Sherwood shuts out Tigard in 6A Oregon football playoffs, proves doubters wrong: 5 takeaways
SHERWOOD — Sherwood’s football players have heard all the wisecracks and absorbed all the damning them with faint praise.
Best non-private school, non-Three Rivers League team, but in a weak conference with a weak schedule.
They even read before Friday’s OSAA Class 6A state quarterfinal game that Tigard would walk in their stadium and pull off “the biggest upset,” recalled senior Evan Morris.
“And we were not going to let that slide.”
The third-seeded Bowmen put together a dominant second half and pulled away for a 43-0 victory to advance to the program’s first semifinal since 2015, where they’ll face No. 2 Tualatin next Friday.
Junior fullback Treyson Eddleman ran for 185 yards and four touchdowns for the Bowmen (11-0), and Morris and senior linebacker Keaten Fried returned interceptions for touchdowns during the third quarter, when they extended a 14-0 halftime lead to 36-0.
After dispatching two Three Rivers League teams in the first two rounds, Sherwood faces its biggest test yet against a Timberwolves team that got junior quarterback Nolan Keeney back from injury in time for the postseason and has outscored its two playoff opponents 96-17.
“We get a lot of talk about how we’re not ready for the TRL and how we’re not going to be able to handle any of the teams there,” Eddleman said.
“But we have that fire in us. We’ve just got to do what we’ve always done. I think we are ready to physically dominate them. We’ve just got to come out hitting hard from the start, and I think we’ve got the game.”
Photos by Leon Neuschwander
Here are five takeaways from Friday night’s matchup:
Fourth-down decision pays big dividends in second half for Bowmen
The Bowmen led just 7-0 and faced fourth-and-goal from the Tigard 4-yard line with 26.6 seconds left in the first half when coach Mark Gribble called timeout.
He knew the right thing was probably to send Nathan Domingo out for a chip-shot field goal to give his team a two-score edge. But he never hesitated in sending the offense back out, and Eddleman paid off his coach’s confidence by bulling over a defender at the goal line for the touchdown.
“When I got back to the locker room, I’m like, ‘Man, that’s not smart,’” Gribble said, smiling. “But that’s the way we play. I mean, our kids, they believe in it. And I had total trust that they were going to get it done.”
After the teams exchanged punts to open the second half, Eddleman gave the Bowmen another jolt by bolting 40 yards for his third touchdown, pushing the lead to 21-0.
“Our first half, we kind of started off soft,” Eddleman said. “That touchdown sparked a fire in us. It was a big reason why we put up a lot of points in the second half. If we didn’t get it, I don’t know what we would have been able to do.”
Sherwood’s defense allows just 122 total yards in eighth shutout
While Sherwood’s offense scuffled against a Tigard defense that blanked South Salem a week ago, the Bowmen relied on a defense that has allowed three touchdowns all season.
The team went 34 quarters without giving up a touchdown during a seven-game shutout streak that ended in Week 9 when Liberty scored on a fumble return.
Friday, the Bowmen allowed just 122 total yards and posted their eighth shutout of the season, maintaining it with a goal-line stand early in the fourth quarter after a 32-yard pass from Gavyn Simmons to Roman Martin gave the Tigers first-and-goal at the Bowmen 5.
“Oh, we were getting the shutout, no matter what,” Morris said. “Our hearts were on the line. They were not scoring that drive.”
Skyler Randleman-Galvan recorded a tackle for loss on first down. After a 2-yard completion, Jaylan Moore broke up back-to-back passes in the end zone to preserve the shutout.
“We know who we are, but to other people, it’s kind of a warning signal that we’re not just some Pacific Conference team,” Fried said. “Everybody was doubting us, but you know, we didn’t really let it get to our heads. We know our team, and we just go out there, perform, and leave everything on the field. Let people get their opinion based off the scoreboard.”
Two interception returns for scores seal the deal for Bowmen
Sherwood’s two interception returns for touchdowns were nothing new for the Bowmen.
They’d already returned two picks for scores once this season against Highway 99W rival Newberg — but this time, the pick-sixes within three plays of each other weren’t in garbage time, but at a critical juncture when the Tigers still had some life.
First, it was Fried who took advantage of pressure applied by Randleman-Galvan that forced a looping pass into traffic. The senior linebacker snared the ball, then followed a caravan of blockers for a 38-yard score with 5:41 to play.
On the ensuing drive, Morris stepped up on a pass behind its intended receiver and weaved his way to the end zone for a 29-yard score that triggered the running clock. It was Sherwood’s sixth interception return for a touchdown this season.
“That one play flipped the momentum for us,” Gribble said of Eddleman’s 40-yard scoring run on third down, which came after Tigard forced a three-and-out on Sherwood’s opening drive of the third quarter.
