(The following reprinted by permission from the Corvallis Gazette-Times.)
Overview
Philomath 6, Cascade 32
Scobel Wiggins | Gazette-Times Philomath’s special teamers Willie Fallin, Travis Spencer, Kory Stueve, and Heath Honeycutt try to stop Cascade’s first PAT.
CASCADE HAMMERS PHILOMATH 32-6
By Aaron Yost Gazette-Times Reporter
September 7, 2007
PHILOMATH — Coming into Friday night’s nonleague football game, the Philomath Warriors were worried about Cascade running back R.J. Williams.
There was some concern, too, about quarterback Nic LaMonica.
But in a situation of pick-your-poison, the youthful Warriors were determined to keep Cascade from running to victory. LaMonica responded by completing passes to seven different receivers as he lead the Cougars to a 32-6 victory.
The 6-foot-1 sophomore threw for 222 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions, completing 14 of 24 attempts.
“We’re definitely behind as far as our pass defense right now,” Philomath coach Troy Muir said after his team fell to 0-2.
Yet, there were positives. Philomath gave up 40 net yards rushing after recording six sacks for 30 yards.
“Yeah, we gave up 32 (points), but still, they’re pretty explosive,” Muir said. “I think they’re going to be one of the top teams in the state before the year is over.
“I know they’re going to be one of the top teams out of the Capital (Conference), that’s for sure. We’re just young and learning our system right now.”
In his first year trying to rebuild the Philomath program, Muir is still mired in the process of teaching the athletes how to execute the offense and defense. For a good portion of the first half, that was obvious when the Warriors had the ball.
Unable to drive the ball on offense, Philomath wore down on defense as the first half progressed.
With a 6-0 lead in the second quarter, LaMonica connected on seven straight passes to lead the Cougars to TDs on a 4-yard run by Williams and a 14-yard sprint by Paul Federico.
LaMonica’s streak was broken by John Koeppe’s diving interception with 2:19 left in the half. Philomath took that momentum to drive 50 yards in seven plays, picking up 15 yards on a Cascade penalty, before time ran out on the half with the Warriors at the 3.
“We’re not executing very well right now offensively,” Muir said. “Until we get some repetitions with some different offenses, we’re in a read mode instead of an attack mode, and that’s offensively where we’re getting hurt.”
After being outgained 221-45 in the first half, the Warriors made some adjustments that allowed them to have more success in the second half.
“We’re behind the curve right now,” Muir said. “We’ll slowly get better and better.
“We’ll get somebody, once we get our assignments down, that’s when it’s going to click and we’re going to get somebody.”
Trailing 26-0, Philomath drove to the Cougars 24 early in the fourth quarter before Koeppe threw an interception at the 5.
After LaMonica threw his final TD pass, Philomath broke two big pass plays behind junior quarterback Dan Haynes to drive 85 yards in four plays.
Haynes connected with Derek Davis for 56 yards up the sideline on second-and-8, then hit Heath Honeycutt for 24 yards and the score on second-and-7 with 3:05 remaining.
The Warriors play at Molalla, a 28-12 victor over Banks, on Friday.
Cascade 32, Philomath 6
CASCADE 6 13 7 6 — 32
PHILOMATH 0 0 0 6 — 6
First quarter
C — Casey Johnson 34 pass from Nic LaMonica (kick failed), 7:56
Second quarter
C — R.J. Williams 4 run (pass failed), 8:13
C — Paul Federico 14 run (Coots kick), 4:11
Third quarter
C — Federico 23 pass from LaMonica (Coots kick), 6:18
Fourth quarter
C — Johnson 15 pass from LaMonica (kick failed), 4:49
P — Heath Honeycutt 24 pass from Dan Haynes (run failed), 3:05
Rushing: Cascade 26-40, Williams 17-58, LaMonica 4-(-22), Federico 1-14, Davidson 1-(-2), Peterson 2-(-8). Philomath 38-80, Motter 2-(-7), Fisher 17-68, Koeppe 5-(-6), Hill 9-33, Calder 3-(-12), Stephenson 1-(-7), Turner 1-9.
Passing: Cascade, LaMonica 14-24-2 222, 3TDs. Philomath, Koeppe 3-9-2 22, Haynes 2-2-0 80 TD
Receiving: Cascade, Coleman 3-45, Johnson 3-50, Brown 1-23, Federico 3-66, Williams 2-22, Coots 1-12, Beeson 1-4. Philomath, Honeycutt 3-45, Hill 1-(-2), Davis 1-56.
Philomath 13, Astoria 45
PHILOMATH CAN'T SLOW ASTORIA
September 21, 2007
Gazette-Times
ASTORIA - Team speed did in Philomath High as Astoria jumped out to a 21-0 lead after the first quarter and rolled to a 45-13 nonleague win on Friday.
Astoria quarterback Jordan Poyer tossed two touchdowns and ran for two more for the Fisherman.
