More than three hours.

That’s how long the Interlake Saints stayed in the locker room at Bellingham’s Civic Stadium following last November’s playoff loss to Lynden.

No player on the Saints wanted to exit that locker room following the 34-0 defeat to the eventual 2A state champions. So there they sat, for more than three hours, trying to take in what had just transpired on the field.

“Nobody wanted to leave,” said Interlake coach Sheldon Cross. “The seniors didn’t want to take off their pads. Our underclassman just said ‘guys, we can’t let this happen again.’

“We know we didn’t give them our best shot. And that does not sit well with us.”

It’s fitting it comes down to this group of seniors to finish what the Saints started last season, when the team made its first playoff appearance since 1985. These seniors, after all, were sophomores when Cross first took over the program from Luke Huard in 2007; they’ve helped lead the team from a 2-8 record in Cross’s first season, to 6-5 last year.

“They’ve got some business to finish,” Cross said.

The Saints look to be loaded offensively in 2009, as the team returns all 11 starters from last year’s explosive offense, including Division-I prospect Brett Kirschner at running back, and all-state wide receiver Dylan Amell.

“This is the first time I’ve ever been a part of a football program in my entire life where we have 11 of 11 starts, every single one, back,” said Cross, a former Iowa Wesleyan College quarterback who also won a European Federation of American Football Cup with the Graz Giants of Austria.

Kirschner rolled up 624 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground last year, while Amell broke KingCo records with 70 receptions for 1,424 yards and 18 touchdowns. Returning at quarterback for the Saints will be agile junior Matt Malos, who passed for 2,256 yards and 24 touchdowns last season.

“Last year, I was going up against guys two years older than me,” Malos said. “Now, I’m more experienced and the game seems a lot slower.”

Besides Amell, the Saints have several receiving options including Ricky Aaron, Bobby Mueller and Matt Mwangi; Cross hopes the potent passing attack combined with the running threat of Kirschner and Malos will pose a tough task for opposing defenses.

“We have really stressed to the team that we want to make it so [opponents] have to defend the entire field and everyone on it,” said Cross, comparing his offense to that of the University of Oregon. “If they bring everybody into the box to try and stop Brett, we have a high-octane passing game that will take what they can get. And if they drop everyone into coverage, we have Brett and Matt back there.”

Defensively, the Saints were hit with losses, as defensive backs Christian Larzalere and Chris Motley both graduated. They do return cornerback Genki Kawashima, who picked off four passes last season, as well as defensive end Patrick Lindsley and linebacker Evan Spading.

“A lot of the guys filling in the spots played quite a bit last year,” Cross said. “We’re going to try and create havoc and turnovers, and hit people in the mouth. We know we’ve had success offensively, but we have a lot of pride in our defense now.”

The Saints open the season Sept. 4 at Ingraham. The team defeated the Rams 41-0 last year in both team’s season-opener. Interlake will not play a 2A team until the playoffs.

“The Lynden’s, the Archbishop Murphy’s, the Prosser’s, we know those teams will be there in the end,” Cross said. “There are some really good 2A teams and I think we are one of them.”

The seniors say they won’t allow another post-game locker room like the one in Bellingham last season. Now, they have to prove it.

“We expect 100 percent each play of out everyone,” Kirschner said. “We expect a state championship.”

SCHEDULE

Sept. 4 at Ingraham

Sept. 11 at Yelm

Sept. 17 vs. Mount Si

Sept. 25 at Mercer Island

Oct. 2 vs. Sammamish

Oct. 9 at Juanita

Oct. 16 vs. Liberty

Oct. 22 at Mount Rainier

Oct. 30 at Bellevue

WHO TO WATCH FOR

QB Matt Malos, Jr.

*Dual-threat quarterback passed for 2,256 yards and 24 touchdowns as a sophomore; should be better in second-year behind center.

RB Brett Kirschner, Sr.

*Senior running back is getting Pac-10 attention after solid sophomore and junior campaigns. Averaged 104 yards per game on the ground in 2008.

WR Dylan Amell, Sr.

*Amell destroyed KingCo receiving records with a 70-reception, 1,424-yard, 18-touchdown performance in 2008; should only improve in 2009.