Football powers Banks and Kennedy appeared destined for some high-stakes match-ups after moving to 3A last year -- the Braves from 4A and the Trojans from 2A.
And sure enough, the teams collided in an undefeated showdown in last year's state semifinals, with Kennedy prevailing 15-7 in a defensive struggle at Hillsboro Stadium.
This season, with Kennedy joining Banks in Special District 1, even more is on the line between the teams. The No. 4 Trojans (5-0, 2-0) and No. 3 Braves (5-0, 3-0) will play for first place Friday when they meet at Kennedy.
“We're pumped that they're in our league now,” Banks coach Cole Linehan said. “We always want to play the toughest teams possible. When they got in our league this year, me and the guys were all excited about it because we knew we'd get the opportunity to play them midseason, not have to wait for the playoffs.”
The game promises to be a grind considering both teams are allowing 6.6 points per game, behind only reigning champion and top-ranked Cascade Christian (5.2) in 3A.
“Last year was a back-and-forth, physical football game, and I'm expecting this one to be pretty similar,” said Kennedy coach Joe Panuke, who guided the Trojans to a state title in 2018 and runner-up finishes in 2019, 2021 and 2022. “They are good defensively. They fly around, don't give up too many big plays.”
Banks, the 4A champion in 2018 and runner-up in 2019, is still smarting from how last year's semifinal defeat unfolded. The Braves took a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter before quarterback Christian Lyda left the game with a broken wrist. With backup Kade Long already out with a broken collarbone, Banks was forced to use freshman Lane Gilbert and running back Ashton Crossen at quarterback.
“We were just limited there,” Linehan said. “We couldn't move the ball. It was just some unfortunate circumstances. Our defense still played well.”
Long, a 5-foot-10, 155-pound senior, has taken over at quarterback this season. He has completed 68.3 percent of his passes for 952 yards and 12 touchdowns with six interceptions. Five of his scores have gone to 6-4 junior tight end Max Walker.
Banks has a much improved running game, going from 108.9 yards per game last year to 206.6 this season. Crossen, a senior, has run for 543 yards behind an offensive line that has four returning starters in seniors Jace Borders and Blake Jewett, junior Luke McAuley Bigsby and sophomore Cole Wilson.
“We're certainly a different team this year,” Linehan said. “We lost some studs last year with our senior class, but we were super young up front last year. It's good to have these guys that have a lot of football under their belt start to settle in. Establishing the run is something we haven't done in a while. We had a hard time doing it last year.”
The Banks defense, which has not allowed more than 15 points in a game in the last two seasons, has been suffocating. The starters held North Marion to 16 total yards last week in a 35-0 win.
The 6-1, 175-pound Crossen also has excelled at linebacker.
“He's an absolute beast for us on both sides of the ball,” Linehan said.
Kennedy, coming off a 13-6 home win over No. 8 Sisters last week, has continued to win despite bringing back only three starters from last season is senior quarterback Elijah Traeger and two offensive linemen.
“I wouldn't say I'm surprised, we're just ahead of where I thought we'd be,” Panuke said. “We knew we had some talent coming up from the JV level. Are we as overall talented as we were last year? No, we're not. We don't start eight or nine seniors. But the skill level is there. The experience, all the Friday night work we're getting in, we just keep getting better every week.”
Treager (6-2, 180) is a dual threat. He has completed 26 of 52 passes for 512 yards and eight touchdowns with two interceptions and has run for 170 yards and six scores.
“He's leading for us. He's making plays with his arm and his legs,” Panuke said. “He extends plays for us when things break down, and throwing good balls off schedule when he's scrambling. It's led to some big first downs and touchdowns for us.”
Junior Jaydon Estrada has rushed for a team-high 455 yards and eight touchdowns for the Trojans. Cole Vogel, a 6-4 senior tight end, has four touchdown catches.
Other top games in Week 6:
Thursday
6A No. 3 Tualatin (5-0, 1-0 Three Rivers League) at 6A No. 1 West Linn (5-0, 1-0), 7 p.m.: Games between the Timberwolves and Lions have had league-title implications the last two years, and this year appears no different. West Linn won at Tualatin 42-30 in 2022 on its way to the state title. The Timberwolves nearly slipped last week, but rallied from a 17-0 deficit to beat Lakeridge 31-24.
6A No. 6 Lake Oswego (4-1, 0-1 Three Rivers) at 6A No. 7 Oregon City (5-0, 1-0), 7 p.m.: Oregon City is flying high under first-year coach Aaron Skinner, opening 5-0 for the first time since the state runner-up season of 1996. Last week, the Pioneers got their first win over Tigard since re-entering the Three Rivers in 2018. They get a chance to do the same against the Lakers.
6A No. 10 Tigard (4-1, 0-1, Three Rivers) at 6A No. 8 Lakeridge (4-1, 0-1), 7 p.m.: Both teams couldn't hold 17-0 leads last week, Tigard falling to Oregon City 28-24 and Lakeridge losing to Tualatin 31-24. The pivotal league game represents an opportunity to get back on track.
Friday
Mountainside (3-2, 1-0 Metro League) at Sunset (3-2, 1-0), 7 p.m.:The Mavericks and Apollos opened league play last week with convincing wins over Westview and Beaverton, respectively. Friday's winner could be setting up a first-place showdown with Jesuit, which plays Sunset and Mountainside in the next two weeks.
5A No. 5 Summit (2-3, 1-0 Intermountain Conference) at 5A No. 10 Bend (3-2, 1-0), 7 p.m.: Last year, Summit defeated crosstown rival Bend 35-21 in a game that ultimately decided the Intermountain title. Summit's losses this season have come against 6A No. 3 Tualatin, 6A No. 4 Sherwood and 5A No. 1 Wilsonville.
5A No. 1 Wilsonville (4-1, 0-0 SD1) vs. Hillsboro (4-1, 1-0) at Hare Field, 7 p.m.: Hillsboro, which went 1-9 two years ago, is off to its best start since 2015. The Spartans, who did not play last week due to a forfeit win over Putnam, hope to make a run at Wilsonville, which beat them 28-14 last year.
Eagle Point (3-2, 3-0 SD2) at 5A No. 6 Thurston (3-2, 3-0), 7 p.m.: The winner will take sole possession of first place in Special District 2. Both teams have won three in a row after opening the season with two nonleague losses. Last week, Thurston beat crosstown rival Springfield 34-13, handing the Millers their first defeat.
4A No. 7 Seaside (3-2, 1-0 SD1) at 4A No. 2 Scappoose (5-0, 1-0), 7 p.m.: Seaside cracked the top 10 in the coaches poll this week after surprising then-No. 7 Tillamook 41-35, getting four touchdown runs from Ryder Jackson. The Seagulls will see if their magic carries over against the explosive Indians, who are averaging 40.2 points per game.
3A No. 7 Scio (5-0, 3-0 SD2) at 3A No. 5 Dayton (5-0, 3-0), 7 p.m.: Two of the best rushing attacks in the state square off as the Loggers (48.8 points per game) visit the Pirates (44.8). The teams are tied for first place in Special District 2 with Santiam Christian, which plays host to Dayton next week and goes to Scio on Oct. 20.
1A-6 No. 5 Joseph (4-1, 3-0 SD1) at 1A-6 No. 3 Harper Charter (5-0, 3-0), 1 p.m. (MT): Harper Charter's dramatic rise this season gets a tough test against Joseph, which has outscored its last three foes 145-13. The teams are in a three-way tie for first place with South Wasco County. Joseph defeated Harper Charter 32-12 last year.
jerryu@osaa.org
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