Seton Catholic senior Jacob Williams (4) runs the ball Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, during the Cougarsí 42-41 win against Life Christian Academy in the 1A State Football Playoff quarterfinals at Doc Harris Stadium in Camas. (Taylor Balkom/The Columbian)
The Seton Catholic football team was coming off of its best season in program history last season, making the Class 1A state playoffs for the first time and going all the way to the state semifinals.
That experience, ending with a 41-0 loss to eventual state champion Royal in the semifinal round, gave the Cougars a clear idea of how they measured up and where they needed to be.
Then they began figuring out how to get there. An offensive line that started four sophomores in 2023 spent the offseason getting stronger and quicker. A fine-tuned passing game led by quarterback Kolten Gesser and pass-catchers Joe Callerame and Ryker Ruelas reached another gear. An on-the-rise defense grew more stingy.
Each of those things has played a part in undefeated Seton Catholic’s return to the 1A state semifinals and a matchup with Montesano on Saturday at 4 p.m. at McKenzie Stadium. But in the midst of the Cougars’ ascension, they haven’t forgotten about their back-bone, a cornerstone piece, a fail-safe who provides the Cougars security when a plan goes south.
That role belongs to senior running back Jacob Williams.
In Seton Catholic’s quarterfinal win over Life Christian last Saturday, the Cougars twice trailed in the fourth quarter after giving up touchdown drives, only for Williams to answer with a pair of rushing touchdowns, including the game-winning 1-yard score with 43 seconds left.
“I’ve taken thousands of carries in my life, and just knowing that it’s just another carry and there’s nothing different about it — it’s just the circumstance,” Williams said this week. “And I feel like understanding that mentally really helps me get in the zone of where I just go to work.”
Seton’s 42-41 win was playoff football at its finest, a result made possible in part by the Cougars’ 5-foot-11, 215-pound workhorse running back (122 rushing yards, three touchdowns) who believes his game has improved tenfold this season.
Much like the Cougars, Williams’ growth has been years in the making. He thinks back to the final two games of his 2022 sophomore season, when facing King’s Way Christian and Montesano, he began to hone his style as a punishing back running through contact.
In a Week 7 game against La Center as a junior, he found some extra shiftiness. That’s when everything clicked.
“I matured as a runner,” Williams said. “I kind of found out who I really was. I think after that I just took off from there.”
This offseason, Williams credits sessions with New Athlete, a specialized training facility in Vancouver, helping him gain extra strength and speed, hitting a maximum speed of nearly 23 miles per hour.
Before games, he often watches highlight clips of Ezekiel Elliott from his Ohio State and early Dallas Cowboys career, trying to emulate his punishing style. Williams also watches old college game tapes of his dad, DeShawn Williams, who played at Oregon State from 1995-98.
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He’s soared as a senior on a Cougars team averaging 47 points per game. In nine regular season games, Williams amassed 1,252 rushing yards, averaging 12 yards per carry, with 15 touchdowns. He’s also a key part of the Cougars’ passing game as a blocker and pass-catcher out of the backfield.
“He’s such a beast,” Seton Catholic offensive line coach Tucker Wilson said. “You can see it, he’s strong, he’s always falling forward. One thing that people don’t give him enough credit for is his pass blocking. … The last two years we’ve only given up one sack, and Jacob hasn’t given up any.”
One of the Cougars’ main takeaways from last year’s state semifinal game against Royal, according to Wilson, was the disparity in line play between the two teams.
The group took it upon themselves to improve in the offseason and “hold up their end,” Wilson said, to perform for the rest of the team. Now, the six-man rotation of Alex Dayoob, Jessan Tillie, Austin St. Amour, Ja’Marcus Robinson, AJ Bradshaw and Houston Wells are playing like seasoned veterans.
“You hear it all the time, it starts and ends in the trenches and up front,” Wilson said. “So it was our goal to kind of show up this year and not only hold up our end, but also be like, OK these guys are good too. Not just skill position guys.
Williams, for one, is appreciative of their efforts.
“Whenever I can I try to give them love,” the running back said. “I’ll get them food, I’ll buy them donuts or whatever. They are what makes our offense go, and I really hope they know that. But, I believe that wholeheartedly, and I think some people forget that sometimes, especially with our offense. It starts with them.”
By this time last season, going further than any previous Seton Catholic team had, the Cougars were essentially playing with house money.
Now? They have their sights set on Seattle’s Husky Stadium for the 1A state championship. Montesano is the last team standing between them and a road trip north.
“This year, it’s more like, we’ve been here before, we know where we need to be, let’s get it done and let’s do what we need to do,” Williams said. “Everybody’s making those sacrifices.”
IF YOU GO
What: WIAA 1A State Football Semifinal: Seton Catholic (11-0) vs. Montesano (9-3)
When: 4 p.m. Saturday
Where: McKenzie Stadium, 2205 NE 138th Ave., near Evergreen High School
