Thursday, October 19, 2017
SPORTS
BULLDOGS: Defense aims to keep Redmond’s running game under wraps
Page 2B
East Oregonian
While the seniors will
play in their last offi cial
home game Friday, the
season is far from over. A
win against Redmond will all
but secure the Bulldogs place
in the playoffs.
Hermiston currently sits
at No. 2 in the league, behind
Mountain View and tied with
Bend. Pendleton is only one
game behind the two.
However, Hermiston isn’t
worried about the chaos that
always comes when a playoff
berth is on the line. In fact,
the Bulldogs aren’t thinking
about next week, or the play-
offs. They have one focus.
“It doesn’t matter who
we are playing against,”
Faaeteete said. “We’re going
to respect them and play our
football game and get in the
mindset of do what we do
and execute and have a great
time doing it. Before we get
to next week that’s what we
have to do, we have to take
care of Redmond.”
Even though the Panthers
(1-6, 1-4) have struggled
most of the season, they will
still pose a threat when they
Continued from 1B
honored Friday before taking
on Redmond at Kennison
Field.
James can look to Neal or
Joey Gutierrez or Jonathan
Hinkle. The list goes on and
on, and the seniors aren’t
just making their presence
known on offense. The Class
of 2018 has played lights out
defense.
Hinkle leads the team with
56 total tackles. Behind him
are AJ Tuia (36) and Guti-
errez (31). Tuia has notched
six sacks on the season, and
Gutierrez has seven picks.
But there is more to the
senior class than big plays
and it isn’t just physicality.
“Their attitude. They
know how to get the job
done,” head coach David
Faaeteete said. “They have
seen it before. They are
trying to work toward those
things. They do a good job
in the weight room. They
are here almost all the time
during the summer. It’s going
to be sad to watch this group
go, eventually.”
come to town.
One of Hermiston’s
focuses have been stopping
the run game with the defen-
sive line. Before hosting
Bend, the Bulldogs gave up
550 rushing yards in their
previous three games. Things
were better last week when
they held the Lava Bears to
only 136 yards, but Redmond
will test their progress, and
show which Bulldogs are
buying in.
“At practice we’re always
correcting them on stuff and
we just hope that it sinks in
sooner rather than later,”
Faaeteete said. “It sunk in
last week and they improved.
We’ll see who is ready to
answer the call when we play
on Friday.”
The Panthers have a few
key players that Hermiston
will need to be ready for.
They too are a part of a
talented senior class.
At the start of the season
Redmond was without a
quarterback, but Kamau
Troutman has fi lled that role
and has a handful of targets
to fi nd on the fi eld. Running
back Dillon Taylor is touted
as Redmond’s most versa-
tile player. Wide receivers
Colton Mortenson and
Bradly Daniels are known
to have the best hands on
the team and the fastest feet,
respectively.
The Panthers’ losing
record isn’t because lack of
talent.
“They play hard. They run
the football,” Faaeteete said.
“They have adjusted their
offense to fi t, and now they
don’t have a quarterback
issue. They have settled on
one guy who has been able to
do pretty good for them.”
The single wing offense
Redmond will bring has
Faaeteete a little worried,
since Hermiston has trouble
stopping the run. But one
thing Hermiston doesn’t lack
is effort.
“Every day we’re growing
and we have to continue to
get better every week, day
in and day out,” Faaeteete
said. “The focus is not on the
end result, it’s on the process
right now for us.”
SENIOR GOODBYES
In the pre-game festiv-
ities, expect see a lot of
emotion — from the players,
their parents, and their coach.
The large class possesses
a lot of talent and have the
experience to endure almost
anything on the fi eld and
overcome it. They lead in all
but one statistical category
and will certainly be hard to
replace.
Take for example the duo
of Peter Earl and Hinkle. On
offense, Earl uses his speed
and quick feet to weave
between defenders and
Hinkle uses his strong build
and big frame to run guys
over. But the two are more
than just elusive running
backs. When paired up as
inside linebackers, they are
the heart of the defense.
There’s Tyler Rohrman,
who only has seven recep-
tions on the season but has
made those seven count.
He’s put up two touchdowns
and 185 yards.
Friday night will give
these players and others a
chance to celebrate their
successes while also giving
them the motivation needed
to endure a tough postseason
stretch.
