E AST O REGONIAN
THURSDAY, MARCH 4, 2021
FOLLOW US ON
TWITTER @EOSPORTS |
FACEBOOK.COM/EOSPORTS
A7
READY FOR
KICKOFF?
PREP FOOTBALL PREVIEW
Hermiston High School’s Sam Cadenas, left, Spencer Juul and Chase
Elliott pose for a portrait in the school’s new uniforms at Kennison
Field in Hermiston on Tuesday, March 2, 2021. The Hermiston Bull-
dogs take on the Hanford Falcons at Hanford on Friday, March 5, 2021.
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Hermiston will be without Trevor
Wagner, who plays fi ve positions
By ANNIE FOWLER
For the East Oregonian
H
ERMISTON — Chase Elliott is excited
to get back on the football fi eld. The
Hermiston High School quarterback
suffered a leg injury in the fi rst quarter
of the season opener in 2019 against Pasco and was
sidelined the rest of the season.
A junior, Elliott spent the spring and summer
honing his skills, and now is ready to put them to
good use.
“Fun would be a good word for it,” Elliott said of
playing again. “This year, I’m a lot more relaxed in
the pocket. There is trust. I have known them (team-
mates) a lot longer, they respect me and have my back.
We will be OK.”
The Bulldogs will open their season on Friday,
March 5, against Hanford in a Mid-Columbia Confer-
ence game in Richland, Washington. No fans will
be allowed.
“Four games is all we have, so we have to maxi-
mize it,” Elliott said.
While having Elliott back is a bonus, the Bulldogs
will be without talented senior Trevor Wagner, who
had shoulder surgery during the offseason. Wagner is
a receiver, linebacker, kicker, punter and kick return
man.
“It would have been nice to have him,” Hermiston
coach David Faaeteete said. “Trevor would have been
able to do a lot for us. We will see if we can get him
back for a couple of games this season.”
A NEW LOOK
The Hermiston Bulldogs will debut their new uni-
forms Friday. They have three new looks — white
jerseys with gold numbers trimmed in purple, pur-
ple jerseys with gold numbers trimmed in black,
and black jerseys with gold numbers trimmed in
purple. They also have new pants and helmets.
“There are a lot of smiles,” Coach David Faaeteete
said of his players. “Rocking new jerseys is pretty
exciting.”
The Bulldogs do have many other options on
offense.
In the backfi eld, seniors Daniel Faaeteete (6-0,
220) and Thomas Reagan (5-10, 195) will share time.
Reagan missed last season with an injury, while Faae-
teete missed time with a knee injury.
“They are lightning and a bulldozer,” coach Faae-
teete said. “Thomas is the fastest kid on the team,
and Daniel has a little shake to him. They both do
things really well, they are physical runners and they
complement each other well.”
Elliott and his running backs worked hard to get
back on the fi eld.
“They stayed the course and continued to work
hard so when the season got started they were ready
to go,” Faaeteete said. “Chase and Thomas missed
See Hermiston, Page A8
Kathy Aney/East Oregonian, File
Pendleton’s Zaanan Bane gets yardage while trying to evade Blake
Morkert (1) and Drake Kramer (3), of Scappoose, on Sept. 27, 2019, at
the Round-Up Arena.
Bucks excited about
new backfi eld threat
By ANNIE FOWLER
For the East Oregonian
P
ENDLETON — Pend-
leton coach Erik Davis
has a young team this
year with just eight
seniors on his roster, but at this
point, he doesn’t care if there is
one or a dozen.
“I’m just excited for the kids
to do something, to allow them
some sense of normalcy” said
Davis, whose team opens its
season Friday, March 5, at Park-
rose in a Special District 1 show-
down. “We are excited to have six
games, which is better than zero.”
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown
eased restrictions on outdoor
contact sports on Feb. 10, opening
the door for the Bucks and every
other football team in the state.
“We have practiced in every
See Bucks, Page A8
Heppner locked and loaded for opener at Grant Union
By ANNIE FOWLER
For the East Oregonian
H
EPPNER — Heppner
coach Greg Grant
is not one to mince
words.
As the defending 2A state cham-
pion Mustangs inch closer to the
Friday, March 5, opener at Grant
Union, Grant admits they still have
some things to work on, and replac-
ing the size and experience on the
lines will not be an easy task.
“My biggest concern is replacing
the experience up front,” Grant said.
“We have one offensive lineman
(Roy Collins) back. We have some
older kids with some experience.
Every year is a different puzzle. We
just have to wait and see how they
grow and come together.”
Offensively, the Mustangs have
several of their weapons back that
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian, File
Heppner linebacker Jace Coe (20) intercepts a pass in the third quarter.
The Mustangs defeated the Kennedy Trojans 12-7 to win the 2019 OSAA
Class 2A state title on Nov. 30, 2019, at Kennison Field in Hermiston.
helped them go 13-0 and win a state
title.
Quarterback Jayden Wilson,
who has signed with Western
Oregon University, returns under
center. The 6-foot-6, 205-pound
senior threw for 1,282 yards and 23
touchdowns, and ran for 797 yards
and 14 touchdowns last season.
Defensively, Wilson had 32 tack-
les, three interceptions and three
fumble recoveries. He was a fi rst-
team all-state selection on both
sides of the ball.
Senior running back Blake Wolt-
ers rolled up a team-high 999 yards
and 16 touchdowns. As a defensive
lineman, he had 70 tackles and four
sacks.
Jackson Lehman, a senior tight
end/receiver/linebacker, had 345
receiving yards and seven touch-
downs. He also had 42 tackles and
two interceptions.
Other key returning players
include junior Kason Cimmiyotti at
defensive back (23 tackles, 6 inter-
ceptions), junior Jace Coe at line-
backer, and junior Brock Hisler at
linebacker.
“I’m excited to see them step
into their roles,” Grant said. “They
complement each other well.”
The Prospectors lost six seniors
from last season’s 3-7 team, with the
biggest loss being all-state two-way
lineman Drew Lusco, who also was
a two-time state champion wrestler.
With the COVID-19 pandemic
shifting the start of sports and
nixing state championships, Grant
said his team has come to the reali-
zation that winning another title this
year is not in the cards.
“They will always wonder,”
Grant said. “I just want them to
See Heppner, Page A8