The Oak Harbor High School football team is in a rut.

The Wildcats finished second three consecutive years, and each season followed a similar path. Oak Harbor went undefeated in league play until the final conference game, faced another undefeated team and lost the contest and the crown. Also, in each of those years, the Wildcats lost in the opening round of the playoffs.

In 2011, when all nine Wesco 3A teams were in one division, Oak Harbor fell to Meadowdale in the conference finale. The past two years the conference has been split into two five-team divisions, and Marysville-Pilchuck nudged Oak Harbor for the North title.

In one way, all those second-place place finishes is a good thing – it means the Wildcats are putting together solid seasons. Oak Harbor has averaged seven wins a year and appeared in the state top-10 polls during the run.

Oak Harbor returns a strong core of players this fall and, once again, should challenge for the title.

Marysville-Pilchuck, however, still firmly stands in the way. The Tomahawks  “probably their best team in a very long time,” said Oak Harbor head coach Jay Turner.

The Tomahawks are ranked third in the state in the preseason Associated Press 3A poll.

Turner also expects Stanwood and Arlington, which drops down into the Wesco 3A North after several years as a 4A school, to be “very good.”

“It will be a very competitive Wesco North.”

Oak Harbor’s assault on the title will be led by the eight players who earned league honors last fall: senior lineman Tyler Adamson (first team offense and defense), senior back Dejon Devroe (first team offense), senior lineman Jackson Constant (first team offense), junior wide receiver/defensive back Dyllan Harris (first team defense, second team offense), senior tight end/linebacker Mike Laningham (first team defense), senior lineman/linebacker Mark Johnston (first team defense, second team offense) and senior quarterback Clay Doughty (honorable mention).

The Wildcats return four of its five starting interior offensive lineman (Adamson, Constant, Johnston and senior Blaine Coleman) to protect Doughty and open holes for Devroe.

Doughty completed 30 of 67 passes for 583 yards and 10 touchdowns last season.

Devroe, who missed one game in 2013, was second in rushing with 903 yards on 115 carries, good for 7.85 yards per carry. Among the runs was a 91-yard TD, one of his team-leading 11 scores.

He was second in receiving: five catches for 73 yards.

Harris was the Wildcats’ leading receiver, snaring 14 catches for 357 yards (25.5 yards per catch) and five touchdowns. He also filled in at wingback when needed, rushing for 90 yards on 12 carries (a 7.5 average).

The Wildcats also return a bucketload of other letter winners: seniors Koby Cosper (OL/DL), Alex DeShong (WR/DL), Tyler Dodd (OL/DL), Chris Humphries (OL/DL) and Zach Jones (RB/LB); juniors Savion Hollins-Passmore (RB/DB), Quinn Karney (RB/LB), Taylor Kolste (QB/WR), Diangelo McKinney (RB/DB), Cameron Rector (OL/LB), Tyler Snavely (WB/DB), Cooper Stone (OL/DL), Ryan Valencia (RB/LB), Josiah Welch (WR/DB) and Zoren Yabao (OL/LB); and sophomore Princeton Lollar (RB/DL).

Key newcomers, Turner said, are senior David Ray (WR/DB) and sophomore Sam Zook (OL/DL).

Not surprisingly, the team’s strength is its experience, Turner said. “Our major weakness is that we have some depth issues at a few positions.”

Those depth problems could be tested early. Coleman, the starting right tackle, broke his hand and will miss a month. At one point in practice last week, the Wildcats were playing their fifth right tackle because of injuries to Coleman’s backups.

“We have very lofty expectations and goals, but in order to reach those goals we will need to be ready to play every Friday night,” Turner said. “Our goals include improving every week so that we are playing our best football at the end of the year. If we can accomplish this goal, then the rest of our goals will take care of themselves.”

The Wildcats will be tested early with two quality nonleague opponents. Oak Harbor hosts 4A Monroe at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 5, and then travels to perennial power Ferndale the following week.