Oakley's quest to return to its third consecutive Class 1A Division I state football championship game begins at noon Saturday as the undefeated and No. 2-ranked Hornets (9-0) host Notus (7-2), the No. 2 seed from District III.

The Hornets are chomping at the bit.

"The biggest issue that we have right now is the waiting," said Oakley coach Tim Behunin. "The kids are at the point that they want to play. They're excited to have the opportunity to be in the playoffs again."

Besides the nagging bumps and bruises every football team is dealing with this time of year, the Hornets are healthy. The season-ending injury to two-way starter Payson Bedke earlier this season has been the only speed bump along Oakley's journey toward its third straight undefeated regular season and Snake River Conference title.

But the start of the playoffs brings a new set of expectations and level of opposition.

Notus, which needed a Kansas City playoff to break a three-way tie just to earn a spot in the postseason, has a solid running game out of the Double Wing - the same offensive set that Raft River used to give Oakley fits this season. The key for the Oakley defense is to stay home and stick to assignments.

"We feel good going into it that our defense has played extremely well throughout the year," Behunin said. "And we feel like our offense is gelling, too."

Oakley's offense has averaged 51.3 points per outing. The Hornets have done well to establish a consistent running game, control the line of scrimmage and sustain drives. Moreover, Oakley hasn't put its defense in many bad situations by committing turnovers or surrendering field position.

More than anything, though, Oakley will have to guard against complacency. Since losing the state title game to Prairie last year, the Hornets can't help but crave revenge. With Prairie coming up the other side of the bracket,it would be easy to look ahead to a potential championship rematch. Oakley simply can't affordto overlook these early rounds.

"We know what our task at hand is," Behunin said. "If you can't get the job done, it's over.

"It's exciting as we work toward a common goal. It's exciting to get an opportunity against the best teams to see where we ultimately match up and how good we really are," Behunin said.