When Will Whitley was promoted from assistant to head coach for Tigard football this year, he talked about restoring the team to its status as a perennial 6A contender.
The Tigers know bigger challenges await in the Three Rivers League, but through three nonleague games, they are showing flashes of the explosive play that made them so dangerous for so long.
Tigard improved to 3-0 on Friday with a 43-13 home rout of Clackamas. The Tigers not only are lighting up the scoreboard at 43.3 points per game, but they are holding opponents to 9.0 points, down from 33.7 last season, when they finished 1-8.
“Right now it's exciting,” Whitley said. “The boys are playing free. They're having fun, and we're going to try to keep it going. Our preparation is allowing the boys to be themselves. I think it's made a big difference.”
In Friday's game, senior quarterback Aris Dimick threw three touchdown passes, including a 70-yarder to senior Jackson Morris. The 6-foot-4 Dimick, a third-year starter, has accounted for 11 touchdowns this season (nine passing, two rushing), one short of his total from 2025.
“He worked his tail off this offseason, learning a whole new playbook for pretty much the fourth year in a row,” Whitley said. “It wasn't an easy task for him to learn this new style of offense and the way we want to play fast.”
Tigard won for years by overpowering opponents at the line of scrimmage. The Tigers haven't had those big bodies for few years, but what they do have is an abundance of fast, elusive skill players.
“On offense, we have six to eight people, if they touch the ball it can go to the end zone,” Whitley said.
Junior running back Taison Cepeda (5-9, 185) ran for three touchdowns Friday, giving him five for the season.
“He runs physical, he runs hard, and he runs until the whistle is blown,” Whitley said. “He's fast. He's just a do-it-all guy. He's a complete package. He can run people over, and he can run past you.”
The defense has given up only 20 points. Senior linebackers Josiah Durrell and Brody Stromme have been stout. Senior safety Jaxon Lee is dominating the back end, according to Whitley.
Tigard visits 5A Milwaukie (0-3) to complete its nonleague schedule, then opens Three Rivers play Oct. 2 at home against Lakeridge (3-1). After going 1-14 in league play the last three seasons, the Tigers are intent in making their presence felt.
“This is not the same Tigard team,” Whitley said. “Regardless of the result, these teams are going to know this is a different team. Right now these boys, I think they feel like we can do something special. I think that's going to carry a lot of momentum going into the TRL.”
'There's no quit in us'
A stingy defense has bolstered Springfield's chances in the 5A Midwestern League. The Millers, who beat visiting Eagle Point 21-7 in a league game Thursday, have limited foes to 7.0 points and 140.7 yards per game in a 3-0 start.
“We play with a lot of heart and a lot of hustle,” coach Frank Geske said. “It's fun to watch. There's no quit in us. We're running to the ball really well.”
After going 8-2 in 2023, the Millers fell to 2-7 and 4-5 the last two seasons. So far this season, they appear to be turning a corner.
“They keep surprising me,” Geske said. “We've just got to eliminate some mistakes and we're going to be fine. We're pretty good at taking it away and limiting third- and fourth-down conversions.”
The defense is getting standout play from senior nose guard Cooper Collier and senior strong safety Tyler Rasmussen (three interceptions), third-year starters. Junior linebacker Jariah Leata has been making plays all over the field.
When Springfield's offense failed to finish drives by committing three turnovers Thursday, the defense rose to the occasion and held Eagle Point (2-1) in check. The Eagles were 2 for 8 on third-down conversions and 0 for 5 on fourth down.
Geske said the turnovers “would have sent us reeling” in recent years.
“There's still some bad things happening, and we're still far from perfect, but we seem to find a way out of it, which we haven't in the past,” Geske said. “I really like the chemistry and mental makeup of this team. … They're not going to beat us just because we're Springfield.”
Senior Khamani James rushed for 60 yards and two touchdowns and senior Colby Kasperek ran for a score in the win. Junior quarterback Brayden Wickersheim completed 14 of 16 passes for 131 yards. Senior Adam Hernandez had seven catches for 67 yards.
