District 5-AA football at a glance* Team on the rise: McMinn Central, Loudon and Sweetwater all return the bulk of their starters from a year ago, but Sweetwater struggled in a preseason scrimmage against Oneida, and Loudon's down year in 2013 was only its second losing season since 2004. That leaves the Chargers, who are seeking to finish above .500 for the first time since going 7-4 in 2009.* Team on the decline: It could be Polk County, although the Wildcats still will carrry the moniker of district favorites. A little less than half the defensive starters return this season, and even fewer starters return on offense. The Wildcats have also gone from regularly fielding 70-plus-player squads to a little more than 50 this year.* Toughest schedule: Polk County's nondistrict road schedule consists of trips to Class 6A teams Bradley Central and Walker Valley and to Notre Dame, the team that eliminated the Wildcats from the Class 4A state playoffs last season. The nondistrict home schedule features a game with 2013 Class 1A state runner-up South Pittsburg and dates also with Class 4A playoff teams Central and East Ridge.* Dream schedule: Loudon also has East Ridge on its home schedule this season, but even with the Pioneers included, the combined 2013 records of the Redskins' nondistrict opponents is 14-49.* Players to watch: Polk County senior Isaac Smith moves into the starting role at quarterback. He'll also be counted on to help at free safety after playing linebacker last season. Sophomore Seth Sloan is the Wildcats' new fullback, and he'll remain in the rotation at defensive tackle. Senior guard Keegan Ingram is a mainstay on the line. McMinn Central has an extremely versatile player in senior Luke Davis, whose skill set ranges from the ability to play quarterback to middle linebacker. Senior Josh Knight is a returning starter and a worthy pass rusher. The Chargers need someone to emerge at quarterback so they can get the ball to senior speedster Ryann Dahle.* Predicted order of finish: Polk County has presided over the district for the last five years and, despite overall numbers and numbers of returning starters being down, is still the standard-bearer. McMinn Central graduated two of the best players in the district, and in the state in Class AA for that matter, in running back Denzell Boyd and linebacker Gage Johnson. But the Chargers return starters to 15 of 22 spots from a 4-6 team that played Polk County within a touchdown last year. Loudon had an uncharacteristic 3-7 season in 2013 after going a combined 65-30 since 2005 with state-playoff berths in seven of eight seasons. Nine starters back on both sides should lead a return to prominence. Sweetwater (4-6 in 2013) returns more than Sequoyah (9-3, lost to Hixson in second round of the 4A playoffs). However, if preseason scrimmages are any indication, Sweetwater struggled against a good running game while the Chiefs' passing game stood up at Maryville College against larger schools in 7-on-7 workouts.