Oregon high school football Week 9 instant analysis: 10 things to know

10 takeaways from the ninth weekend of action

René Ferrán | Oct 28, 2023

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

Photo by Leon Neuschwander

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How the SBLive Oregon 6A media poll Top 10 fared

1. West Linn (9-0) def. No. 10 Oregon City 52-13

2. Central Catholic (9-0) def. David Douglas 76-0

3. Tualatin (8-1) def. Tigard 27-3

4. Sherwood (9-0) def. Liberty 57-7

5. Lakeridge (7-2) def. No. 6 Lake Oswego 27-7

6. Lake Oswego (6-3) lost to No. 5 Lakeridge 27-7

7. Jesuit (5-4) def. Beaverton 58-0

8. Sheldon (6-3) lost to West Salem 42-21

9. South Salem (9-0) def. North Salem 54-0

10. Oregon City (5-4) lost to No. 1 West Linn 52-13

Sherwood’s shutout streak over, but not its run of Pacific Conference titles

Sherwood’s shutout streak ended early in Friday’s showdown with Liberty to decide the Pacific Conference title in Hillsboro.

Taku Diamond’s 50-yard fumble return for a touchdown less than four minutes in ended the Bowmen’s string of shutouts at seven games, but that would be the only down note for Sherwood on this night.

The Bowmen wrapped up their fourth consecutive Pacific crown with an emphatic 57-7 victory that served notice they will be a tough out in this year’s 6A state playoffs.

Jaxson Barnard scored twice on short runs, including a 17-yarder with seven seconds before halftime that gave the Bowmen a 36-7 lead.

“We had a great game plan going in, so we felt like we were in a good spot,” said Sherwood coach Mark Gribble, whose defense allowed just 88 yards of total offense in earning the No. 3 seed and a first-round matchup with North Medford.

The Bowmen’s run, outscoring opponents 401-28 during the regular season, is reminiscent of their last run to a state championship game in 2013, when they outscored teams 753-136 before falling to West Albany in the 5A final.

While this year’s team harkens to that four-year stretch (2010-13) when the Bowmen won two titles and were runner-up twice, Gribble doesn’t want to compare his team with them.

“It’s different but the same, if that makes sense,” he said. “This group plays hard for each other, and they are very talented. That’s Bowmen Football at its best.”

Wells wraps up outright PIL title with shootout win vs. Franklin

A week ago, Wells coach Keith Bennett said playing in the 6A championship bracket would be “a great test for us to see where we’re at and how far we still need to go.”

Friday’s wild 74-60 victory over Franklin wrapped up the Guardians’ first outright title in a unified PIL since 2003 and showed Bennett that his offense is ready for a prime-time matchup.

Marselis Griffiths ran for four touchdowns, and Wyatt Andler added three as Wells set a school record for points in a game. The teams combined for the most points in a 6A game since Oregon City defeated Sunset 75-72 in the 2017 playoffs.

The Guardians finished No. 8 in the final OSAA rankings, but because of playoff seeding rules, they’ll be the No. 7 seed and play host to Nelson in a first-round game next week.

Jesuit in top 8, Westview out of playoffs on final night of Metro play

Another team that will benefit from OSAA seeding rules is Metro League champion Jesuit, which completed its turnaround from 0-4 to a 10th consecutive league title with a 58-0 romp over rival Beaverton.

Elias Johnson caught a 55-yard touchdown pass and returned two punts for scores to lead the Crusaders, who ended up 10th in the final OSAA rankings but will move up to the No. 8 seed to guarantee a first-round home game.

That move knocked Lake Oswego from No. 6 to No. 9 in the bracket, setting up another edition of one of the best playoff rivalries of the past decade next week at Jesuit's Cronin Field.

Sunset clinched the league’s final automatic spot with a 28-0 victory over Westview. The Wildcats, last year’s Columbia Cup champions, remained at No. 33 in the final OSAA rankings, with Grants Pass grabbing the final spot in the second tier of the 6A postseason.

