High School

Instant analysis: 10 things to know from Week 1 of Oregon high school football

10 takeaways from the opening weekend of action

René Ferrán

Here are 10 takeaways (in no particular order) from the opening weekend of the Oregon high school football season.

Photo by Dan Brood 

Lakeridge offense finds extra gear in fourth quarter vs. Glencoe

It took Lakeridge’s offense some time to get going in the wet conditions Thursday night at Hare Field in Hillsboro, but the Pacers — ranked No. 8 in the OSAAtoday preseason coaches poll — came up big in the fourth quarter to pull away for a 21-0 victory over Glencoe. 

The Pacers led 7-0 at halftime thanks to a 70-yard interception return by Jake Moleiro.

It wasn’t until midway through the fourth quarter that the offense found the end zone, and it was USC commit Joey Olsen who got there, hauling in a 41-yard pass from Gabe Motschenbacher with 7:56 to play. 

On their following possession, it was sophomore sensation Ansu Sanoe who put the game away for the Pacers, scoring on a 21-yard run.

Transfer quarterback gets Tualatin off to fast start

Tualatin coach Dominic Ferraro handed the keys to his Ricky Bobby offense to junior transfer quarterback Nolan Keeney this season. 

Keeney proved a quick study, tossing four first-half touchdown passes and five in all as the fifth-ranked Timberwolves romped to a 42-14 victory at defending Class 5A state champion Summit on Friday night. 

Senior Jayden Fortier, a fast-rising prospect, caught three touchdowns, including one four minutes before halftime to give the Timberwolves a 28-0 lead at intermission. He and Keeney connected again early in the third quarter to trigger a running clock for the rest of the game.

Keeney also tossed first-half touchdown passes to Kenen Elder and Matthew Jonah-Eleweke and ran for Tualatin’s final score early in the fourth quarter.

“Nolan has been doing a good job learning the offense,” Ferraro wrote in a text traveling home from Bend. “He still has some improvement in areas in the passing game, but I was really happy with our entire offense. We played fast and physical.

“Summit is a really good football team, and we knew they would be tough. We still have some work to do with penalties, but I’m happy with how we played.” 

Lake Oswego showcases running attack in win at Barlow

Another Three Rivers League contender got off to a strong start to its season as No. 6 Lake Oswego traveled to Barlow and pulled away in the second half for a 40-22 victory.

Zavier Russell ran for three touchdowns, including two bookending the third quarter from 3 and 6 yards that followed Jett Fay’s second long touchdown pass of the game to Sentori Martino that had drawn Barlow to within 26-22 with 4:50 left in the third.

LaMarcus Bell also ran for two first-half touchdowns for the Lakers.

Martino gave Barlow an early 16-7 lead, hauling in a 68-yard touchdown pass with 4:56 left in the first quarter, then returned a free kick following a safety 61 yards for another score late in the period.

South Medford spoils Lowe’s return to sideline for Mountainside

Keanon Lowe’s return to the high school coaching ranks didn’t go as he and Mountainside would have liked. The Mavericks made the long bus ride down I-5 to Medford’s Spiegelberg Stadium and fell 42-28 to South Medford.

Lowe earned national prominence during his two-year stint at Parkrose, when he led the Broncos to the 5A playoffs and defused an active shooter situation on the campus. In 2020, he left Parkrose to coach in the college ranks before returning this year to take over for John Mannion at the southwest Beaverton school.

Ryder Scheid’s touchdown run late in the third quarter broke a 28-28 tie, and Colby Schwartz’s 11-yard scramble with six minutes left gave the Panthers a two-touchdown advantage.

Senior Alex Ingalls, who starred at quarterback for Mountainside last year, gave way in the second half to promising sophomore Cade Mitchell, whose touchdown run gave the Mavericks a 28-21 lead midway through the third quarter. The Panthers intercepted Mitchell twice after Schwartz’s score to seal the victory. 

Luke Baker has big game as Clackamas beats Westview

Luke Baker might not have won the starting quarterback job for Clackamas, but the junior transfer from Central Catholic still put his stamp on the Cavaliers’ 28-7 victory over Westview, which won last year’s inaugural Columbia Cup but suffered heavy graduation losses.

Baker scored three touchdowns, including a 4-yarder with 8:42 left in the third quarter that broke a 7-7 tie. He later busted a 97-yard touchdown run up the gut to push the lead to 21-7 with 1:40 remaining in the third.

He also caught a 37-yard pass from Dylan Brower early in the second quarter that set up his first touchdown from a yard out. Rentz Deagan answered for the Wildcats with a 14-yard run that tied the score at 7-7 with 7:45 before halftime.

Roseburg puts winless season in rearview mirror with opening romp

Is Roseburg about to ride the up elevator again? 

Two years ago, Roseburg was the feel-good story in 6A, following several down years by winning its first eight games before reaching the second round of the state playoffs.

