‘Respect, integrity, pride and family.’ Energized by move to 5A, Southridge looks to keep momentum rolling

“I just think that everyone is bought into the program and everyone is just wanting to finally get some wins this year, because we’re all sick of losing.”

By Mitchell Forde | Photo by Ken Waz 

When word first spread that the Southridge football program might move from Class 6A to 5A for the 2022 season, not all the Skyhawks players were happy. 

Southridge has seen its numbers decline since the 2017 opening of Mountainside High School, and the team struggled to compete in the Metro League the past few years, going 5-20 from 2019 through 2021. Still, when head coach Kevin Bickler took advantage of an OSAA rule allowing programs to ask to be moved down a class for competitive balance, some players felt like it was a vote of no confidence in their abilities.

“Some kids thought it was upsetting, like the coaches didn’t think we had the skill to stay up at 6A,” senior running back Jackson Powell said. “But we built around it and we’re good with where we are right now.”

It didn’t take long for the team to come around. Before making the move official, Bickler polled his players about the decision. He said that around 85 percent either approved of the move to 5A or selected an option for, “I just want to play football, I don’t care where it is.”

Bickler, in his seventh season as the head coach and 19th year at Southridge, acknowledged that he hated leaving behind the team’s Metro League rivalries with Beaverton and Mountainside. But with an enrollment of around 1,400 students and 60-70 players in the program most years, he felt the Skyhawks simply couldn’t compete with the likes of Jesuit, which Bickler said had 55 players on its freshman team alone last fall, and Westview, which has an enrollment around 2,400.

“Kids aren’t dumb,” Bickler said. “They’re going to look at the size of Jesuit, the speed of them, just the aura of them, and I don’t feel like that creates a sense of strong morale. … So, in that sense, I think it energized us to know that we could go out each week and be in a position to at least compete for a win, as opposed to hoping not to get hurt.”

Fast forward a few months, and Bickler has been proven correct. There’s a fresh energy, a new confidence within the Southridge program. That’s only been buoyed by a 42-13 win over Centennial last Friday to open the season.

“It meant a lot to a lot of the seniors,” junior quarterback Jack Klee said of the win. “I could just see the emotions.”

Whether or not it was sparked by the promise of a more manageable schedule in 5A, Bickler started seeing differences in this year’s Southridge squad long before the team’s first game. A group of seniors determined to end the recent run of losing seasons came together and made sure summer workouts were intense and well-attended. Southridge came from two scores behind late in a summer 7-on-7 matchup to win the game and advance to the final of the tournament. While Bickler doesn’t usually put too much stock in 7-on-7, he said the team’s resilience signified a shift in the culture.

“I just think that everyone is bought into the program and everyone is just wanting to finally get some wins this year, because we’re all sick of losing,” senior receiver Alisjah Tucker said.

Still, a group that hadn’t tasted much success during the past three seasons needed to prove it could come through on Friday night. Bickler said the Skyhawks still need to “learn how to win.”

So far, so good. Southridge dominated Centennial, scoring 35 consecutive points between mid-first quarter and late in the fourth. Bickler was most encouraged by his team’s physicality, saying “this is probably the most physical team I’ve coached in 10 years, across the board.”

The win also showed that Southridge has found a quarterback. Klee had to win a preseason quarterback competition to make his first career start Friday. In his debut, he completed 15 of 22 pass attempts for 233 yards and five touchdowns. Bickler said Klee “exceeded our expectations.”

“He’s cool, calm and collected in the pocket,” Bickler said. “He does a good job of running the offense and what we need to do. … He had a couple of missed throws in the third quarter, but that’s stuff that we can get on film and get corrected. But I have really high expectations for him this year.”

Skyhawks players said tasting success has them wanting to win even more. Plus, the victory infused the players with confidence, proving the work they put in during the offseason is paying off.

“It proves that what we’re saying is working,” Tucker said. “It proves that when you put in the hard work and you put in the hours, that you’ll get out a win.”

Southridge’s season-opening win turned some heads across the state. The team is ranked No. 8 in the SBLive Oregon Class 5A media poll following Week 1. The Skyhawks will look to capitalize on the momentum Friday in their home opener against Grant, the reigning PIL champion from 6A. Bickler believes the matchup not only will provide a good measuring stick for his program, but that beating a 6A opponent at home would go a long way toward getting the student body excited about the football team.

Ultimately, that’s the goal of the move to 5A: to prove, inside the locker room and out, that Southridge isn’t a punching bag. A winning season could establish a blueprint for underclassmen to follow in the years to come and convince athletes from other sports to give football a try.

“We’re building a program of respect and integrity and pride and family,” Bickler said. “And when kids kind of see the buy-in that we have and then the success carrying over on the field, of course they’re going to want to be a part of something like that.”

If the Skyhawks can reestablish a winning culture and add some players to the program, they could be a contender in a challenging Northwest Oregon Conference that includes Canby and Wilsonville. Eventually, the players are looking to prove they belong not just among the top teams in 5A, but back in 6A.

“Just get back to a winning season,” Klee said when asked about the team’s goals for 2022. “And if we get to the playoffs, get back to 6A and prove that we can be up there again.”