Change is afoot in Class A football, where the far-flung, 13-team Western A of yesteryear has been split into two and we’re back to a six-team Northwest A conference.

The bad news is that three of those six teams will miss the 12-team A playoff bracket this fall.

“This is a tough conference to compete in,” Polson coach Carson Oakland said. “I think you’re going to leave one team out of the playoffs that’s going to be pretty good.”

We can include the Polson Pirates on that list; they’ll be chasing Columbia Falls, Bigfork and Whitefish — all playoff teams in 2024 — for a spot in the postseason.

Columbia Falls is the favorite, with a ton of All-State and all-conference kids back from a 7-3 campaign.

Quarterback Banyan Johnston, a junior, will trigger an offense that includes receivers E

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