Derek Davis had a touchdown catch and Ky Fisher had a TD run for the Warriors (1-3), who are at Scappoose next Friday.
Astoria 45, Philomath 13
PHILOMATH 0 0 6 7 - 13
ASTORIA 21 10 14 0 - 45
First quarter
A: Jawaski 28 run (Johnson kick)
A: Brown 41 pass from Poyer (Johnson kick)
A: Poyer 29 run (Johnson kick)
Second quarter
A: Eiterno 12 pass from Poyer (Johnson kick)
A: 22 FG Johnson
Third quarter
A: 90 KO return Jans Lund (Johnson kick)
PHS: Davis 40 pass from Koeppe (pass failed)
A: Poyer 80 run (Johnson kick)
Fourth quarter
PHS: Fisher 5 run (Stevenson kick)
RUSHING: PHS - Fisher 15-72, Hill 11-23, K. Fahkory 7-12, N. Fahkory 3-30, Steveson 1-28
PASSING: PHS - Koeppe 5-15-1 70
RECEIVING: PHS - Davis 2-63, Hill 3-7
Philomath 14, Scappoose 43
September 29, 2007
WARRIORS FALL ON THE ROAD AGAIN
SCAPPOOSE - Another long road trip ended with a tough loss on Friday for the Philomath High football team.
The Warriors completed their nonconference slate with a 43-14 loss at Scappoose. It was their second long-distance setback; they were defeated at Astoria on Sept. 21.
“We didn’t tackle very well and didn’t play very good defense. When they got in open space we couldn’t make the play, and that’s pretty much the bottom line,” PHS coach Troy Muir said.
“We did some good things on offense, (quarterback) Henry Vaughn and (running back) John Koeppe did some good things and gave us a few more options and a nice changeup.”
Vaughn completed 5 of 10 passes for 85 yards; Koeppe rushed for 55 yards and completed his only pass for 32. Matt Hill scored both PHS touchdowns.
The Warriors (1-4) begin Val-Co League action at home against Taft next Friday.
Scappoose 43, Philomath 14
PHILOMATH 0 7 0 7 - 14
SCAPPOOSE 7 14 8 14 - 43
First quarter
S: Brian Jackson 30 pass to Chance Rice (Brian Maloney kick)
Second quarter
S: Jackson 12 pass to Rice (Maloney kick)
P: Matt Hill 41 run (Riley Stevenson kick)
S: Sean Wasson 16 run (Maloney kick)
Third quarter
S: Wasson 43 run (Rice run)
Fourth quarter
P: Hill 6 run (Stevenson kick)
S: Wasson 4 run (Maloney kick)
S: Wasson 47 run (Maloney kick)
RUSHING: PHS - Hill 5-51, Koeppe 9-55, Keith Fakhory 3-9.
PASSING: PHS - Koeppe 1-1-0 32, Henry Vaughn 5-10-2 85
RECEIVING: PHS - Keith Honeycutt 1-10, Hill 1-15, Derek Davis 2-60.
Philomath 14, Mollala 7
September 14, 2007
KOEPPE SPARKS PHILOMATH WIN
MOLLALA - First-year Philomath High football coach Troy Muir earned his initial victory on Friday when the Warriors upended Mollala 14-7 in a nonleague game.
PHS quarterback John Koeppe, starting in place of injured regular Dan Haynes, ran four yards for one score and teamed up with Heath Honeycutt on a 65-yard scoring play in the third quarter that snapped a 7-7 deadlock. Haynes broke his collarbone against Cascade on Sept. 7 and is out indefinitely.
Koeppe completed 3 of 4 passes for 102 yards. Honeycutt had two catches for 89 yards; on his scoring play he turned a short completion on a drag route into the 65-yard TD.
“We were able to control the ball well,” Muir said, led by Matt Hill’s 82 yards rushing on 10 carries. “We finally converted on some pass plays we’ve been missing.
“Koeppe settled down, and made the throws we needed to make to win.”
James Zook led the defense with 10 tackles.
The Warriors (1-2) play at Astoria next Friday.
Philomath 14, Mollala 7
PHILOMATH 0 7 0 7 — 14
MOLLALA 0 0 7 0 — 7
Second quarter
PHS: John Koeppe 4 run (Trevor Motter kick)
Third quarter
MHS: Zach Borowczak 29 pass from Jake Moore (kick good)
PHS: Heath Honeycutt 65 pass from Koeppe (Motter kick)
Rushing: PHS — Matt Hill 10-82, Kye Fisher 10-19
Passing: Koeppe 3-4-1 102
Receiving: Honeycutt 2-89, Derek Davis 1-13
Philomath 25, Taft 26
Casey Campbell | Gazette-Times (10/5/07) Philomath’s Brock Martin tries to turn the corner on second down and goal against Taft during the final minutes of the Warriors’ 26-25 loss.
