By now, Tyler Brandt should be used to challenges. In his first year as head football coach at Maricopa last season, he faced a number of them — from starting his new job too late to work with his players over the summer to inheriting a football environment one player called “horrible.”

Then, Brandt was asked to become Maricopa’s athletic director on an interim basis. And to top everything off, his Rams opened the season 0-4.

But starting with a mid-September romp over San Pasqual Valley, a team from Winterhaven, Calif., Maricopa started to turn the corner. The win keyed a span where the Rams won five of six games and eventually snuck into the playoffs.

Now, Brandt, who’s since left his AD position, must essentially start from scratch again as his team moves from the 2A to 3A, a moved forced by a never-ending increase in students over the past few years.

The change placed the Rams in the South Division with defending 3A champ Coolidge.

“We’re in a very, very, very tough conference,” Brandt said. “We have Coolidge and Florence, and Santa Cruz — all of these guys, they’re all very, very, very good teams. We’re just trying to put ourselves in position to compete with them.”

Maricopa should be able to compete, with enrollment already over 1,000 students.

Brandt said the Rams have been getting three or four new players per week on average – one player came from as far away as Mississippi – and Brandt said that at least five new kids on the roster have positioned themselves for starting spots.

But that fact in itself presented yet another hurdle.

“Another big issue that we’ve dealt with is camaraderie with the team,” Brandt said. “Every time a new kid comes in, they’ve got to find their spot.

“That’s a big challenge,” he added. “Last year, our team was kind of set from the start.

“This year, we’ve got kids that are stepping in, and we’ve got to feel each other out.”

Conference/Region: 3A/South Region

2006 record: 5-6, lost in first round of 2A playoffs

Coach: Tyler Brandt, 2nd year, 5-6.

Key games:

Aug. 24 Estrella Foothills: Season opener will be the Rams first contest at 3A level; first of six home matchups over 10-game slate

Sept. 15 at Coolidge: Welcome to the show: First 3A South Region game on the road against two-time defending state champs.