scheme, which is going to be easy.”

Region-wide, Wells has yet to lose a regional (or even a state) title in its three seasons in Class D South in 2017, 2018 and last year, and the Warriors are the favorites even as the others have improved. Stoneton also expects a stern challenge from Mountain Valley, and Lisbon, Stowell added, should be vastly improved.

Winslow’s Liem Fortin, left, runs against Nokomis defender Sean Calloway during a football game Sept. 18 in Newport. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel

Winslow made its Class D North debut last year, going 4-6 and reaching the regional semis. Yet the Black Raiders were better than their record would suggest as they were competitive in every game with an exception of a 62-7 defeat to Foxcroft in that D North semifinal showdown.

Standout Matt Quirion has graduated, but fortunately for Winslow, he’s about the only loss. Liem Fortin and Hassan Hobbi will look to replace his production at back, and Tucker Pomerleau returns at quarterback after missing most of 2023 with a broken collarbone. Seth Bard, Lucas Spencer and Ben Thomas lead a sturdy offensive line.

“We’ve lost a couple people at the end spot, but we’re pretty excited that we’ve got most of our line back; I think we’re in pretty good shape there,” said Winslow head coach Wes Littlefield. “Tucker can sling it, so it’s nice to be able to have him back. We didn’t have him at all in the regular season last year.”

Maine Central Institute struggled to a 1-8 season last year, but the Huskies are in a much better spot as 2024 begins. Quarterback Caleb Kennedy and receivers Drew Shorey lead what should be a promising passing game for MCI, which has 30 players this year after suiting up just 17 in Week 1 a year ago.

After losing 16 straight since winning its 2022 opener, Madison aims to get back in the win column this fall. The Bulldogs return much of last year’s roster, including Nate Cornforth at tight end and defensive end, Mason Courtney on both lines and Jacob Hilenski at running back and linebacker.

Statewide, like Wells in Class D South, Foxcroft has won D North titles each year the region has been contested since 2017 and will be favored to do so again in 2024. John Bapst, which returns six starters on both sides of the ball, will look to improve on a breakthrough 7-3 season a year ago.

In the eight-man ranks, Waterville is a bit younger this year after racking up five Large School North playoff wins over the past three seasons, though the Purple Panthers do have returning talent on their lines in Xander Kornsey and Liam Pelotte. At quarterback, Damien Prindall makes the jump from JV to start for varsity.

“We’re young, but I love these guys’ willingness to learn,” said Waterville head coach Isaac LeBlanc. “They’re going to scrap, they push hard, and they care. We’re getting better; we had a solid preseason taking on the cream of the crop in MDI and Orono, and I’m glad we went through those experiences.”

Like Madison, Mount View is also looking to snap a long losing streak, that one a 15-game skid dating back to Week 3 of the 2022 season. The Mustangs have a new head coach in Gerald Hartley, who’ll have one of eight-man’s biggest players at his disposal in 6-foot-5, 295-pound Jayden Hasenbank.

Large School North is down to a statewide class this year, meaning Waterville will play Mt. Ararat and MDI, likely the two favorites for the state title. They’ll also play a crossover game at Old Orchard Beach, who could be on a collision course with Orono for a rematch in the Small School state final.