“It’s one of those moments
where as a football player —
or any kind of high school
athlete — your Senior Night,
your last offi cial home game,
to think back about the four
years you went through, that
you’ve struggled,” Faaeteete
said. “Maybe you’ve sat on
the bench for three years and
are fi nally a starter, things
like that. Its a testament to
high school athletics and its
a testament to their parents
for keeping them on and
keeping them out.
“When they started as a
group I think they were about
33, 34 maybe more and now
there’s about 17. To keep at
least half of those guys out
is a testament to their unity
as a group, and I’m excited
to celebrate that and play a
great gave on Friday.”
———
Contact Alexis at aman-
sanarez@eastoregonian.
com or 541-564-4542.
Follow her on Twitter @
almansanarez.
BUCKS: Tough environment in Bend will be tougher with cold, rainy weather
rankings and had a fi ve-
game win streak snapped
last week with a close 35-32
loss at Hermiston. In that
game, Bend erased a 21-2
fi rst half defi cit and used a
balanced offensive attack
and a stout defense capable
of forcing turnovers to play
its way back into the game.
On offense, Pendleton
will be facing a Bend unit
that sits in a Cover-3 base
and will try to combat it with
a strong running game with
some vertical passing. Davis
said this week that the keys
to the offense come down to
a fast start and limiting any
turnovers. Pendleton didn’t
turn the ball over against
Hood River, but did not
score until late in the second
quarter before turning it on
in the second half, some-
thing they can’t allow on
Friday.
“We came out fl at a little
bit against Hood River early
and we don’t have that
luxury this week,” Davis
said. “We have to get on the
Continued from 1B
and make sure we know how
important this game is for
us.”
With two weeks left to
play, Pendleton (4-3 overall,
3-2 5A Special District 1)
has a one-game lead on
Summit for the fourth-
and-fi nal playoff spot in
the district. Because of the
Buckaroos loss to the Storm
in Week 3, Pendleton needs
to win its fi nal two games
to guarantee its fi rst playoff
berth since 2014. That has
been the Buckaroos’ No. 1
goal all season long, but it
will not come easy, starting
with Bend.
“We haven’t been in a
position like this in a couple
of years,” Pendleton head
coach Erik Davis said. “So
to get these kids to realize
what they have to do to be a
playoff team is to have that
playoff mentality.”
The Lava Bears (5-2, 4-1)
come into the game ranked
No. 14 in the OSAA’s 5A
board early and often, we
can’t afford to wait until the
second quarter or late in the
game for scoring opportu-
nities ... and we don’t want
to give them (Bend) any
extra offensive possessions
because they’re a big, phys-
ical team that can run the
clock down.”
And on defense, Pend-
leton is facing a Bend
offense that will try to wear
out the opposition with a
rushing attack with Haakon
Kjellesvik and Marhsall
Davis, but also has a threat
to throw the ball downfi eld
to some tall receivers.
Last week against Herm-
iston, Bend ran 65 plays on
offense to Hermiston’s 49,
with 136 yards on 43 rushes
and 178 yards on eight pass
completions from quarter-
back Cooper Simmonds.
“I think our linebackers
are going to have to play
huge Friday, fi lling in gaps,”
Davis said. “They’re (Bend)
not a huge outside the
tackles run team, they like
to keep it inside, so to get
Kirk (Liscom) and Aiden
(Patterson) going and the
outside linebackers have to
play more physical than they
did against Mountain View
a couple weeks ago. Our
defense has been improving
against the run game, but we
have to limit the long drives.
We need more three-and-
outs and not the 10 minute
drives like Mountain View.”
Some good news came
to the defense this week,
as junior linebacker Willie
Camp was medically cleared
to play following his emer-
gency appendectomy two
weeks ago. Davis said that
how much Camp will play
has yet to be determined,
that it depended on how
Camp responded to testing
in practice after being side-
lined for the amount of time
that he was.
“If he’s ready to go, he’ll
play because he’s a tough
kid,” Davis said. “But We’ll
monitor what’s safe, what’s
right, and what’s most effec-
tive.”
And as if Friday’s game
was not already a tough
enough environment for
Pendleton, the weather
forecast as of Wednesday
evening calls for tempera-
tures in the low 40s/high
30s by game time with a
good chance of precipitation
and 10-plus mile-per-hour
winds. The two teams
played in rough conditions
last year in Pendleton, as a
days worth of rain turned
the Round-Up Arena fi eld
into a mudpit for a game
that Bend grinded out a 22-7
victory. But the players are
not worried too much about
it.