West Salem earns shot at slaying West Linn after knocking off Sheldon

West Salem entered Friday’s action looking like it might be one of the favorites to win the second edition of the Columbia Cup.

The Titans exited it as the first-round matchup for defending 6A state champion West Linn after they knocked off 2022 runner-up Sheldon 42-21, denying the Irish a share of the South Central Football Conference title.

West Salem jumped to No. 16 in the final rankings by pulling away from a 14-14 halftime score, with Kaden Martirano’s 1-yard quarterback sneak capping a 14-play drive to open the second half.

“A big win. I’m proud of our guys,” said Titans coach Shawn Stanley. “We are going paintballing with the seniors in the morning, then diving into the huge challenge of playing the state’s best team. We will be huge underdogs, but it will be great to see how far we have come.”

South Salem ended up the outright SCFC champion with its 54-0 rout of North Salem in the Mayor’s Cup. The Saxons finished No. 7 in the rankings but will move up to sixth to accommodate Jesuit’s bump to the top eight.

How the SBLive Oregon 5A media poll Top 10 fared

1. Wilsonville (8-1) def. No. 6 Canby 49-22

2. Silverton (9-0) def. Lebanon 35-21

3. Mountain View (9-0) def. Bend 46-7

4. Summit (5-4) def. No. 9 Caldera 21-7

5. Thurston (7-2) def. Churchill 48-28

6. Canby (6-3) lost to No. 1 Wilsonville 49-22

7. West Albany (7-2) def. No. 10 McKay 48-31

8. Springfield (8-1) def. Eagle Point 42-14

9. Caldera (6-3) lost to No. 4 Summit 21-7

10. McKay (6-3) lost to No. 7 West Albany 48-31

Wilsonville earns 5A overall No. 1 seed with NWOC title tilt win

Coaches like to say they’ll give their players 24 hours to celebrate a big win.

Wilsonville coach Adam Guenther was feeling a bit generous in the locker room after his team won its eighth consecutive NWOC title with a 49-22 victory over Canby at Wilsonville's Randall Stadium, securing the No. 1 seed in the 5A state playoffs.

“We are going to celebrate tonight because this was our first step,” he said. “For tonight and tomorrow, let’s enjoy! Starting Sunday, it’s a new season, and we’ve got to go back to work. Get better each day and fix the stuff that needs fixing.”

The Wildcats opened the championship game by recovering an onside kick, turning it into points on a 1-yard run by Will Ingle. They led just 14-8 at halftime, but Kallen Gutridge threw three touchdown passes in the third quarter to push the advantage to 35-8.

The two conference finalists will be joined in the 5A playoffs by NWOC rivals Hillsboro and Hood River Valley, which edged Forest Grove by one spot in the final OSAA rankings to nab the fourth berth.

Silverton finishes regular season undefeated for first time since 2014

Silverton completed its first undefeated regular season since 2014 with a 35-21 victory over Lebanon and will take the No. 2 seed in the 5A playoffs.

Brody Sullivan ran for a touchdown and caught a touchdown pass from Sawyer Teeney to lead the Foxes, who won the 5A title in 2021.

“The message (in the locker room) was, ‘Great job! Now, it’s time to reload for the second season,’” said Foxes coach Dan Lever, who two years ago led Tualatin to the 6A final before taking over at Silverton.

The Warriors still claimed the final playoff berth out of the Mid-Willamette despite the loss when Dallas handled Crescent Valley 42-8 in its finale, eliminating South Albany in the process.

West Albany and McKay will join the Foxes, the Dragons and Lebanon in the playoff bracket.

Mountain View, Thurston win outright league titles

Mountain View wrapped up its first outright Intermountain Conference title since 2017 with a 46-7 victory over crosstown rival Bend.

Connor Crum connected with Jack Foley on four touchdown passes, then returned an interception 40 yards for another score as the Cougars took the No. 3 seed in the playoffs. Summit and Caldera are the IMC’s other two playoff qualifiers.

Thurston put a bow on its sixth consecutive Midwestern League title with a 48-28 victory at Churchill, finishing MWL play undefeated. Springfield, Eagle Point and Crater are the league’s other playoff qualifiers.