Last year, injuries ravaged the roster, and Roseburg went winless. Among the walking wounded were senior running back Cayden Eckel and junior quarterback Owen Bentea, and both played big roles Friday as Roseburg rolled to a 50-18 home win over Beaverton.

Eckel ran for more than 100 yards and two touchdowns, and Bentea threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score as Roseburg built a 29-12 halftime lead and rolled. Bentea was named the starter last year but was lost in Week 2 to a season-ending injury.

David Douglas (12-7 over Aloha), Blanchet Catholic (48-6 over Oakridge), Reedsport (34-0 over Riverside) and Pilot Rock (46-14 over Mohawk on Thursday) also bounced back from a winless 2022 to open this season with a victory. 

Jesuit, Sheldon rocked by interstate rivals in openers

Two perennial 6A powers struggled in openers against interstate opponents.

Jesuit took on Skyview at Vancouver’s Kiggins Bowl, and the Storm avenged last year’s loss to the Crusaders with a dominant 28-0 victory.

They jumped on Jesuit early, building a 21-0 lead less than seven minutes in, with Jerrid Secor returning an interception 29 yards for a touchdown and Trey Jacob later adding a 13-yard touchdown run.

Sheldon suffered a 37-3 home loss to Mililani (Hawaii). The Irish, who are in rebuilding mode after sustaining heavy graduation losses after their run to last year’s 6A state final, were no match for a Trojans team that improved to 3-1.

Marist Catholic, Franklin pull out wild Week 1 wins

Perhaps the wildest finish of the night happened in Eugene, where Marist Catholic escaped with a 36-35 victory over host Churchill, with former Lancers standout Brady Bidwell sending the game to overtime with a 15-yard touchdown catch for the Spartans as time expired.

Kaden Erlenbush scored for Marist Catholic on its first possession in overtime. Aidan Pangelinan answered for Churchill, but the Spartans came up big on the two-point conversion to clinch the victory.

Franklin survived to escape with a 28-27 victory over Gresham.

Tucker Snow ran for 208 yards and four touchdowns, including a go-ahead 8-yard run with 3:03 remaining to give the Gophers a 27-20 lead. Will Reid led the Lightning on the winning drive, hitting junior Cash Landau on an 8-yard touchdown pass with 1:39 remaining, then finding sophomore Bastian Bowden for the two-point conversion.

Landau sealed the win with an interception on Gresham’s last-gasp drive.

Mazama, Tillamook, Scappoose stamp themselves as early 4A contenders

A few Week 1 games highlighted 4A teams who hope to be playing Thanksgiving weekend for the blue trophy.

In Estacada, the defending champion Rangers battled Mazama, last year’s No. 1 seed in the playoffs before falling in the quarterfinals.

Spencer Grund’s 1-yard run with 7:17 left for Estacada tied the score at 14-14, but the Vikings answered with a long drive capped by Tyson Van Gastel’s 4-yard keeper with 49 seconds remaining to give the visitors a hard-fought 20-14 win.

On the north Oregon coast, reigning runner-up Tillamook pulled out a 45-20 victory over Marshfield, staking the Cheesemakers’ claim as an early contender. Scappoose, which knocked off Mazama in last year’s playoffs before falling to Estacada in the semifinals, opened with a 41-0 thumping of Gladstone.

One of the biggest surprises was Cascade, under first-year coach Shane Hedrick, trekking east to Baker City and handing the Bulldogs a 42-21 defeat. The Cougars led 22-7 at halftime, then opened the second half with a long drive capped by a touchdown by Nolan Abrams. 

Defending champions go .500 in openers with one still to kick off

Summit and Estacada were not the only defending state champions to fall in their openers.

Harper Charter, which went 3-5 a year ago in the 1A six-man ranks, traveled to Mitchell and knocked off Spray/Mitchell/Wheeler 26-20.

West Linn (6A) rolled to a 37-0 win in its opener Thursday against Nelson, and Cascade Christian (3A) opened with a 29-6 home win over North Valley. Oakland, last year’s 2A champion, won its opener 46-8 at Monroe on Friday.

Lost River will be the last of the seven returning champions to open its season, facing St. Paul on Saturday night in a rematch of last year’s 1A eight-man final to close the Dufur Classic.

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Earlier:

Defending 6A champion West Linn shuts out Nelson: 5 takeaways

10 storylines entering 2023 Oregon high school football season — impact transfers, Keanon Lowe returns, a West Linn repeat?

25 can’t-miss games in Oregon high school football — the top matchups of 2023

Oregon high school football stars who have transferred to new schools for 2023

Meet the new head coaches in 6A, 5A, 4A Oregon high school football

Predicted standings, player of the year candidates by league: Class 6A | Class 5A | Class 4A

State offensive player of the year candidates: Class 6A | Class 5A | Class 4A

State defensive player of the year candidates: Class 6A | Class 5A | Class 4A

Oregon high school football preseason all-state team (all-classifications)

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René Ferrán
RENÉ FERRÁN

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