Ripon had high hopes for 2025 with an athletic junior class blending with an experienced cohort of seniors led by accomplished linemen.

The season did not go as expected.

Ripon dropped its Trans Valley League opener to Hughson and later ended the campaign on a five-game skid. Most defeats were competitive and came down to a few moments. That was the case in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division VI opener in which Ripon gave No. 2-seeded Liberty Ranch all it could handle in a 30-28 near-upset.

Although it was an encouraging effort for returning players, the loss put Ripon at 5-6 for the season, marking the fourth straight sub-.500 record for a program that captured a state title just six years prior.

This could be the year that Ripon returns to its winning ways. Cole Williams, going into his second season as head coach, is meshing two classes that both went undefeated at the lower levels.

“It’s an exciting outlook with the talent that is there, but like I’ve been telling everybody from day 1; talent and potential are all great, but that doesn’t mean anything because we haven’t done anything,” Williams said. “We’re trying to put it together and jell as one. We’re excited with the direction and how things are going and developing. There is good depth in spots, poor depth in others, so keeping everybody healthy is most important for us right now. If we can get through the season, it could be a pretty good year for us.”

Williams sought out stiffer competition to help his team better prepare for the rigors of the TVL. On slate are four playoff teams in higher divisions.

The seniors learned many hard lessons in their first varsity go-around. And they don’t want their younger teammates to make the some of the same mistakes.

“A lot of ups and downs,” returning quarterback Andrew Shaw said. “We started off pretty strong, but it’s tough to play in the Trans Valley League. We were very junior-heavy, and the inexperience, from myself included, we had in those games showed in those typical, TVL grind-out games.

“I just think the biggest thing we can help (the juniors) with is dealing with adversity. They have to realize we’re not going to win every game, or put the running clock on everyone. When we’re in tough games late in the fourth quarter, that’s OK. That’s going to happen, and we’re going to have to play through adversity.”

In a Gun-T Offense that uses all of its weapons, Shaw is the centerpiece. He was Ripon’s second-leading rusher in the regular season and was involved in nearly half of the 49 touchdowns scored, passing for 10 and rushing for 12.

“Andrew plays a huge role with his throwing ability, but not only that, his scrambling and running,” senior wing back Matthew Gaines said. “He has wheels on him and can really move. That just opens up our offense a lot and gives us the ability to do a lot of different things.”

On a team stacked with skill-position players, Williams anticipates a breakout from Gaines, who is drawing interest from college programs. He produces as both runner and pass catcher, special-teams returner and is a returning All-TVL Second-Team outside linebacker.

Also back is leading rusher Kael Rangel, who missed two games with a concussion. He’ll again split carries with Ace Dougherty.

All-league second-team tight end Jude Viss is a big target for Shaw at 6-foot-4, 190 pounds, and Gavin Decena returns at slot. Juniors such as Gavin Duran, Josiah Perez and Jacoby Salinas add depth at the skill positions, and they’ll be immediate contributors in the defensive secondary.

“I feel like we’re just as talented and athletic as anyone in league,” Shaw said. “If we can be a little more physical this year and keep our emotions intact late in games, we can be as good as anyone else. For where we are, the sky’s the limit.”

For as much depth as there is at the skill positions, Ripon lacks the numbers and size up front.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t quality linemen. All-TVL Second-Team center Brayden McDowell returns with Lorenzo Hernandez, Matthew Scheffel and Sam Torkelson, who missed much of last season with a knee injury. Ryder Shelton will join the seniors after anchoring the 10-0 JV team’s O-line.

“In the skill positions, we’re really deep, but up front, we’re not,” Williams said. “We have to manage our guys up front, because we’re pretty light there. What we do have is good, so we’re not hurting in that regard. Quality-wise, we’re very excited with where we’re at.”

On the other side of scrimmage, former head coach Chris Musseman has taken over as defensive coordinator. Williams served as DC for Musseman in 2019 when Ripon earned its state crown.

“We’ve been down on the defensive side for a few years, and we want to bring it back to the forefront for Ripon football,” Williams said. “We used to always have a defense that would come at you, and that’s our intention this year. We want to break it down and keep it simple to let the kids play fast.”

Ripon will have to rely on speed at every level of the defense. Gone are the likes of three-year starter Tipeti Paini, the reigning Outstanding Defensive Lineman in the TVL.

Xabriel Reyes returns as an outside linebacker, and Ripon has a deep rotation of inside linebackers including junior Joshua Gonzalez, senior Jaden Becerra, Rangel and Scheffel. Decena and Dougherty offer experience in the otherwise junior-loaded defensive backfield.

“I feel like we have a really good mix,” Gaines said. “The class below us (seniors) adds a lot to our secondary. I think we have really good speed. We lost some big guys (to graduation), but we improved with a good amount of speed that should make up for the lack of size.”

With these two talented classes combined, Ripon is challenging some heavyweights to get ready for league. On slate are four teams that made the playoffs last year in Livermore, Placer, Tracy and Pitman.

“I’m excited for the challenge,” Shaw said. “We like the hard games, and it’s going to be more difficult this year. Tracy is a really good program, but so are Placer and Livermore. It’s going to help us get ready for that tough TVL schedule.”