QB Armstrong rallies Columbia River over Washougal (video)

Sophomore Jack Armstrong started the season at wide receiver for Columbia River after losing out in a four-way battle for the quarterback job.

But after Armstrong showed flashes of what he could do in a mop-up role last week against Tumwater, first-year Chieftains coach Christian Swain turned to the youngster for their GSHL 2A opener Friday night against Washougal.

After Armstrong went 12-for-16 for 200 yards and two touchdowns in a 35-21 come-from-behind win, it’s safe to say he may not be returning to wide receiver anytime soon.

“I think he’s looking pretty good to start” next week against R.A. Long, Swain said, smiling. “I was proud of the way he played tonight. Timely passes, clutch passes on third down. He moved the sticks when we needed him to.”

Armstrong credited junior Anthony Jenkins, who started the first two games of the season, and senior Dalton Garrett for helping him prepare for his starting debut.

“I found out Monday that I’d start,” Armstrong said. “Just a lot of work in practice and help from teammates. Anthony and Dalton helped me with the whole offense, and I really appreciate it.”

The Chieftains (2-1, 1-0) erased an early 11-point deficit and took their first lead on the final play of the third quarter on a 44-yard TD pass from Armstrong to Garrett.

The Panthers (0-3, 0-1) looked like they would answer to regain the lead, marching from their 35 into the red zone before facing a third-and-12.

With starting quarterback Ryan Stevens shaken up on the sideline, backup Grant Lewis took the snap and was swallowed up by the River pressure. Lewis flung the ball toward the right sideline in the direction of a teammate, and everyone stopped, thinking it was an incomplete pass.

Everyone, that is, but Koben Jamison. The River senior snatched the ball off the turf around the 40-yard line and took off for the end zone.

“I realized it was behind the line of scrimmage, so I took a chance,” Jamison said. “I saw an opportunity to run it back. It was risky, but it was the play that changed the game.”

Indeed, his heads-up play resulted in a touchdown that gave the Chieftains a two-touchdown lead.

“My first reaction was that I thought it was iffy,” Swain said. “But Koben had the field awareness to scoop it up and go.”

Washougal came back with a quick score to close the deficit back to 28-21, but after holding River to get the ball back with 3 minutes left, Jamison picked off Stevens to give the Chieftains the ball deep in Panthers territory.

Four plays later, Armstrong hit Keith Stricker on a short pass in the left flat, and after shrugging off a would-be tackle, Stricker raced 21 yards for the clinching score.

“We brought the intensity tonight. Our locker room had a different vibe,” said Stevens, who was 15-of-30 passing for 200 yards. “We had a lot of fire tonight, but after that (return), the momentum shifted. The gas was taken out of us.”

In contrast, Columbia River didn’t match Washougal’s intensity early on.

For the third week in a row, the Chieftains started off slowly, and they trailed Washougal 14-3 after Stevens hit Jake Klackner on a 10-yard TD pass with 6:59 left in the second quarter.

But River closed the first half with a 13-play, 82-yard drive that culminated with a 2-yard Hunter Pearson touchdown run, and that seemed to settle them into a rhythm that carried over into the second half.

“It brought some confidence back for us,” Swain said. “Washougal battled tonight. They played a great game. It was a dogfight. We had to gut this one out.”

Pearson finished with 138 yards on 33 carries, while Garrett had five catches for 119 yards. Klackner had a game-high seven catches for 102 yards for the Panthers.

Columbia River 35, Washougal 21

Washougal 7 7 0 7–21

Columbia R 0 10 10 15–35

First quarter

W–Marcos Martinez 1 run (Ryan Stevens kick).

Second quarter

CR–FG Kent Stricker 21

W–Jake Klackner 10 pass from Stevens (Stevens kick)

CR–Hunter Pearson 2 run (Stricker kick)

Third quarter

CR–FG Stricker 30

CR–Dalton Garrett 44 pass from Jack Armstrong (Stricker kick)

Fourth quarter

CR–Koben Jamison 60 fumble return (Keith Stricker pass from Armstrong)

W–Luke Langland 43 pass from Stevens (Stevens kick)

CR–Keith Stricker 21 pass from Armstrong (Stricker kick)

Individual statistics

RUSHING–W: Stevens 11-55, Martinez 6-11, Kade Coons 4-27, Grant Lewis 5-(minus 10). CR: Pearson 33-138, Armstrong 3-33, Jamison 3-1, Colby Rabitoy 2-8.

PASSING–W: Stevens 15-30-2-202, Lewis 0-1-0-0. CR: Armstrong 12-17-0-200.

RECEIVING–W: Klackner 7-102, Coons 4-18, Tyler Bowlin 2-36, Austin McLaughlin 1-3, Langland 1-43. CR: Garrett 5-119, Nathan Kunz 5-56, Kei.Stricker 1-21, Jamison 1-4.