“We just have to go down
there and make plays,”
Bower
said.
“They’re
(Bend) playing on the same
fi eld and same conditions as
us, so we just have to go out
and make plays.”
A win would also go a
long way for the Buckaroos
program that has yet to beat
a true good team this season.
In Pendleton’s four wins,
the opponents (Putnam,
Ridgeview,
Redmond,
Hood River Valley) have
a combined record of just
5-21, while its three losses
(La
Grande,
Summit,
Mountain View) are 16-5.
Pendleton played tough
in those three games, but
not tough enough which is
something the Buckaroos
hope to change on Friday.
“We need to come out
faster and stronger,” junior
Aiden
Patterson
said.
“Every time we come out
to start, our defense takes a
series or two to warm up and
it allows them to score early
so we need to come out a lot
faster in this game. Every
play counts, we can’t take
a play off ... losing isn’t an
option. It’s a must-win for
us and that’s our goal.”
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
————
Contact Eric at esinger@
eastoregonian.com
or
541-966-0839. Follow him
on Twitter @ByEricSinger.
PIGSKIN
PICKERS
Week 7
Overall:
Last Week:
Pendleton at Bend
Redmond at Hermiston
Heppner at Stanfi eld
Irrigon at Umatilla
USC at Notre Dame
Oregon at UCLA
Colorado at WSU
Seahawks at Giants
Cardinals at Rams
Falcons at Patriots
Eric
Singer
Ron
Gibbs
Clint
Shoemake
Zachary
Orem
John
Airoldi
Mike
Appleton
Jodi
Bloomberg
Weston
Putman
Brandon
Case
Alexis
Mansanarez
48-12
6-4
Pendleton
Hermiston
Heppner
Umatilla
USC
Oregon
WSU
Seahawks
Rams
Falcons
47-13
5-5
Bend
Hermiston
Heppner
Irrigon
Notre Dame
UCLA
WSU
Seahawks
Rams
Patriots
46-14
7-3
Bend
Hermiston
Heppner
Irrigon
Notre Dame
UCLA
WSU
Seahawks
Rams
Patriots
45-15
6-4
Bend
Hermiston
Heppner
Irrigon
Notre Dame
Oregon
WSU
Seahawks
Rams
Falcons
43-17
5-5
Bend
Hermiston
Stanfi eld
Umatilla
Notre Dame
UCLA
WSU
Seattle
Rams
Patriots
43-17
6-4
Bend
Hermiston
Heppner
Umatilla
USC
UCLA
WSU
Seahawks
Rams
Patriots
42-18
5-5
Bend
Hermiston
Heppner
Umatilla
USC
Oregon
WSU
Seahawks
Rams
Falcons
39-21
5-5
Bend
Hermiston
Heppner
Umatilla
USC
Oregon
WSU
Seahawks
Rams
Patriots
39-21
7-3
Pendleton
Hermiston
Stanfi eld
Irrigon
USC
Oregon
WSU
Seahawks
Rams
Patriots
33-27
3-7
Bend
Hermiston
Heppner
Umatilla
USC
UCLA
Colorado
Seahawks
Cardinals
Falcons
ROGERS TOYOTA
4 SEASON’S PAINT CO. ST. ANTHONY HOSPITAL SHERRELL CHEVROLET HERMISTON HERALD
IS ROOTING FOR
IS ROOTING FOR
IS ROOTING FOR
IS ROOTING FOR
IS ROOTING FOR
J ODI B LOOMBERG
M IKE A PPLETON
J OHN A IROLDI
C LINT S HOEMAKE
R ON G IBBS
EAST OREGONIAN
ELMER’S IRRIGATION
IS ROOTING FOR
IS ROOTING FOR
EASTERN OREGON
HEATING & AIR
MID COLUMBIA
PRODUCERS, INC.
NW METAL FABRICATORS
B RANDON C ASE
IS ROOTING FOR
GOOD LUCK!
211 S.E. Byers, Pendleton
541-966-0800
541-567-6211
www.eastoregonian.com
Z ACHARY O REM
A LEXIS M ANSANAREZ
IS ROOTING FOR
W ESTON P UTMAN
IS ROOTING FOR
E RIC S INGER