LISBON FALLS – And then there was one.

Twelve schools in the Sun Journal coverage area play varsity football, and a dozen weeks ago there was at least one reason to be enthusiastic about each of them.

Lewiston and Edward Little were the reigning Pine Tree Conference finalists. Leavitt, Mountain Valley and Winthrop each made it to the regional championship round last fall.

Mount Blue welcomed back more seniors than some smaller schools boast total players. Oxford Hills featured a well-rounded athlete at every skill position. Oak Hill moved from Class C to B, which seemed appropriate given the recent upward mobility of the Raiders’ program.

Livermore Falls carried a three-game winning streak into the fray from last fall and christened the new campaign in the same fashion. Jay flaunted the premier pure passing quarterback in the Campbell Conference in Justin Wells and a wealth of worthy, willing targets with whom he could play catch. And everything was new and exciting in the camp of the co-operative team at Buckfield/Dirigo.

So it’s been quite a …

Wait a second. Ever get the feeling you’re forgetting someone?

Oh, yeah. The Lisbon Greyhounds.

They aren’t bad, either.

Note the present tense. After their third shutout in five weeks, Saturday’s windswept 26-0 Western Class C semifinal thumping of Livermore Falls, Lisbon’s quest for only the fourth unbeaten season in school history continues.

As is customary with the boys in black-and-white, Lisbon is easy to underestimate. The Greyhounds are living proof that perception is not always reality.

Win as they might, more impressively with each passing Saturday, the ‘Hounds still look younger and smaller than everyone they play. And call us crazy, but those of us paid to consider the depth charts, recent history and alignment of the planets and make predictions about such matters will find it more difficult to circle Lisbon’s name as they dig deeper into the month of November.

Next weekend, Lisbon will host a Boothbay team with no fewer than four running backs who can score from anywhere on the field, the best tight end in the conference and an offensive line that makes the most antiquated, simple plays in football look like a work of art.

The Seahawks won their semifinal game 43-6 after a two-hour road trip to unhospitable Jay, and did we mention they are the two-time defending Class C champions?

Oh, yeah. Lisbon beat ’em by double digits a month ago.

Survive that encounter and Lisbon might meet Foxcroft in the state game.

Now there’s a no-win situation waiting to happen. The Ponies are a feel-good movie in the flesh, with a head coach and quarterback who have been eating at the same dinner table for 18 years. They’re angry after what they perceive as a questionable call that possibly cost them the Gold Ball last autumn. Bring in Ed Harris, Cuba Gooding Jr., Denzel Washington and Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger for good measure and let the cameras roll.

Thank you for playing, Greyhounds. We have lovely parting gifts backstage.

Oh, yeah. Lisbon beat Foxcroft in another state championship game it wasn’t supposed to win six years ago, with a goal-line stand followed by a 98-yard, two-minute drive to glory that I resolved to never, ever, ever forget as long as I lived.

But I’m still here, and I do tend to forget.

I look at the Greyhounds and see the odds rather than their history of beating the odds. I see the roster, take a gander at the collective age and forget about the leadership of a head coach, Dick Mynahan, who has been helping kids overachieve since a time most of his current charges would consider the Stone Age.

That’s what happens when you try to explain things that defy explanation; when you live for the sizzle and don’t take the time to appreciate the quality of the steak.

In those terms, Lisbon’s season has been served well done.

Oh, yeah. That’s right. It isn’t over. Not even close.

Kalle Oakes is sports editor and can be reached by e-mail at [email protected].