This is the final week of the regular season in high school football and there’s still so much left to be decided on the gridiron.
Here is a quick look at the past week, what is ahead and whatever else happened during the football week.
Hoquiam-Hockinson
Due to the length of the non-league game last Friday at Olympic Stadium, the game story in Saturday’s The Daily World wasn’t the best representation of the 3-hour, 35-minute contest between the Grizzlies and the Hawks. That happens when you write stories on deadline. There are mistakes that get into stories that way. All you can do is limit the damage and clean up the mess later.
So, allow me to clean up a few mistakes and miscues on my part from the story.
First off, I have a blind spot when it comes to statistically getting a hook-and-lateral play right. I’ve been playing and covering football since 1986 and I still get it wrong — damn near every time. It goes like this: the quarterback gets a reception credit and all of the yardage gained on the play; the receiver get a reception credit and yardage on the catch; the runner who gets the lateral doesn’t get a reception credit, but gets credit for the yards gained after the catch and a touchdown, if scored.
Thus, on Friday night, quarterback Canon Racanelli was shorted 39 yards on a play and Wyatt Jones should get 39 yards receiving yards, but no catch. This means Canon Racanelli finished with 507 yards passing on 25-of-50 attempts, four touchdowns and one interception. Also, the Hawks lose 39 yards rushing, which I initially credited them with for Jones, who finished with 119 yards receiving on three catches and a touchdown.
Both teams finished with 95 pass attempts combined, which makes that the main culprit for the length of the game. However, the two passing teams weren’t the only ones slowing the game down. The game officials, with no critique on how they called the game, didn’t manage the game very well at all. There were just as many officials huddling during the game as the two teams over minor calls and adjustments. Plus, the officials would put the ball down on incorrect yardage markers more than once, leading to another official stopping everyone to move it to the right spot, causing more delays.
Both teams had a very modest amount of penalties called and all of them seemed to garner serious discussion by the officials every time. Then, the penalty yards would be marched off and, at times, corrected.
The game officials on the field had just as much say in how long a game will run as the players. In Friday’s case, the officials should get a share of the blame. Again, no critique on any of the calls from the officials, just game management.
Why? Three hours and 35 minutes for a regulation high school football game is way, way too long. The Elma-Forks triple overtime game started 5 minutes after the Hoquiam-Hockinson game and finished more than a half hour earlier. According to semi-retired Rick Anderson, Sunday night’s Seattle Seahawks-Arizona Cardinals game — which had a full 15-minute overtime, plus TV timeouts and other assorted time-wasting devices — was only 5 minutes longer than the Grizzlies and Hawks.
Tiebreaker
As of Tuesday, there is just one tiebreaker scenario to look at for next week if Friday night’s results fall a certain way.
In the Southwest Washington 2B Coastal Division, a three-way tie for second place could result in a Kansas Tiebreaker series on Monday. Unofficially, the series could be played at Stewart Field in Aberdeen and will decide the seeding for the final three district crossover spots.
Why? A district crossover home game is on the line, so the three schools — North Beach, Ilwaco and Raymond — have decided to play for it. If all three teams finish at 3-2 in league, the tiebreaker will be needed. If Ilwaco knocks off North Beach, the Fishermen will get the No. 2 seed, regardless of the outcome of the Raymond-PWV game.
A home district crossover game for either of the three will get someone like Mossyrock as an opponent. A No. 3 seed will be a road game to either Toledo or Adna and a No. 4 seed will be a road game to top-ranked Napavine.
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Editor’s Note: Remember, these picks are for entertainment purposes only. They are not meant to be taken seriously, just as a conduit for one’s opinion on the games at hand. Have fun.
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Friday Evergreen 2A Conference
Centralia Tigers (1-3, 3-5) at Aberdeen Bobcats (1-3, 3-5), Stewart Field — Neither team will be playing beyond Friday, so this season-ending contest is a chance to grab one more win for the postseason. Expect Aberdeen to be more than motivated to finish on the win. … Bobcats 28, Tigers 7.
Evergreen 1A League
Elma Eagles (1-2, 2-6) at (4) Montesano Bulldogs (3-0, 8-0), Rottle Field — The presumptive league champions Montesano will greet rival Elma in another chapter of the East County Civil War. The Bulldogs are marching to the postseason, while the Eagles missed their chance in triple overtime last week. This’ll be tough and tough, despite the records. … Bulldogs 35, Eagles 21.
Hoquiam Grizzlies (2-1, 5-3) at Forks Spartans (2-1, 4-3) — Hoquiam is not out of the woods yet. A win here on the road at Forks will give it a No. 2 berth into the district crossover games. A Forks win is a No. 3 berth for the Grizzlies. That’s called motivation. … Grizzlies 35, Spartans 14.
Southwest Washington 2B Coastal Division
Raymond Seagulls (3-1, 5-3) at Pe Ell-Willapa Valley Titans (4-0, 6-2), Pe Ell HS — This is for the division title and a No. 1 berth into the massive 12-team district crossover games next week. Both teams are in, but seeding is important, as well as avoiding tiebreakers (see note above) … Titans 32, Gulls 21.
Ilwaco Fishermen (3-1, 5-3) at North Beach Hyaks (2-2, 4-4), Lt. Davis Field, Oyehut — This is another pivotal division finale, with a Hyaks win setting up a possible tiebreaker scenario if results fall into place. The Fishermen have cast their nets for a No. 2 berth. … Hyaks 35, Fishermen 28.
Ocosta Wildcats (0-4, 2-5) at South Bend Indians (0-4, 2-6), Millam Field — This is the season finale for both teams, with no non-league crossover games scheduled for next week. This is one more chance to notch a win and ride into the winter season with some good memories. … Indians 35, Wildcats 14.
Saturday
Coastal 1B League
Taholah Chitwhins (3-0, 4-2) at Mary M. Knight Owls (0-3, 1-6), Matlock — This will be Taholah’s second game in four days and it’ll be tired and banged up after taking on rival Naselle for the league title on Wednesday. Historically, the Chitwhins have had more firepower than the Owls. We are going off that this time. … Chithwins 42, Owls 12.
Rob Burns: (360) 537-3926; rburns@thedailyworld.com; Twitter: @RobRVR
