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About Seaside signal. (Seaside, Or.) 1905-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 13, 2019)
FOOTBALL New coach, new era for Seaside football By GARY HENLEY Seaside Signal W e all know how the 2018 sea- son fi nished. A loss in the fog, to the Banks Braves. What can Seaside football do for an encore in 2019? Whatever the Gulls do this year, the 2018 Gulls will be a tough act to follow. First of all, the 2019 team will have to do it with a new coach, as Aaron Tanabe replaces Jeff Roberts. Also among the missing: one all-league quarterback, two all-league running backs and four all-league offensive linemen on one side of the ball, and a couple of more all-leaguers on defense. Last year, the Gulls were at home for seven of their fi rst 10 games, until the state semifi nals. The 2019 schedule has Seaside on the road for four of its fi nal six regular season games, with contests at Gladstone, Astoria and Banks. The stars were certainly aligned for last year’s magical season. The road doesn’t look as smooth for Tanabe’s fi rst season. With the graduation of 11 seniors, Tanabe’s list of key returners is a short one. “Brayden Johnson (Sr., WR/DB), David Toyooka (Sr., OL/DL), Luke Nel- son (Sr., OL/DL) and Levi Card (Sr., TE/ LB),” Tanabe said. If there’s any more, “We’ll fi nd out when the pads go on,” he said. “We expect our kids to block, get off blocks and tackle, and to play fast, physical and fearless. The rest will take care of itself.” The league lineup looks the same as it did a year ago, with Astoria, Banks, Molalla, Seaside, Tillamook and Valley Catholic. The Braves and the Gulls were the only Cowapa League teams with over- all winning records in 2018. Qualify- ing for the playoffs out of the Cowapa … was not much of a problem. Astoria and Tillamook tied with 4-5 overall records but both made the play-in round, as did Molalla, which fi nished 1-4 in league, 2-7 overall. All three lost by narrow margins in the play-in round, while Banks and Sea- side advanced to the all-Cowapa League state championship. “We expect it to be competitive,” Tanabe said. “There are good coaches and good athletes in this league.” 4 • Seagull Pride • Fall 2019 SEASIDE FOOTBALL Coach: Aaron Tanabe, 1st year 2018: 10-2 (4-1 Cowapa) Playoff s: Defeated Cascade, Estacada and Gladstone in state playoff s, lost to Banks in state championship game, 20-31. All-league losses: Travis Fenton (C), Isaias Jantes (G), Dylan Meyer (T), Gio Ramirez (LB), Alex Teubner (RB/DB), Duncan Thompson (RB), Paxson VanNortwick (T), Payton Westerholm (QB) ABOVE A player reaches to catch a ball during practice. LEFT A player is lifted up by a teammate while practicing blocking. Hailey Hoff man All-league returners: Brayden Johnson, Sr. (DB) Can’t-Miss-Game: Henley at Seaside, Sept. 7. Everyone’s fi rst chance to see the 2019 Gulls, when the Hornets make their third trip in three years to Seaside. Schedule Sept. 7 Henley 1 p.m. Sept. 13 Marist 7 p.m. Sept. 20 at Gladstone 7 p.m. Sept. 27 at Astoria 7 p.m. Oct. 4 Valley Catholic 7 p.m. Oct. 11 at Molalla 7 p.m. Oct. 18 at Banks 7 p.m. Oct. 25 Tillamook 7 p.m.