The Millers face their biggest challenge of the season so far when they visit reigning league champion and eighth-ranked Thurston (2-1, 1-0) on Friday. Then the Eagles have a home date against Churchill (0-3, 0-1), a state semifinalist last year.
“The next few weeks will tell a little bit about who we are,” Geske said. “I think we're pretty good. I wish we didn't have so many both-way guys, but they're pretty good at what they do.”
Summit stifles Mountain View
Co-No. 5 Summit used a smothering defense to subdue No. 1 Mountain View 24-7 in a 5A Intermountain Conference showdown Friday.
The Storm limited the Cougars to six first down and 112 yards to win the conference opener for both teams. They held Mountain View senior Ryder Carpenter to 23 rushing yards on 13 carries.
“We just stopped the run all night,” Summit senior defensive lineman Stefan Dokic told the Bend Bulletin. “That’s all we did. The D-line, we played great. The linebackers cleaned up. It was just a great performance all around.”
It was a much-needed victory for Summit (1-2), which opened the season with last-minute losses at Bishop Kelly (Idaho) and Sheldon. Mountain View (3-1) took its first loss.
“I’m proud of the boys,” Summit coach Corben Hyatt told the Bend Bulletin. “Those first two games could have really crushed this group. But they trusted me, trusted our process and this is what they have been capable of.”
Mountain View took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on a 36-yard touchdown pass from senior Liam Wheir to senior Brayden McRostie, but would not score again.
Summit senior Andrew Guthrie tossed a six-yard scoring pass to senior CJ Scott to make it 7-6 in the first quarter. The Storm led 13-7 at half after a two-yard touchdown run by junior Clay Johnson.
Summit added a short field goal in the third quarter and got a 26-yard touchdown pass from Guthrie to senior Cade Nitzschke in the fourth quarter to pull away.
Summit put up 313 total yards. Johnson rushed for 154 yards on 28 carries and Guthrie completed 13 of 22 passes for 138 yards.
It was Summit's first win over Mountain View since 2023. In the last three seasons, the winner of the Summit-Mountain View game not only has won the conference, but also finished as 5A runner-up.
No. 300 for Coury
Lake Oswego coach Steve Coury notched his 300th career victory Friday when his top-ranked and reigning state champion Lakers (4-0) rolled to a 51-16 win at No. 10 Sherwood (0-3) in a 6A nonleague game.
Coury's record stands at 300-97 in 35 seasons. He is the eighth coach in state history to reach the milestone, behind Ken Potter (368), Dewey Sullivan (352), Greg Grant (350), Thurman Bell (332), Jack Henderson (313), Craig Ruecker (307) and Kent Wigle (306). Of that group, the only ones active are Coury and Henderson (1A-8 Dufur).
Coury, a standout player at Lakeridge and Oregon State, took over as Lake Oswego's coach in 1992. He has won 235 games in the regular season and 65 in the playoffs.
He has won 17 league titles and guided Lake Oswego to the playoffs in all but three seasons. Only once did he not finish with a winning record, when the Lakers went 5-7 in 2013.
His teams went on a 48-game league winning streak from 2004 to 2012 and reached at least the state quarterfinals from 2001 to 2012. He has coached in nine state championship games, winning in 2011, 2018 and 2025.
Senior receiver Griffin Ellingsen scored four touchdowns to lead the way for the Lakers on Friday. He caught two touchdown passes and scored on an end-around and 80-yard kickoff return.
Aloha on the move
Three years removed from a 27-game losing streak, Aloha is looking like a 5A playoff team.
The Warriors improved to 3-0 on Friday with a 50-0 win at former 6A Metro League rival Beaverton. They capitalized on turnovers to run away from the Beavers (0-4) in the first half.
“They're really buying into the all-gas, no-brakes mindset,” coach James Mitcham said. “They were given an inch and they took a mile.”
Playing in 6A, Aloha went 0-27 in Mitcham's first three seasons as coach from 2021 to 2023. After moving to 5A and finishing 5-4 and 4-5 the last two seasons, they believe they have a team capable of making the playoffs for the first time since 2019.
“A playoff run is definitely the goal,” Mitcham said. “We've got a lot of continuity with this senior group. They're just ready to finish strong. They're playing for one another.”
