One year after a drama-filled trip to the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs, Placer High football is back. And this year, the Hillmen are all business.

“Last year was difficult because we really didn’t know what was going on,” Placer senior linebacker Brett Lenz said. “This year’s been great. We’ve been playing good all year and we really earned our spot. This could be our last game, but if we play well, we have a chance to keep going.”

Placer (9-1) will host Foothill (7-3) tonight as the section’s revamped postseason format makes its debut. The Hillmen are the No. 3 seed in the Division IV-A bracket while Foothill is No. 6. The winner of the eight-team IV-A playoffs will face the IV-B champion for the section title in the division.

Foothill forged its way into the playoffs with a second place finish in the Capital Valley League, going 6-1. The Mustangs lost to CVL champion Dixon on Oct. 30, but closed out the regular season with impressive wins at home against Center and Rio Linda.

Much of Placer’s attention will go to Foothill senior Shavonce Raiford. The 6-0, 220-pound running back has rolled to 161.8 yards per game and 21 touchdowns on the season.

Placer’s dealt with speedy backs like Woodcreek’s James Nunley and Whitney’s Shawn Azam, but has rarely a true power back like Raiford.

“He’s big and he’s got good speed,” Placer coach Joey Montoya said of Raiford. “He’s a load to bring down and he really runs hard.”

“We have to have good fundamentals against him,” Lenz added. “We can definitely never go high on him. We’ve got to go low.”

Senior linebacker Fou Saechou leads the Mustangs with 107 tackles on the season. Speedy defensive lineman Josh Hsu has six of the team’s 34 sacks on the year.

Last season, Placer made its first trip to the playoffs since 2000 after an Oakland judge overturned the section’s ruling that made Placer’s Dalton Dyer ineligible for three games. Placer’s forfeits were reversed, resulting in the Hillmen claiming the No. 3 seed from the PVL. The Hillmen stunned top-seeded Oakdale and then beat Dixon before falling to Whitney in the section title game.

Placer is determined to get another shot at the section crown. The Hillmen will look to senior Asher Gotzmer to lead the way offensively. The speedy wingback has rushed for 1,241 yards and 16 touchdowns. He’s also got 626 receiving yards and six TD catches.

Gotzmer certainly isn’t Placer’s lone weapon. Dyer has put together an outstanding year, leading the Placer regulars with 9.26 yards per rush. Senior receiver Cameron Southward has six TDS and over 500 receiving yards.

Quarterback Collin Burnett has filled the largest void for Placer. The junior has completed nearly 58 percent of his passes for 1,348 yards and 12 TDs.

The Placer offense was hitting on all cylinders in a 28-19 victory over Whitney last week in the regular season finale. The Hillmen totaled 553 yards of offense.

The Placer defense overcame a poor first quarter to shut down the Wildcats. Since the third week of the season, only Colfax (27) has scored more than 20 points against the Hillmen.

“I think we’re starting to peak at the right time,” Montoya said. “I think we’ve got our best football ahead of us. The kids feel blessed to have a home playoff game and they’re prepared for a great Foothill team.”