BELLINGHAM — Quilcene will have its hands full when it faces Lummi on Saturday in the 1B state football quarterfinals.
“Yeah, that’s an understatement,” Rangers coach Byron Wilson said. “They’re a pretty good team, you know.”
But check out this Quilcene squad.
“I think don’t think people thought little Quilcene would be up with the big boys, but we are,” Wilson said.
“I knew we would. I told the kids we would.”
Before last year, Quilcene football had made two state playoffs.
Now the Rangers have made two in a row. They’re coming off the first win in school history, a 56-8 shellacking of Taholah in Aberdeen last week.
Senior Eli Harrison was an All-State defensive back with 12 interceptions. He has 10 so far this year, including one he returned last week 85 yards for a touchdown, despite missing two and a half games.
Harrison also is the starting quarterback, and the Rangers (8-2) have yet to lose a game he finishes.
Lineman Nate Weller has been voted All-SeaTac League on both sides of the ball for the second straight year.
A.J. Prater has stepped into the starting running back spot and teamed with Harrison and new fullback Ace Elkins to keep the Rangers’ ground-and-pound offense grounding and pounding.
That’s all great, but check out the Quilcene community.
Wilson said he drove by the school this week and saw a sign in one of the elementary classroom windows wishing the football team good luck.
There are other signs at the games and send-offs as the team leaves for road games.
“I’m proud of the kids, I’m proud of the community,” Wilson said.
“The kids have bought in, parents have bought in, the community has bought in.
“My dream coming out of college was to be a coach at a school in a small community, and I finally made it.
“It took 40 years, but I finally made it.”
Now all that — the team and its support — heads to Lummi’s turf. Not only the field in Bellingham, but also the 8-man quarterfinals, where the Blackhawks feel right at home.
The last time Lummi (8-3) failed to reach this round was 2008, and the only time since that it didn’t advanced to at least the semifinals was 2011 when it lost to Neah Bay. The Blackhawks claimed the state title in 2010.
The Rangers, meanwhile, have never made it this far.
Lummi has three losses — one to Entiat early in the season and two to Neah Bay, a forfeit and a 62-12 loss — this season, but has steadily improved as it returned to full strength.
The Blackhawks have become especially dangerous since its best player, Hank Hoskins, returned three weeks ago.
“We’re going to have play a pretty prefect game,” Wilson said.
“We’re not going to be able to have fumbles. When we get in red zone, we have to score.
“We have to control what they do. We have to get some three-and-outs. We have to play some defense.”
Wilson said the Rangers are happy to be this far, but they also wouldn’t mind a trip to the Tacoma Dome for the state semifinals.
The winner of Saturday’s game, which kicks off at 1 p.m., will face the winner between Neah Bay and Seattle Lutheran at the Dome on Friday, Nov. 27.
“They’re a good team. They’ve got to be the favorites,” Wilson said.
“We haven’t been the favorites in a couple games now, and the kids always seem to step up.”
Neah Bay vs. Seattle Lutheran
BREMERTON — Last year, the Saints were the SeaTac League cellar-dwellers, going 1-6 and losing all of their league games.
One year later, they’re 8-2 and in the state quarterfinals, one win away from the Tacoma Dome.
That win will have to come against the two-time defending state champion Red Devils (9-0) at Silverdale Stadium tonight at 7 p.m.
Seattle Lutheran has a dual-threat offense.
Quarterback Isaiah Dowding-Albrecht has thrown for 1,171 and 17 touchdowns, and J.J. Young has run for 1,421 yards and 18 TDs and caught 28 passes for 631 yards and nine more scores.
Both Dowding-Albrecht and Young were voted first-team All-SeaTac League this season.
Neah Bay doesn’t face many offenses that can throw like the Saints, but junior defensive lineman Kenrick Doherty Jr. isn’t worried.
“Our coverage . . . Cole [Svec] and [Cameron Buzzell], they’ve been starting since freshman year, they’ve been All-State, so we don’t really have to worry about them,” Doherty said.
On the other side, Seattle Lutheran, no doubt, hasn’t faced anything like Neah Bay.
Svec has 1,097 yards rushing and 20 touchdowns. Buzzell has 29 catches for 630 yards and 12 scores.
Quarterback Rwehabura Munyagi Jr. has thrown for 867 yards and 17 TDs and run for 250 yards and five more TDs.
Defensively, the Red Devils held Lummi to 12 points a few weeks after the Blackhawks scored 72 in three quarters against the Saints.
Neah Bay also has postseason experience on its side, having advanced to play in the past four 1B state championship games, and winning the state title in 2011, 2013 and 2014.
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Sports Editor Lee Horton can be reached at 360-417-3525 or at lhorton@peninsuladailynews.com.