TAFT BLOCKS PHILOMATH
Warriors fall in closing seconds of Val-Co opener
By Kevin Hampton Gazette-Times reporter
October 5, 2007
PHILOMATH - The Philomath High football team spent most of its Val-Co League opener against Taft overcoming setbacks.
There were several holds on big runs. A running into the punter penalty. Missed extra-points. A lost fumble in the red zone. Finally, an interception deep in PHS territory that allowed the Tigers to take a 26-25 lead.
Still, it looked as if the Warriors would get past that one when they drove toward what would be a game-winning score in the final moments. On fourth-and-5 at the Taft 20, PHS quarterback Henry Vaughn hit Heath Honeycutt over the middle for a first down at the 8.
Vaughn had Honeycutt open in the end zone, but the pass was just out of reach. The Warriors moved the ball to the 4, lined up for a field goal. One last setback. Blocked.
The Tigers took a knee and celebrated their win, leaving the Warriors frustrated with one that slipped away.
“I thought we had a pretty good chance. We thought we had it and just let it go,” PHS senior John Koeppe said. “You feel good for points and then it’s a huge heartbreaker when you get there. You think you’ve got it and all of a sudden, you don’t.”
Philomath coach Troy Muir said the Warriors weren’t getting the little aspects of the game done and were hit with too many untimely penalties and turnovers, but had their share of breaks.
“We had our chances there and we just didn’t execute,” Muir said. “A blocked field goal. We should have had a touchdown. We set it up fine and we just didn’t complete the pass.”
It wasn’t the first blocked kick of the game by Taft. The Warriors had a PAT blocked after their first touchdown, forcing Muir to go for two-point conversions after later scores. When those failed, it gave Taft the opening it needed.
“That’s the ball game,” Muir said. “When you can’t get the job done on special teams, it’s going to come back and tonight that was the difference.”
The Warriors were on the brink of pulling away in the second quarter. They took an 18-7 lead on Koeppe’s second score of the game and wasted little time in threatening again when Derek Davis broke open, grabbed Vaughn’s pass and raced 57 yards down the sideline.
Two plays later and the Warriors were at the Taft 5, but Matt Hill lost the handle on the ball and could not make the recovery in the ensuing scramble.
Taft turned around and marched the distance to score with just over a minute left before halftime.
“We get up by 14 and then let them back in,” Muir said. “That’s kind of the tell-tale of our season. We don’t know how to handle that success at this point. We play well and then we kind of sit back for a second and let them back in it. We just don’t continue to make the plays that we need to in order to be a successful football team at this point. We’ve got to continue to work in that direction.”
Taft 26, Philomath 25
TAFT 7 6 6 7 - 26
PHILOMATH 6 12 7 0 - 25
First quarter
T: Jeremiah Bennett 3 run (Tygem Butler kick), 9:44
PHS: John Koeppe 13 run (kick blocked), 4:27
Second quarter
PHS: Derek Davis 22 pass from Henry Vaughn (pass failed), 9:39
PHS: John Koeppe 6 run (pass failed), 6:41
T: James Driver 1 run (run failed), 1:02
Third quarter
PHS: Keith Fakhoury 7 run (Riley Stephenson kick), 8:18
T: Jeremiah Bennett 2 run (kick failed), 4:10
Fourth quarter
T: James Driver 17 pass from John Wilkinson (Tygem Butler kick), 6:55
RUSHING: PHS - John Koeppe 8-68, Keith Fakhoury 17-100, Matt Hill 15-54
PASSING: PHS - John Koeppe 1-7-0 58, Henry Vaughn 4-9-2 33
RECEIVING: PHS - Derek Davis 2-79, Heath Honeycutt 1-12
Philomath 0, Toledo 13
TOLEDO BLANKS WARRIORS
October 11, 2007
PHILOMATH - Toledo High shut down Philomath’s offense and the Boomers prevailed 13-0 on Thursday night in a nonleague football game at Clemens Field.
“We just didn’t make the plays and their game plan against our fly sweep was great,” PHS coach Troy Muir said. “They did the best job of defending our offense of anyone we’ve played so far.
“We didn’t execute, didn’t run well, had a lot of three-and-outs and we couldn’t string any drives together.”
Kory Stueve had 10 tackles, Derek Calder nine and Logan Stevens five tackles and two interceptions for the Warriors (1-6), who return to Val-Co League play at Newport on Oct. 19.
Toledo 13, Philomath 0
TOLEDO 0 7 0 6 - 13
PHILOMATH 0 0 0 0 - 0
Second quarter
THS: Cody Collins 1 run (Tyler Purdom)
Fourth quarter
THS: Derek Purdom 8 run (kick failed)
RUSHING: PHS - Matt Hill 6-54, Keith Fahkory 12-40, John Koeppe 9-4
PASSING: PHS - Henry Vaughn 5-7-0 60
RECEIVING PHS - Derek Davis 2-9, Keith Honeycutt 1-26, Hill 1-16, Koeppe 1-9