How the SBLive Oregon 4A media poll Top 10 fared

1. Henley (9-0) def. North Bend 41-28

2. Marist Catholic (8-1) def. No. 10 Junction City 22-16

T3. Pendleton (7-2) lost to No. 9 Baker 42-34

T3. Tillamook (7-2) def. Milwaukie 55-27

T5. Mazama (6-3) lost to Marshfield 26-20

T5. Scappoose (8-1) def. Astoria 43-6

7. Seaside (6-3) def. St. Helens 27-12

8. Cascade (6-3) def. Stayton 40-7

9. Baker (5-4) def. No. 3 Pendleton 42-34

T10. Junction City (7-2) lost to No. 2 Marist Catholic 22-16

T10. La Salle Prep (8-1) def. Gladstone 44-0

Baker completes comeback from 0-4 to Greater Oregon League crown

Baker started the season 0-4 but ended the regular season Greater Oregon League champion for the first time since 2016 (and first outright since 2012) with a 42-34 victory over Pendleton at Round-Up Arena.

Eastern Oregon commit Paul Hobson hit Malaki Myer on a 67-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter as the Bulldogs rallied from a 28-14 deficit with four consecutive second-half scores.

Hobson finished with 407 yards and four touchdowns for Baker, which finished No. 9 in the OSAA rankings but will leapfrog Junction City and play host to the Tigers in the first round of the 4A playoffs.

“The kids showed amazing toughness to just keep working every day to get better and just keep believing and trusting the process,” Baker coach Jason Ramos said. “Even tonight, when we got behind by two scores, we just kept battling.”

Estacada gets chance to defend title after shutting out The Dalles

Three weeks ago, things appeared bleak for Estacada.

The defending 4A state champion was 1-5, having dropped back-to-back games to Molalla and La Salle Prep to open Tri-Valley Conference play.

That’s when coach Andy Mott challenged his players, telling them they’d have to win out if they hoped to be a playoff team.

Mission accomplished — thanks to a revived defense that pitched shutouts in two of the Rangers’ final three games, including Friday in a 23-0 victory over The Dalles that gave them the No. 2 seed behind TVC champion La Salle Prep.

“I’m proud of our kids and the way they responded down the stretch with three big wins,” Mott said. “It was a great job by our defense tonight, getting big stops on multiple fourth-down plays, a blocked field goal and an interception.”

Marist Catholic holds off Junction City to defend league championship

Nick Hudson threw for three touchdowns, including a 10-yarder to Aiden Hazen with 3:20 remaining that clinched Marist Catholic’s 22-16 victory over Junction City and wrapped up a second consecutive Oregon West/Sky Em championship.

The Spartans survived despite giving up a 25-yard touchdown pass by Cooper Rothenberger with 2:06 left, knocking down a final Hail Mary attempt to seal the win.

Seaside earns share of Cowapa title; Tillamook league’s No. 1 seed

Seaside took care of business at home with a 27-12 victory over St. Helens that gave the Seagulls a piece of the Cowapa League championship.

Scappoose and Tillamook also posted big wins to make it a three-way tie atop the league standings. The Cheesemakers won the tiebreaker for the No. 1 seed, but all three teams will play host to first-round playoff games next week.

Henley lone unbeaten in 4A; Ashland grabs final playoff berth

Henley wrapped up the only undefeated regular season by a 4A team by rallying for a 41-28 victory at North Bend that pushed the Hornets to the No. 1 spot in the OSAA rankings and eliminated the Bulldogs.

That’s because Marshfield knocked off Mazama 26-20 in Coos Bay, moving the Pirates to a tie for second with the Vikings in the Big Sky standings. North Bend fell to a tie for fourth with Ashland, which beat the Bulldogs 44-20 last week to win the tiebreaker.

As a result, the Grizzlies nab 4A’s only at-large berth by virtue of having a better OSAA ranking than Philomath, the fourth-place team from the Oregon West/Sky Em league.

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