For Heritage coach Dennis Moody, Friday’s opening win over Evergreen was validation of months of work.
Since taking over as head coach in February, Moody has been working to get his players to believe in themselves and get the student body at Heritage reason to be excited about the football program.
And that started with the youngest Timberwolves, the freshmen.
More than 30 freshman football players were in full uniform Friday night as they stood behind the varsity bench during game.
Afterwards, everyone got involved in celebrating the Timberwolves’ 35-28 win.
“The buy-in, not just from our program, but from our administration and everyone else has been great,” Moody said. “We had a great grandstand (tonight). The culture is changing at Heritage. It’s phenomenal. Just in the two weeks since being back as school, the vibe is completely different than it was last year. That’s awesome, and hopefully we can keep it going.”
The Timberwolves, who will play eight of their nine games this season at McKenzie Stadium, will be back at McKenzie to host Hudson’s Bay on Friday.
Camas’ top priority: Better tackling
Camas can take plenty of pride, and still know there’s a lot of room to grow, in a 24-14 win over Lincoln on Friday.
After allowing 476 yards of offense to the talented Abes, which boast several NCAA Division I recruits, the Papermakers’ coaching staff has its hands full as they prepare for Hazen on Friday at Renton Memorial Stadium.
Topic No. 1: Tackling. One of the state’s top recruits Julien Simon proved plenty difficult to bring down as he racked up 80 yards on 10 catches. Camas knows the rest of the schedule is filled with equally talented players.
“Those coaches are really good and they’re not happy about what happened,” coach Jon Eagle said. “They’ll fix it.”
Combined with the ability to force turnovers that the Papermakers showed Friday (they forced three), Camas is eager to show the season-opener is just Camas getting warmed up.
“We would rather be 1-0 working on things than 0-1 working on things,” Eagle said.
Another happy return at Washougal
For the second time in two years, the season opening game was extra special for one member of the Washougal football team.
Last year, the opening game against Hudson’s Bay marked the return of star linebacker Brevan Bea, who returned to the field for the first time since a severe leg fracture the previous season.
Friday, the opener against Hudson’s Bay was special for Jakob Davis.
The senior endured an offseason filled with rehabilitation. His junior season was ended by a knee injury. He then re-injured his knee in the Washougal’s first basketball game of the season.
Davis was cleared to play just days before Friday’s 40-0 win. His offseason consisted of twice-weekly physical therapy sessions.
Friday, Davis caught two passes for 14 yards. Also a defensive end, the 225-pound three-year starter figures to be a key player on a team that aims to give reigning state champion Hockinson a stiff challenge in the 2A Greater St. Helens League.