“They felt like they still had a chance, and they were kind of grinding there. We pop that first big long run, then got a pick-six almost immediately after it, and then our kids just played free and loose after that and made some plays.”
Feist unsure of future after guiding Tigers through topsy-turvy season
The Tigers (5-6) had an up-and-down season that started with four consecutive wins in nonleague play before they went winless in the TRL — albeit with narrow losses to Oregon City and Lake Oswego.
The No. 11 seed traveled to South Central Football Conference champion South Salem last week and shut out a team that averaged 466.6 yards and 50.7 points in going 9-0 during the regular season.
Finally, they hung with the Bowmen for 2½ quarters before three big plays in a three-minute window sank their chances at pulling a second playoff road win.
“We were moving the ball a little bit, and we were getting into positive territory,” Tigard coach Ken Feist said. “But you can stop them and stop them, then if you just do one thing wrong, they’ll make you pay for it.”
Feist took the head coaching job on an interim basis over the summer following the departure of John Kemper in April.
“The biggest thing I took from this, and the most prideful moment for me, was how the kids dug in and made one heck of a run considering we didn’t have a real offseason, where we were still scrambling to get our staff together,” he said. “To get to the quarterfinals, I don’t think anyone would have said that at the beginning of the season.”
Feist then talked about the future of the program and how he hoped “these juniors and sophomores coming in and our freshmen can help contribute in a positive way and keep this program going.”
Whether he’ll be the one leading it remains to be seen.
“I said I’d revisit it at the end of the season,” he said. “When the dust settles, I’ll talk to some folks. But I’m not committing to anything. I said I’d put in this year for sure, and I’ve fulfilled my commitment.”
Tigers familiar with two semifinalists meeting next week
The Tigers have faced Tualatin and Sherwood within a three-week span. While Keeney practiced the week of the crosstown rivalry game, he didn’t play in the Timberwolves’ 27-3 victory.
“Tualatin is one of the stronger offenses, especially with Nolan back,” said Tigers senior lineman John Stone. “But Sherwood’s defense definitely is a great defense. I mean, they shut us out, and they’re an all-around solid defense. I think it’s going to be a great fight between both of them, and I can’t wait to see the outcome.”
Feist agreed that no one should take the Bowmen’s chances lightly when they face the Timberwolves next week.
“They shut down two good Three Rivers League teams the last two weeks,” he said. “So, you throw them right up there as obviously competitive in any division they’re in. They’re a great football team, well-coached, disciplined and fast.”
Fried, for one, can’t wait for the challenge that lies ahead.
“We know Tualatin’s a good team,” he said. “But we’re not slowing down. We know what we can do against these Three Rivers League teams. We’re definitely confident coming into the game.
“We’ve all been dreaming of a state championship. We made it to the quarterfinals the past two years, and we would be unsatisfied leaving with the semifinals. That’s not something you can look back on and reflect on, saying, ‘Oh, we made it to the semifinals.’ We want to say, ‘Oh, we won the state championship.’ So, that’s the goal. We want that state championship.”
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Sherwood 43, Tigard 0
Tigard – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 — 0
Sherwood – 7 – 7 – 22 – 7 — 43
First quarter
S — Treyson Eddleman 4 run (Nathan Domingo kick), 0:04
Second quarter
S — Eddleman 4 run (Domingo kick), 0:22
Third quarter
S — Eddleman 40 run (Domingo kick), 8:03
S — Keaten Fried 38 interception return (Evan Morris pass from Trevor Nibbe), 5:41
S — Morris 29 interception return (Domingo kick), 4:35
Fourth quarter
S — Eddleman 46 run (Domingo kick), 4:00
Statistics
RUSHING—Tigard: Jake Feist 7-9, Christian Warner 5-10, Gavyn Simmons 3-3. Total 17-19. Sherwood: Eddleman 12-185, Wilson Medina 7-43, Kasen Covert 4-33. Total 29-270.
PASSING—Tigard: Simmons 10-23-2-96, Feist 1-1-0-7. Sherwood: Covert 4-5-0-41.
RECEIVING—Tigard: Roman Martin 7-66, Brian Smith 2-25. Sherwood: Nibbe 2-20.
DEFENSE—Tigard: Owen Wright 7 tackles; Max Coker 3 tackles, 1 for loss. Sherwood: Kaleo Hall 4 tackles; Morris 3 tackles, interception, pass breakup; Medina 3 tackles, 1 for loss; Trevyn Fischer 3 tackles, 1 for loss; Jaylan Moore 2 tackles, 3 pass breakups.
FIRST DOWNS—Tigard 8, Sherwood 11. FUMBLES-LOST—Tigard 3-0, Sherwood 0-0. PENALTIES-YARDS—Tigard 1-5, Sherwood 4-55.
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