High School Football: Kelso honors Coach Laulainen’s passing with run-heavy rally
At Laulainen Stadium – Dahl, Hanson spark Hilanders’ last-second win over Knights
Jordan Nailon for Blast Zone Media / blastzonenews@gmail.com
High School Football / Review
LAULAINEN STADIUM – If Kelso was the kind of town to breed football players who wear sleeves they’d have been wearing their emotions on them in Week 4. Playing at home on Schroeder Field the Hilanders’ hearts were heavy with matters of life and death leading up to their game against Bremerton.
So when it was finally time to play, they played their hearts out until they’d snatched a 36-29 victory from the proverbial jaws of defeat, scoring the go-ahead touchdown with less than 20 seconds to go so that all of Kelso could breathe a sigh of relief.
The week leading up to that contest saw the passing of former Hilanders head coach Ed Laulainen. A hall of famer, a State champion, and a legend in every way. His death sent reverberations through the community, and inspired former coaches like Pat Hymes to stop by the old stomping grounds. Everyone who knew him wanted to speak about what Laulainen meant to the program, and what he meant to Kelso.
This year’s crop of coaches at Kelso wore pins emblazoned with the initials EL beneath Friday night’s lights in order to pay homage to the man they named the stadium after in K-Town. They’ll probably be wearing them the rest of the season.
On top of that, Friday marked the annual Deputy DeRosier Memorial game. And as such, the Scots were dressed in their black jerseys in order to pay homage to the program alum who was gunned down in the line of duty with the Cowlitz County Sheriff Department in 2019.
One Hilander was an old man, who seemed he’d live forever. The other Hilander was a young man who had so much more life to live. Both losses wrenched at the hearts of Kelso fans.
And that’s why the Scots had to win.
“Although a lot of these players may not have known or understood about Coach Laulainen’s impact coming into this week, I think there’s a palpable feel for it after this week,” first-year Kelso head coach Gardner said. “It feels really good. I’m really happy for our program and our school and community for being able to get the job done.”
Prior to the game there was a moment of silence to honor both those memories. And when the game began, the Scots had one more tribute up those aforementioned sleeves, and if you weren’ paying close attention – you probably missed it.
After receiving the opening kickoff the Kelso offense took the field. Coming out of the huddle nothing looked off, until 10 of the 11 Hilanders on the field (excluding the quarterback who was firmly under center) assumed a 3-point stance. Yes, that included the wide receivers who knew full well they were not going to be getting the ball.
The formation was an ode to Coach Laulainen whose teams lined up the same way back when they were earning a reputation as an unstoppable force from a little “truck stop town.”
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