Paul Valencia: Washougal’s Casteel runs for the memory of a lifetime
Paul Valencia: High School Sports
By Paul Valencia, Columbian
High School Sports Reporter
Published: October 28, 2014, 12:00am
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Brandon Casteel found out Monday that he lost a few yards over the weekend.
It did not bother him, though.
He still has a school record. It still is a memory maker for him and the rest of the players on the Washougal football team.
Casteel, a senior, rushed for a bunch of yards Friday night in Washougal’s win over Fort Vancouver. So many, in fact, that people thought there was no way he rushed for that many yards.
Our reporter at the game had him for 401 yards. The team’s statistician had him for 404 yards. Washougal coach David Hajek, in fact, called The Columbian on Friday night just to ask what we had because he figured it had to be a mistake.
After all, that’s a lot of yards.
A representative from Fort Vancouver did not think Casteel had that many yards. A great game for sure, but not 400.
Well, it is easy to take statistics on video, long after the game, well after deadline. So I headed to Washougal on Monday to go over every play with Hajek.
Casteel did have a 400-yard game for about 45 seconds. However, he was stopped for a 3-yard loss on his final carry of the night. In the end, I’ve got Casteel at 397 yards on 41 carries, with four touchdowns.
“It seems surreal,” Casteel said. “Second-to-last game of my career. Doesn’t feel like it’s coming to an end. This is our last week of practice.”
Friday’s performance has given the Panthers one more special moment this season. Washougal is 4-4, with a chance at a winning season in Hajek’s first season since returning as the team’s head coach.
“I’m going to remember this for the rest of my life,” senior center John Sunderland said. “Getting in a fight with my friends and family.”
The “fight” is a game, playing with his brothers, trying to beat the opponent. Friday was an offensive lineman’s dream. Even better for Sunderland, he also was named the homecoming king this weekend.
Sunderland did not know how many yards the Panthers were gaining, but he sensed something special was going on throughout the night.
“He was on point and we were all on point,” Sunderland said, referring to Casteel and his fellow linemen. “When an offensive line is all in the zone, you can definitely tell the difference.”
Washougal needed it, too, because Fort Vancouver had the early lead in this game. Casteel, in fact, lost a fumble on his fourth carry of the game.
“It was really frustrating,” Casteel said. “Our line was doing what they were supposed to do, and I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to do. They’re doing their job. I needed to do mine. It built from there.”
When the offense got back on the field, Casteel had gains of 16 and 37 yards on his next two carries. In all, he had four carries of 30 or more yards. His longest run was a 57-yard gain.
The coaches kept calling his number because, well, because the offensive line was having its way against the defense.
What makes this even more bizarre is that Casteel was a fullback until last week. Casteel said the team has a lot of talented tailbacks, so he played fullback for most of the season. His moves with the ball in practice, and his carries as a fullback, impressed the coaches.
Hajek said it was obvious the change needed to be made.
So in Casteel’s first game as a tailback for Washougal, he goes off for 397 yards.
Maybe it wasn’t a 400-yard game, but close enough.
“People say, ‘My senior year, I did this, or I did that.’ Everyone talks about senior memories. I feel like this year, we’re going to have ours.”
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