Huskie football team looking to return to state playoffs
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 7 months AGO
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | August 30, 2024 1:30 AM
OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies started the 2023 football season with a team dominated by sophomores and a lot of unknowns; they finished with a 7-3 record and a state playoff appearance. So, in 2024, Othello starts with high expectations and – well, some unknowns.
“We always expect to do well, but I think last year, making it to the first round of state, I think it was a little bit better (than anticipated), because we were really young,” said assistant coach Kevin Hale. “I don’t think a lot of people realized how young we were last year. So this year? It’s — it’s an interesting group. We’re extremely talented, we’ve got a lot of experience returning. We’ve got great potential. I would expect us, at the very least, to do what we did last year.”
The Huskies are members of the Class 2A Central Washington Athletic Conference, which will expand by two teams for 2024-25. Quincy and Toppenish move up from Class 1A.
“We expect to win the league, but it’s not going to be a cakewalk,” Hale said. “Every team is going to present unique challenges and there’s some good coaching in the CWAC. It’s going to be a difficult road – and that’s good for us, because going through this league is going to get us ready for the playoffs later. The CWAC is one of the best 2A leagues in the state.”
Senior and four-year all-league lineman Mason Perez returns to anchor both the offensive and defensive lines.
“We’ve got one of the best two-way linemen in the state,” Hale said. “And we have a lot of other talent around him.”
Quade Gonzalez will return as quarterback.
“He started out last year as the third-string because we just had depth, (and) because of injuries he got thrust into the spotlight, and he had a really good year,” Hale said.
Junior RJ Garza was all-league on both offense and defense. Senior Kal-El Ozuna and junior Andrew Sorenson will anchor the Husky backfield. Ramiro Valdez returns for his second season ever playing football and will contribute to the Othello line.
“We’ve got a lot of guys,” Hale said. “We’ve got a lot of skill all over the place. And a lot of experience.”
That experience will be crucial once the CWAC season kicks in, he said. The Huskies also benefited from the 2023 playoff experience, even though it was a 49-12 loss to Enumclaw.
“For these young guys, seeing a quality team like Enumclaw – and getting hammered by them – that's the standard you can reach,” Hale said.
The Huskies can win the CWAC if they play well, he said.
“We’re going to have to play our best football and hopefully come out league champions. But that’s not our goal. We want to win everything on the board.”
Othello Football Schedule
Sept. 6 – at Ellensburg – 7 p.m.
Sept. 12 – vs Connell - 8 p.m.
Sept. 20 – vs Grandview - 7 p.m.
Sept 27 – at Selah - 7 p.m.
Oct. 4 East Valley (Yakima) - 7 p.m.
Oct. 11 at Ephrata – 7 p.m.
Oct. 18 – vs Prosser – 7 p.m.
Oct. 25 – vs Toppenish – 7 p.m.
Nov. 1 – at Quincy – 7 p.m.
An Othello running back tries to evade the defense during the first week of practice.
Othello defensive players gather round the coaches for some instruction.ARTICLES BY CHERYL SCHWEIZER
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