Senior Jason Kwasnik threw three touchdown passes against Beaverton, one each to seniors Luca Blanchet and Jayden Nava and sophomore Landon Blanchet. Luca Blanchet returned a kickoff for a touchdown and seniors Wyett Kaulia-Hooper and Rafael Sanchez Rojas returned interceptions for scores.
For the season, Kwasnik has passed for seven touchdowns and run for two scores, Luca Blanchet has 14 catches for 267 yards and three touchdowns and senior Elijah Strickling has rushed for a team-high 203 yards.
Kaulia-Hooper has three interceptions. He also made the play of the season, breaking up a pass on a two-point conversion attempt near the end of Aloha's 34-33 season-opening win over Lebanon.
“The electrifying play from our kids is bringing back some talk in our small town, which is really cool to see,” Mitcham said.
Moving away from the Metro League has helped breathe life into the Warriors.
“We've had kids leave our school to join those programs, and we don't have kids jump ship to other programs right now,” Mitcham said. “They're excited. It's really good for our kids to see they can compete to win every night. That kind of got established when we first moved to 5A.'
Rookie riser
Perhaps no first-year player has made a bigger impact on his team than Ione/Arlington's AJ Rourke-Smith.
The 5-10, 160-pound junior running back continued his breakout season Friday by rushing for 300 yards and four touchdowns to lead the third-ranked Cardinals (4-0) past visiting Wallowa 56-13 in a 1A-6 Special District 1 game. He has rushed for a 1A-6-leading 1,106 yards and 18 touchdowns, averaging 15.8 yards per carry.
His play has helped Ione/Arlington double its win total from last season, when it finished 2-7. The Cardinals are averaging 44.8 points per game, up from 19.3 in 2025.
Rourke-Smith, who attends Arlington, played basketball for Ione/Arlington as a freshman and sophomore. He decided to try football this year.
“He's a huge addition,” coach JJ Rosenberg said. “We kind of timed it just right. We had a good set of linemen and older kids coming, and he joined the team. AJ in combination with our line, it's kind of the recipe.”
Rourke-Smith impressed during spring practices and shined during scrimmages in a football camp at Eastern Oregon University.
“When we got there, it was like, 'Holy smokes. He can find a lane that might not even be there,'” Rosenberg recalled. “He's got the speed to hit the hole when he sees it.”
Rourke-Smith runs behind a line that includes 6-2, 200-pound junior Pili Tutuvanu, whose father, Pili, played at Washington State and is an assistant coach with the Cardinals. Senior Blake Vandever and junior Kit Jones combine with Tutuvanu to make a formidable line.
Heppner, Adrian dominate
Heppner, the top-ranked team in 2A, and Adrian, No. 1 in 1A-8, posted lopsided wins against notable foes Friday.
Heppner won at No. 5 Lost River 54-8 to avenge a loss in last year's 2A final. The Mustangs (4-0) led 46-0 at half over the Raiders (1-2).
Senior Alakae Rodriguez rushed for 152 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries in the win. Seniors Bennette Atkins and Keaton Coiner scored on runs of 90 and 45 yards, respectively. Senior Caylan Proudfoot tossed touchdown passes to senior Tripp Stewart and junior Jace Wilson.
Adrian and Harper Charter – last year's champions in 1A-8 and 1A-6, respectively – clashed in a 1A-8 Special District 4 game.
Host Adrian (3-0) made quick work of the No. 7 Hornets (2-1) in rolling to a 64-12 win. The Antelopes led 22-0 after one quarter and 48-6 at half in extending their winning streak to 27.
Adrian had a 539-124 edge in total yards. The Antelopes rushed for 455 yards behind seniors Mannie Mulrony (11 carries, 190 yards, two touchdowns) and Kash Morford (15 carries, 189 yards, two touchdowns).
Junior quarterback Isaiah Bayes rushed for two touchdowns and threw for a score. Sophomore Weston Bayes caught a touchdown pass and had two interceptions. Junior Marcus Nunez returned a kickoff 58 yards for a score.
jerryu@osaa.org
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