When the state playoffs are held each year, it’s almost a foregone conclusion that the Starr’s Mill Panthers will be playing in the postseason.

Starr’s Mill has been open since 1997, and it has made the playoffs eight of the nine years it has been eligible, including the last three years.

Each of the last two seasons ended with the Panthers getting knocked out of the playoffs in the quarterfinals. They are hoping this upcoming season will be different; their goal is to get over the hump and play for a state championship.

It won’t be easy, though. Starr’s Mill’s defense is loaded — seven starters return — but questions abound on offense; its offense returns only one starter, and must replace Robby Davis, a three-year starter at quarterback.

Overall team depth is a significant question mark, as well.

“We’re very young on offense,” Starr’s Mill coach Mike Earwood said. “It’s a concern, but we should get better as the season goes along. We also have to build depth. For the first time ever, we will not have a JV program this year. Many players’ playing time will suffer a bit, but from a pure instructional standpoint, they’ll be better off, and it will help us depth-wise.”

Perhaps no player will have more pressure on him than first-year starting quarterback Matt Sweat (5-11, 185). He will be asked to take over for Davis, who signed with Navy, and direct the Panthers’ spread offense.

Sweat played in only two games as a quarterback last year — he started at outside linebacker — but Earwood feels Sweat has the talent and desire to succeed at the most important position on the field.

“Matt is a very heady, tough-minded kid,” Earwood said. “He’s very competitive and has a strong arm. Yes, it’s difficult to replace a three-year starter, but if we didn’t think Sweat could do it, we wouldn’t put him in there. I feel very strongly about him stepping in and learning quickly.”

Replacing last season’s potent 1-2 punch of running back Brandon Witta and fullback Greg Davis, both of whom graduated, also could prove difficult. Starr’s Mill enters the season with Spencer Penson (5-8, 165) and Isiah Carthern (5-10, 185) as its two starting running backs.

Penson runs low to the ground and is difficult to see behind the line of scrimmage. He has the toughness of a fullback and the speed of a tailback.

Carthern is a big, tough back who runs hard between the tackles.

The Panthers’ deep group of receivers is led by starters Dan Ellis (5-8, 155), Terrell Tripp (5-11, 160), Jared Rose (6-3, 175) and Lontrell Anderson (6-0, 170).

Ellis has reliable hands and is quick and dangerous in space; Rose, a possession-type receiver, is a huge target; and Tripp and Anderson are similar, with athleticism, speed and sharp route-running ability.

Duane Davis (6-1, 180), Theo Echols (5-6, 145), Matt Ossanna (5-10, 170) and Kyle Porche (5-11, 170) also will receive significant playing time as part of Starr’s Mill’s rotation at wide receiver.

Starr’s Mill’s offensive line is inexperienced — right tackle Cory Coleman (6-2, 270) is the lone returning starter on the offense side of the ball — but talented and big.

“Our offensive linemen have a chance to be pretty good if they continue to develop and make progress as they should,” Earwood said.

Joey Piazza (5-11, 200), a converted running back, starts at center. He’s small, but he is athletic and fast enough to pull and trap.

Right guard Diego Ibarra (6-0, 268) and left guard Drew Norton (6-2, 280) provide size and strength on the interior of Starr’s Mill’s offensive line.

Right tackle Coleman and left tackle Ryan LaRocca (6-0, 220) are perfect fits for the spread offense. Both are quick, athletic and have nimble feet.

Starr’s Mill’s defense could be the best in the region. The seven returning starters are defensive tackle Blake Debartola (6-0, 255), nose tackle Blake Dever (5-9, 200), inside linebackers Chris Sudduth (5-10, 190) and Parker duPont (6-0, 205), outside linebacker Stephen Roberts (6-3, 195) and cornerbacks Nick Fevella (5-11, 175) and Santrez Collier (5-10, 160).

“Overall, our defense is a very solid unit,” Earwood said. “We feel very good about our defense.”

The Panthers’ 3-4 defense starts up front with one of the region’s top defensive ends, Debartola. He has a nonstop motor and the strength to collapse the pocket and be a force against the run.

The other starting defensive end is Nate Baker (6-0, 227), who is strong and plays until the whistle is blown.

Dever is an ideal fit at nose tackle in Starr’s Mill’s defense — he is powerful and gets off the ball quickly.

The heart and soul of Starr’s Mill’s defense is its linebackers: Sudduth, duPont, Roberts and Adam Armagost (6-5, 190).

Sudduth and duPont are a formidable tandem at inside linebacker. Sudduth is undersized, but that hasn’t kept him from being a sideline-to-sideline difference-maker; he had a team-high 142 tackles last season. DuPont has the size and strength — he bench-presses 355 pounds and squats 485 pounds — to take on blockers, shed them and make tackles.

“Without a doubt, our inside linebackers are the strength of the team,” Earwood said. “They are as good as any two linebackers you could want.

“Sudduth is a testament that you don’t have to be tall or huge to be a great linebacker. He does a great job for us. duPont is as a hard a working, tough kid as I’ve ever been around. He’s a stallion who is tough and has no fear.”

Starr’s Mill has two fast, athletic outside linebacker who can rush the passer: Roberts and Armagost. Both have a tremendous upside.

Fevella and Collier are two experienced, exceptional cornerbacks who excel in both man-to-man and zone coverage.

Starr’s Mill is not as experienced at safety. Anthony Fasolino (5-11, 155) and Ken Jackson (6-1, 185) are vying to start at free safety. Chris Nowicki (5-11, 170) is a first-year starter at strong safety.

The Panthers have two options at kicker, Fevella and Sam Martin (6-1, 180), and at punter, Fevella and Chris Ward (6-0, 170).

Starr’s Mill will have to overcome a difficult schedule to return to the playoffs. It opens at the Georgia Dome once again, facing Cherokee, and plays a highly competitive region schedule that features a host of teams that have a shot at reaching the state playoffs: Creekside, Westlake, Whitewater and Fayette County, among others.

“It’s difficult to open up in the Corky Kell Classic; you always get a tough game there,” Earwood said. “And we face teams in the region that are athletic and talented: Creekside, Westlake and Fayette County. As always, we’ll get everybody’s A-game.”

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