After being asked if his team was one of the Pine Tree Conference Class B favorites, Waterville football coach Frank Knight paused in midthought.

“Well… a week ago I would have thought we were,” he said. “Offensively, we could be capable of spreading people out, but our line is really green. Defensively, we’re pretty small and quick, but I have concerns and reservations about us stopping people.”

You’d think a coach coming off a 7-3 playoff season would be a bit more confident, but low numbers – Waterville has 40 total players out for the team, including freshmen – and inexperience up front have planted seeds of doubt.

Knight hopes those seeds don’t germinate and grow into a “developmental” year, but that will be determined by how quickly his offensive line matures and his defensive players develop both an identity and a comfort zone with all the other new faces.

The Purple Panthers have eight seniors but just two returning starters on offense and three on defense. They also have eight freshmen on the squad.

With a good nucleus of solid skill position players to build around, Knight’s hope is for the wing-T offense to hit the ground running and provide some room for error for the inexperienced, “50” (five-man front) defense.

After a year away from Waterville, Dan Hussey returns to take over quarterback duties, allowing sophomore Josh Gaudette to remain a wide receiver.

Senior Caleb Johnston is back to play halfback, junior Nolan MacDonnell is switching from fullback to wide receiver, and senior Jake Bizier takes over the fullback position.

“I think we’ll be highlighting our offensive skill players,” Knight said. “We shape up as a solid passing team and I think we can do things with an average line with those guys.”

The defense has good speed, so the Panthers will likely use a lot of shifting (from five- to four-man fronts) and blitzing to keep offenses guessing. The important factor is the unit’s inexperience, which may limit how much Knight is willing to gamble defensively.

The fact that Waterville’s inexperienced defensive players had to spend time this preseason learning to blitz is cause for concern, however.

“I think with eight of 12 teams making the playoffs, we can afford to struggle a little bit, especially early on, but it would be good if we could host a playoff game,” he said. “Right now, I think we’re right in the middle of the pack.”

WATERVILLE PURPLE PANTHERS

2006 results: 7-3, lost in PTC Class B semifinals

Head coach: Frank Knight, 18th year

Key players: Caleb Johnston, HB-DE, Sr.; Nick Gatz, OG-LB, Sr.; Nolan MacDonnell, WR, Jr.; Josh Gaudette, WR, So.; Jake Bizier, FB, Sr.; Kyle Bishop, QB, Fr.

Outlook: The Purple Panthers have serious depth issues and a lack of experience at key spots offensively and defensively, but the offensive backfield is not one of those spots and Knight hopes it can provide enough punch to stem the tide while Waterville’s defense develops and matures.