La Grande football has had a revolving door of coaches this decade. When Rich McIlmoil took over last season, he became the Tigers’ sixth coach since 2010.
What gives?
“It’s hard to coach football in this town,” McIlmoil said. “There’s a high expectation for people that maybe think La Grande is a big football town, but it’s not.”
So when the job opened after the 2017 season, McIlmoil, who had spent 15 years coaching middle school football in the district, applied with the intention of providing some much-needed stability.
“I’m not really a football coach,” McIlmoil said. “We had a huge turnover of football coaches, and I just got sick of seeing it. I didn’t want to see this group of boys end up with somebody that didn’t want to be here.”
Last season, La Grande reached the 4A quarterfinals for the second year in a row. And this year, with starters back at all but two positions, the Tigers are soaring.
They completed an unbeaten regular season for the first time in 51 years and have advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 1976. Third-seeded La Grande (10-0) meets No. 10 seed The Dalles (7-4) in a semifinal at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Hermiston High School.
La Grande has crushed the competition this season. The Tigers lead 4A in scoring (43.6 points) and have allowed the fewest points (8.7) in the classification. They have won every game by at least 13 points.
The quarterfinals represented a giant obstacle for La Grande, which lost in the final eight to Marshfield 24-21 in 2017 and Gladstone 30-27 last year. The Tigers broke through last week, though, beating Gladstone 14-0 as senior Nathan Reed ran for 186 yards and two touchdowns and the defense held the Gladiators to 158 yards.
“I have not seen them that excited,” McIlmoil said of the team’s postgame celebration.
The coach traced part of the Tigers' success back to the summer, when they attended three football camps, getting high participation despite many of the players being multiple-sport athletes.
Reed and senior lineman Chris Woodworth wrestled in Germany for three weeks but still found time to attend two football camps. Senior quarterback Parker Robinson, like Woodworth a state champion wrestler, also had wrestling commitments but managed to make it to all three camps.
“Last year’s loss to Gladstone really kind of bit them,” McIlmoil said. “They put in a lot of extra time. It’s a different level for these guys this year. They really wanted to show our community that La Grande football was going to be for real this year.”
The Tigers shined during the summer. At a camp of more than 700 players at Eastern Washington University, Robinson and senior nose tackle Gabe Shukle were named the offensive and defensive players of the camp, respectively.
La Grande shot out of the gate with a 36-14 home win over 5A Pendleton, avenging a 38-12 loss from last year, and never looked back. Among the Tigers’ victories is a 43-0 rout of Clatskanie, a 3A quarterfinalist.
“We’re not the biggest team, but we’ve got a lot of team speed,” McIlmoil said. “We’re pretty quick, not just at our skill positions, but our linemen are really athletic.”
With 22 seniors, seven of whom played on both quarterfinal teams, La Grande has outstanding leadership. Among those showing the way are Reed, Robinson, Shukle, receiver/safety Blaine Shaw and strong safety Zach Wiggins, who “is really loud and gets the team pumped up,” McIlmoil said.
Reed has rushed for 1,458 yards and 20 touchdowns, averaging 12.4 yards per carry. Robinson has passed for 1,215 yards and 21 touchdowns and rushed for 639 yards and five scores. Shaw has 21 catches for 781 yards.
The Tigers beat The Dalles 48-14 in Week 2, but at the time, the Riverhawks were still adjusting to first-year coach Andy Codding and their new fly-sweep offense. The Dalles is averaging 55.0 points in its last three games.
“We played one of our best games of the season against that team,” McIlmoil said. “We did not make many mistakes in that game. And they’ve improved quite a bit since then.”
The Dalles went on the road to beat No. 7 Henley 49-18 in the first round and held off No. 15 Tillamook 58-51 in the quarterfinals, getting five touchdowns from senior Okean Green, four rushing and one receiving. McIlmoil is wary of Green and Riverhawks senior quarterback Gabe Helseth.
