High School Football: The N2/BZM Power Rankings VIII
Pound for Pound – The Undefeateds remain on top, but changes are in store as the regular season wraps up
By Nick Sisson (N2 Media) and Jordan Nailon (Blast Zone Media) / blastzonenews@gmail.com
Prep Football / Rankings
Significant swaths of the high school football landscape across The Blast Zone was flipped on its head in Week 8, thanks in large part to a handful of surprising outcomes not far off of I-5. Even though we are in the business of ranking teams, the following surprises are in no specific order in terms of which might be most surprising.
First, looky-looky at what Toledo did last Friday at home against Onalaska!
NS: To be completely honest, I was leaning in the direction of the Loggers ahead of this contest, just based solely on how physical Onalaska plays the game and how they’ve fared head-to-head over the last few seasons. I was wrong. And not only was I wrong, but spectacularly wrong.
JN: At least you were spectacular, Nick. And don’t get me started on the crack-back blocks that never were.
Toledo not only won (that part wasn’t altogether suprising), but it thoroughly dominated the feared Loggers of Gritville, USA. Rumor even has it that they “out-physical-ed” Onalaska for all four quarters on their way to a 32-0 shutout win. That’s basically unheard of.
Now, to be fair, we have been driving the Toledo hype bus all season in our weekly Power Rankings, so it’s only fitting that the coaches poll once again reflects our sentiments by rewarding the Aquahawks of Cheese Town with the No. 1 ranking in all of 2B land.
While it’s nice to have respect, the ranking isn’t going to satisfy this Toledo squad. The Riverhawks know that there is still a lot more work to be done, and the possibility of some meaningful rematches against familiar foes looms just around the corner.
And since we are on the topic of teams that still have work to do [Mark Morris has entered the chat], Woodland stumbled at home last week in a 10-7 loss to the Monarchs. In a paradox befitting of the 2A Greater St. Helens League, that unexpected outcome at Beaver Stadium shook up the standings, as we all knew would eventually happen one way or another.
Woodland is now tied in the league standings with both Columbia River and Ridgefield for second place, and now the Beavers face a must-win situation in Week 9 at Ridgefield just to get in the playoffs. Even though the odds don’t seem in Woodland’s favor, they have got the better of Ridgefield the last two seasons back when the league championship was on the line, so the moment isn’t likely to overwhelm the Beavers.
Now, as for those surprising Monarchs, head coach Mike Peck has been clicking send all season long about how, “The best has yet to come” for his Monarchs, so the upset alert do-or-die road victory over Woodland certainly comes as no shock to him or any of his trusty players or assistants. It’s also entirely possible that the best is still yet to come for Mark Morris.
The Monarchs are guaranteed just one more day of football with the Civil War rivalry set to renew Friday against the Lumberjacks at the shared venue known as Longview Memorial Stadium. Mark Morris still has a shot to earn a spot in a playoff game against the 2A EvCo No. 3 seed for the right to play in the Week 10 crossovers. That’s a lot to think about when we toss around these heavy words like civil, war, and playoffs, but what it means in simple English is this; Mark Morris needs a win against R.A. Long High School, and it needs Ridgefield to beat Woodland in order to get them over the top.
What Mark Morris can ill-afford now is to overlook their rivals from Nichols Boulevard on The Big L Field this Friday night. The results we’ve seen played out so far this season, and over the span of the previous seven years, suggest that it shouldn’t be much of a problem for the Monarchs. After all, the boys in Columbia blue are riding a seven-game winning streak in The Planned City Series, and didn’t allow an offensive point in last season’s 51-7 romp. What’s more, they did it all while calling exclusively run-plays, just to prove a point.
So, it seems easy enough to assume Mark Morris will take care of their end this week, right? Some would go so far as to say it will be easy. But don’t go so fast.
The other big surprise from Week 8 happened late in the game at The Stadium when R.A. Long got hot against Ridgefield. The Lumberjacks may have lost the game 35-16, but none of that mattered when the clock finally ran out. The Jacks scored the final 16 points of the game, including a long pass that resulted in Ethyn Morain catching a pass and scoring the first touchdown of the season by a player without the surname Rivenes. (Don’t worry, he got credited with the throw.) With the scoreboard turned off you could be forgiven for assuming the Lumberjacks were the winners just by observing body language while the two teams huddled up in opposite end zones. There is certainly no quit in the Jacks and for the first time in four weeks and three quarters, they earned something to celebrate again.
Despite being 0 for 8 on the season, R.A. Long has managed to outscore their opponents a combined 36-20 in the fourth quarter so far, and Woodland scored all 20 of those points. That’s right, just one team has scored on the Jacks in the fourth quarter this season, and if they can continue that trend it won’t be bad news. However, it’s probably worth mentioning that the Lumberjacks have also not score at all outside the comfortable confines of those fourth quarters. Long has one more opportunity to earn an actual victory this season, and in a year that many have been trying to forget, wouldn’t it be something if the Jackies make Mark Morris sweat, while stocking away a few more moments to remember? We certainly think so.
The state of football in the State of Oregon is continues to get a passing grade thanks in very large part ot the Clatskanie Tigers and their perfect 8-0 record. From a historical perspective, this is a really big deal to Clatskanie, who has had several seasons of struggle in recent memory. The Tigers took care of Knappa 21-14 in a hard-fought win at home. That victory not only left Clatskanie undefeated, but also solidified its claim as a true 2A contender after beating the No. 4 ranked team in the OSAA system.
Meanwhile, sources say Rainier still has a team over in Oregon too. Yes? Ah, I see, The Real Rainier Columbians took care of Vernonia 60-14 in a game that has me reminiscing of the days when Gang Green carved teams up exclusively viaThe Diesel offense. (Has anyone else tried this recently? If so, they should stop. This trick is for Rainier, only.) The Columbians appear likely to win again this week, but their odds of making the playoffs appear long. That’s good news, in a way, since it will allow Rainier to continue playing alongside Clatskanie in the 2A ranks. (See: More Hooteannies!)
Back across the ferry in Washington Territory, the Mules of Cathlamet keep winning and adding to the legacy of this year’s power rankings. Yup, Wahkiakum is as good as advertised it’s highly likely they’re still being slightly disrespected on the state level after being voted in as the No. 2 team in 1B ranks by the coaches. The disrespect became all the more clear after formerly top-ranked Liberty Christian lost to Desales, but last week’s No. 2 (see: Wahkiakum) stayed exactly where they were at after beating (last year’s undefeated 6-man champions!) Northwest Christian 54-22 on the road.
Back on the freeway corridor, Kelso disposed of Mountain View as part of homecoming festivities and is now 7-1 under first-year head coach Darin Gardner. The Scots wrapped up the 3A Greater St. Helens League title with a 40-7 win over Sean McDonald’s winless Thunder and will wrap up regular season play on the road against Shelton this Friday. With the postseason already a sure thing for Kelso, look for the Hilanders to do anything they can to win this game (while avoiding more injuries) and add to pad their resume in hopes of convincing the seeding committee they deserve a Week 10 home game.
There is still important information to follow, but it’s time to rank our teams and discuss more of the intangibles. Be sure to subscribe and keep scrolling.
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