In a perfect high school football world, there’s ideal balance in the classification breakdown of the lineup. That is to say that, on 45-player varsity roster, you have roughly 15 seniors, 15 juniors and 15 sophomores, all of whom have played together with members of their class and with members of the other classes enough that the units on both sides of the ball work in concert Friday night in and Friday night out.

Of course, that world doesn’t exist — certainly not in the lower classes, where finding 45 players program-wide can be a monumental task.

Hamlin coach Jason Botos has come really close this year, though. He has 44 players out for football this season between his varsity and junior varsity teams. What he doesn’t quite have is classification balance. With eight seniors, 12 juniors and the remaining roster members underclassmen, Botos has a relatively young team trying to improve on the 5-5 record Hamlin registered last fall.

With 18 starters returning for the 2024 season — nine on both sides of the ball — the Hamlin Pied Pipers look primed to take a big step forward after finishing 5-5 in Jason Botos’ inaugural season as head coach at the school.

But those aren’t even the numbers that excite Botos the most.

“We have 44 kids this summer,” Botos said as preseason workouts were winding down earlier this month. “It makes practice so much better when you have numbers.”