“They’ve got a lot of team speed, too,” McIlmoil said. “Their quarterback is really savvy. He can kind of pick you apart right now. And (Green) can downright move.”
The Dalles, which will appear in its first semifinal since 1993, has found a rhythm on offense.
“We’ve had time now to work on it, rep it and get better at it,” Codding said. “We’re starting to put some numbers up. We feel good about the weapons we’ve got, both through the air and running the ball.”
In that loss, The Dalles did not have senior tight end and defensive end Mac Abbas and senior receiver and defensive back Zac Anderson, and senior inside linebacker Steven Preston left with an injury in the first quarter. All are back.
A look the other playoff matchups this weekend:
QUARTERFINALS, FRIDAY
6A
No. 16 Mountainside (8-3) at No. 9 Barlow (9-2): Mountainside, which stunned No. 1 Tigard 34-31 in overtime last week, collides with the Bruins in a matchup of two surprising teams. The Mavericks have won four in a row since they turned over their starting quarterback duties to sophomore Brian Mannion, who has thrown 12 touchdown passes in that span. Barlow, in the quarterfinals for the first time since 2005, made its only semifinal appearance in 1991.
No. 5 West Linn (8-3) vs. No. 4 Central Catholic (9-2) at Hillsboro Stadium: A rematch of the season opener, which Central Catholic won 35-27 as Silas Starr caught two touchdown passes and Elijah Elliott rushed for 181 yards. West Linn is in the quarterfinals for the sixth year in a row. Since the Lions beat the Rams 62-7 in the 2016 final, both teams have lost in the quarterfinals the last two years.
No. 22 Lakeridge (5-6) at No. 3 Lake Oswego (9-2): It’s high stakes for the Battle of the Lake as the upstart Pacers, coming off road wins over Beaverton and Aloha, try to keep their run going against the reigning 6A champion Lakers, who beat them 41-17 in the regular-season finale. The game will feature two Pac-12 running back commits is Lakeridge’s Jalen John (Arizona) and Lake Oswego’s Casey Filkins (Stanford). The Pacers are bidding for their first semifinal berth since 1994.
No. 7 Tualatin (9-2) at No. 2 Jesuit (9-2): The host Crusaders, appearing in the quarterfinals for the 12th consecutive year, clash with the Timberwolves, who are in the final eight for the first time since 2010, when they were runners-up. Last week, Jesuit’s Kade Wisher rushed for 285 yards and five touchdowns in a 70-24 win over Liberty, giving him 1,964 yards and 26 scores for the season. Kainoa Sayre ran for 162 yards and four touchdowns to lead Tualatin past North Medford 50-35.
SEMIFINALS, SATURDAY
5A
No. 4 Silverton (10-1) vs. No. 1 Thurston (11-0), 12 p.m., Autzen Stadium: Reigning champion Thurston bids for a return trip to the final against the Foxes, who have lost only to West Albany. The teams last met in the first round in 2017, with Silverton winning 31-14. Thurston’s Wesley Kommer rushed for 249 yards and five touchdowns to help beat Wilsonville 48-9 last week in a rematch of the 2018 final. Silverton, a quarterfinalist the last two years, is in the final four for the first time since 2013.
No. 3 West Albany (11-0) vs. No. 2 Crater (10-1), 5 p.m., Autzen Stadium: The two best defenses in 5A will slug it out for a finals berth. West Albany has held opponents to a 5A-low 85 points and Crater -- which hasn’t yielded a point in 17 quarters and has six shutouts -- is second at 105 points. West Albany, which won the 5A title in 2013 and spent the next four seasons in 6A, lost in the semifinals last year. Crater is in the final four for the first time in four years.
