Bo Snyder reaches back to throw a pass during the Trojans’ scrimmage with Manchester last Friday. Snyder is one of a number of senior veterans back with the team this year. (Photo by James Costello)

BOURBON — Triton’s 2017 season was an exceptional one.

The Trojans set a slew of records on their way to an 8-4 finish, the program’s best in decades. But while many had seen such a breakthrough coming, others considered the finish a fluke. Triton is out to prove those doubters wrong in 2018.

“The way that they feel is that people think that it was just luck or magic last year, and they just want to go out and show that they can play nice, fundamental football and take care of the little things. To do it two years in a row, I think that will be a statement, so hopefully we end up doing that,” said Trojans head coach Ron Brown.

Triton’s many records last fall included program best for points scored in a season (363) and in a single game (70 in the team’s season-opener with South Newton), first downs both in a single game (26) and across a season (189), single-game and season passing yards (383 and 1,990) and single-game and season total offensive yards (542 and 3,897).

Quarterback Bo Snyder’s 114 passing completions for 1,985 yards and 23 touchdowns all set individual high marks, and he’s back for one more season with the squad. Returning junior Connor Pitney is also looking good at QB, giving the Trojans depth at the position.

IFCA Junior All-State wide receiver Delano Shumpert’s 44 receptions, 842 receiving yards and 14 TD catches also set Triton records, and he’s back for his senior season as well, alongside AP All-State Honorable Mention wide out Tye Orsund, who hauled in 26 catches for two TDs and 570 receiving yards and 936 all-purpose yards. Ethan Berry returns at running back after collecting 456 rushing yards last year, and Triton’s offensive line features a number of senior veterans in Connor Ousley, Billy Smith, Sheldon Rolston, Andrew Parker and Aaron Stichter.

Kaiden Atkins and Chance Baxter will give the Trojans a host of targets to throw to, and when you add some talented newcomers in lineman Caleb Lemler and running back Hunter McIntyre, Brown is feeling pretty confident in his team’s ability to move the chains.

“I think we have options to try to score. We’re not just one-dimensional. Last year being a 51 percent pass, 49 percent run, that’s pretty great. And I feel like we can spread the wealth around, and that’s always good, too,” he said.

Most of the above names will be defensive standouts for the team, too, with Orsund, Shumpert and Berry at defensive back, Snyder at safety and a promising newcomer in linebacker Jake Verdugo, and Triton’s defensive unit should look solid as well. As a defensive coordinator, Brown is never fully satisfied with what he’s seeing on defense, but he should at least have the personnel in place to be successful on that side of the ball.

“As a defensive coach, I always feel like something is going wrong or something is bad,” he said.

“I want my guys to react faster and get to their keys faster, but I feel like I have some guys in some areas that are going to do some great things. Tye Orsund, he covers the field, and he covers it fast. Same thing with Delano Shumpert. We’re going to see him more out there this year than last year because he’s injury-free.”

Maybe the biggest question mark for the squad this year is leadership. The Trojans lost a host of leaders to graduation last year, and Brown is still unsure of exactly who is going to step up and vill those voids in 2018.

“Really we’re focused on getting better every single day. I know that’s cliche, but I still have no idea what kind of team we have,” he said. “We lost a lot of great leadership last year. That’s something that for me I feel is big, and I don’t know who is going to step up yet and be those leaders. Drew Stichter is very hard to replace. Max Slusser is hard to replace. Tristan Young, Lee Mullett, Mathew Hefner, Vincent Helton, these kids that you didn’t hear their names a lot, but what they did on the team for our players that were very athletically gifted was amazing. They put those guys in great positions to make plays. So it’s going to be interesting to see what they’re going to do.”

Triton opens at South Central (Union Mills) Friday, then jumps into Hoosier North Athletic Conference play at home versus LaVille — which handed the Trojans a narrow, 10-7 loss in last year’s sectional championship — on Aug. 24.