The Pleasant Hill Billies football team led area football last week when they earned their second straight easy league win in La Pine over the Hawks 52-0 last Friday. Kai Davis returned the opening kickoff 90 yards for a score, and Pleasant Hill never looked back. Steven Bounds threw for 216 yards and four TDs on only nine pass attempts, resulting in an absurd 24 yards per attempt and 44% touchdown rate. Jacob Neely was his favorite target. Neely had 116 yards and two touchdowns receiving, and 48 and two additional TDs on the ground. The Billies defense dominated as well, holding the Hawks to 4 yards of offense.
Springfield won its 4th straight 20+ point win against South Eugene, and its third shutout in those four matchups 35-0. Millers junior Adam Hernandez scored three TDs, one rushing and two receiving, to bring his total to seven on the season. Noah Solo had 120 total yards on 12 touches and two TDs. Brayden Wickersheim showed major improvement in his second game as the Millers’ QB, with two touchdowns and a 150.5 passer rating (out of 158.3). The Millers were up 35-0 before half, allowing coach Frank Geske to play every athlete on his roster in the second half.
Creswell defeated Elmira 40-28 last week. Creswell’s 218 yards and four TDs on the ground powered the Bulldogs to first-year coach Chase Beach’s third win in four games. Creswell lost its offensive coordinator midweek for personal reasons, according to Beach, but was able to overcome that circumstance and put up its second-highest scoring game of the season. The Bulldogs could have scored even more, with two drives inside the Elmira 20-yard-line that resulted in no points. Hunter Mustin had 164 yards and three TDs, pushing his total to eight over the past three games.
Philomath dominated Cottage Grove 33-6 last Friday. Philomath has won four of its past five games this season, and three in a row over Cottage Grove by an average of 31 points. Jacob Palluck was a bright spot for the Lions, rushing 28 times for 162 yards. Despite the Warriors’ lead being significant for most of the game, the Lions stuck to a run-heavy philosophy, with 38 runs to only eight passes thrown by QB Andrew Horner. The Warriors are in a four-way tie for second in 4A Special District 3, and the Lions are the only team at 0-2.
PREVIEWS
MARIST (2-4) AT COTTAGE GROVE (1-5)
Game facts: Thursday, Oct. 17, 7 p.m. … The Spartans are ranked No. 12 in Class 4A and the Lions are No. 24.
What2Know: Marist’s record is nothing special, but taking a look beneath the surface, its four losses are to three top 10 Class 4A teams and one top 10 5A team in Churchill. The Spartans are coming off a dominant victory over Crescent Valley, in which they rushed for 195 yards and five TDs, led by junior Connor Harvey’s 86 yards and three TDs. Cottage Grove has averaged 158 rushing yards per game in its past three games but only 64 per game passing. The Lions are relying on Andrew Horner at quarterback, who started the year, then lost his job to John Delima, and now has it back
THURSTON (7-1) AT CHURCHILL (4-2)
Game facts: Friday, Oct. 17, 7 p.m. … The Colts are ranked No. 9 in Class 5A and the Lancers are No. 8.
What2Know: Churchill won this matchup 32-13 last year, but Thurston won it the five years previous. This is a matchup of two top 10 teams in 5A, and the top two in 5A Special District 4. Both teams have beaten Roseburg and Springfield, but Churchill lost 37-36 to Crater while Thurston beat the Comets 44-7 last week. In that game, the Colts held the Comets to 127 total yards and had 14 tackles for loss. In league play, the Colts defense is allowing only 9.3 points per game.
EAGLE POINT (1-5) AT SPRINGFIELD (2-4)
Game facts: Friday, Oct. 17, 7 p.m. … The Eagles are No. 34 in Class 5A and the Millers are No. 20.
What2Know: Springfield has won this matchup three years in a row. Since making the playoffs two straight years in 2022 and ’23, the Eagles have a 2-13 record. Springfield has won two of its past three games. The rushing attack has been the difference in the Millers’ two victories, totalling 448 yards and eight TDs.
CRESWELL (3-3) AT MADRAS (1-5)
Game facts: Friday, Oct. 17, 7 p.m. … The Bulldogs are No. 20 in Class 3A and the White Buffaloes are No. 26.
What2Know: Madras has played well since league play started. In its two games, Madras has a 41-6 victory over La Pine and a narrow 3-0 defeat at No. 6 in Class 3A Sisters on the Outlaws Homecoming Night. Creswell is playing well too, and another week for coach Chase Beach to adjust to calling offensive plays can only be a positive. The top priority is likely emphasizing to QB Carson Jolliff the importance of taking care of the ball. Jolliff has back-to-back games with three interceptions. The Bulldogs’ run game will need to continue to be excellent to help out its sophomore quarterback.