4A
No. 5 Marist Catholic (9-1) vs. No. 1 Banks (10-0), 5:30 p.m., Hillsboro Stadium: Reigning champion Banks, which has won 21 in a row, is 3-0 against the Spartans the last two seasons, including a 28-14 quarterfinal win last year. In Week 3 this season, the Braves won at Marist Catholic 19-14, building a 19-0 lead. Tanner Shook (23 touchdown passes) took over as the Banks’ quarterback in that game. The Spartans are in the semifinals for the first since 2014, when they were in 5A. Max Campbell (24 touchdown passes) and Lucas Tuski (1,071 rushing yards) lead a balanced offense.
3A
No. 5 Rainier (9-2) vs. No. 1 Hidden Valley (11-0), 4 p.m., Cottage Grove HS: Hidden Valley, which has won every game by at least 17 points this season, faces the reigning champion Columbians, who have lost only to Clatskanie and Amity. Up until this year, the Mustangs hadn’t won a playoff game since 2007. Hidden Valley is averaging a 5A-best 49.3 points per game. Rainier won at Amity 50-22 in the quarterfinals, but lost running back Stone Ware to a broken wrist.
No. 3 Burns (11-0) vs. No. 2 Santiam Christian (11-0), 11 a.m., Hermiston HS: Last week, Burns was outgained by Clatskanie 337-135 but won 14-13, holding the Tigers on downs inside its 10-yard line in the final minute. The Hilanders are holding their opponents to 6.0 points per game, best in the state for all classifications. Santiam Christian has won all of its games by at least 21 points. In the quarterfinals, the Eagles led 36-0 at half and beat Vale 58-6. Burns is in the semifinals for the first time since winning the 2A title in 2014.
2A
No. 4 Monroe (10-1) vs. No. 1 Kennedy (9-1), 11 a.m., Hillsboro Stadium: A matchup of the last two champions. Monroe, which won the title in 2017 and lost in the semifinals last year, has one of the state’s best all-around athletes in senior running back Zach Young, who rushed for 232 yards and four touchdowns in a 56-26 quarterfinal win over Toledo. Reigning champion Kennedy has won nine in a row since opening the season with a 22-0 loss to Rainier, last year’s 3A champion. The teams last met in the 2017 quarterfinals, when Monroe prevailed 41-35.
No. 7 Knappa (9-2) vs No. 2 Heppner (11-0), 2:15 p.m., Hillsboro Stadium: Knappa, which has won eight in a row, upset No. 2 seed Coquille 36-30 in the quarterfinals as Eli Takalo ran for two touchdowns and passed for two scores. Since winning the 2008 title, the Loggers are 0-4 in the semifinals, losing in 2009, 2010, 2014 and 2017. Heppner trailed Warrenton 7-6 in the third quarter last week before running away to a 32-7 win, collecting six turnovers. The Mustangs, who won the 2015 title, have six shutouts and have allowed a 2A-low 73 points.
1A
No. 4 Camas Valley (9-0) vs. No. 1 St. Paul (11-0), 12 p.m., Cottage Grove HS: A battle between two of the state’s perennial powers, who have six state championships apiece. Camas Valley, which won state titles in 2011 and 2012 and lost in the semifinals the following two years, is back in the final four after beating Powder Valley 48-36 behind Jared Hunt, who had 181 of the team’s 396 rushing yards. St. Paul, last year’s 1A runner-up after losing in the 2A semifinals in 2017, is outscoring opponents by an average of 64-10.
No. 3 Crane (10-1) vs. No. 2 Adrian/Jordan Valley (11-0), 2:15 p.m., Hermiston HS: The teams met in Week 2, with Adrian prevailing 42-36 as Michael Babcock and quarterback Conley Martin combined to rush for 295 yards and five touchdowns. Adrian, which won the title in 2014, lost in the quarterfinals the last two years. Crane, runner-up in 2015 and 2016 and a quarterfinalist the last two years, is making its 11th semifinal appearance but has never won a title. The Mustangs knocked off four-time reigning champion Dufur 42-6 last week.
jerryu@osaa.org
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