High school football returns to Whatcom (finally) with seven games, and more to come
On one of Whatcom County’s snowiest weekends in quite a while, Sehome High coach Kevin Beason couldn’t wait to see his football players’ next practice.
“It’s all about making memories for the kids,” Beason said Sunday, eagerly anticipating Monday’s turnout in the snow on the rebuilt school’s spiffy new field. “What boy wouldn’t want to say he practiced in snow?”
That’s right, if it’s February, it’s time for Northwest Conference football in this pandemic school year.
When COVID-19 convinced state officials to make Washington one of 15 states without a traditional fall season, the 10 local NWC head coaches — to a man, veteran mentors all — wouldn’t call it quits entirely.
Everyone started talking with the educational establishment about winter and spring football, so to speak, and they all made it happen starting Saturday, Feb. 20.
Fifteen teams from Whatcom, Skagit and Island counties will split into larger and smaller school divisions for a month of football as part of the beginning of high school sports in this school year. If all goes well, teams will play either five or six games, with three games in a 10-day span to end the season March 20 for some schools.
In 2019, seven Whatcom County teams qualified for the postseason in a splendid showing of quality football.
This year, none will.
That’s right. There will be no football playoffs of any kind because schools hope to follow with traditional spring sports and finish with traditional winter contact sports through mid-June. It all depends, of course, on how well the local populace controls COVID-19.
Seven games to start
In the larger school division, Saturday’s games involving local schools will include Lynden at Mount Vernon at 1 p.m.; Sehome at Burlington-Edison at 7 p.m.; Ferndale at Oak Harbor at 7 p.m.; and Squalicum at Sedro-Woolley at 7 p.m. For this abbreviated season, Wesco Conference schools Mount Vernon and Oak Harbor will join the NWC in football.
In the smaller school division, Lynden Christian will play at Blaine at 1 p.m.; Mount Baker will play at Nooksack Valley at 7 p.m.; and Bellingham will play at Anacortes at 6 p.m. Meridian has a bye.
It is possible times can change. But then, what isn’t possible in this weirdest of all school years?
Squalicum has returned to the 2A classification and Blaine is back in the 1A classification for all sports. Bellingham and Anacortes are still 2A in other sports but will play in the smaller school division for football, in which both schools have struggled recently.
200 people in stadiums
In order to socially distance with masks, games will be limited to 200 people, including players, cheerleaders, coaches, one parent of senior players on the home team, officials and other adults.
“We won’t be able to suit up freshmen (except for that rare regular varsity prospect),” said Lynden coach Blake Van Dalen, whose team has earned consecutive spots in the state Class 2A semifinals including a runner-up finish in the 2018 state championship game. The Lions were 9-3 in 2019.
Van Dalen won’t be hurting for players, however. He says interest in football is as high as ever, with 38 freshmen in the program along with 70 seniors, juniors and sophomores.
Most fans will be forced to find some of the streaming broadcasts that some schools plan to show on YouTube and other platforms, Van Dalen said.
LC to seek repeat final in fall
At Lynden Christian, Dan Kaemingk begins his 26th season as head coach (in two different stints) but he’ll have to wait until fall to have a shot at returning to the state Class 1A title game. The Lyncs (11-2) lost a 26-22 thriller to undefeated Royal in 2019 to end one of LC’s most memorable seasons.
Squalicum (8-3) reached the 3A state quarterfinals and Mount Baker (10-2) made the 1A quarters. It was Squalicum’s second consecutive state berth under coach Nick Lucey for the first time in school history and Baker’s sixth consecutive year at state under longtime coach Ron Lepper.
Beason guided Sehome (7-3) to the 2A district playoffs; Jamie Plenkovich coached Ferndale (5-5) to 3A district; and retired coach Bob Ames led Meridian (4-8 in the state’s toughest 1A conference) to the 1A state Round of 16.
Ames’ son Patrick, who has served as assistant head coach, takes over for his father as one of three new coaches. Robb Myhre, who retired from Nooksack after the 2019 season, has returned to fill an opening at Bellingham. Craig Bartl, a former Bellingham coach, moves up to head coach at Nooksack after serving as an assistant.
Many fine skill players
Few people will argue that Sehome quarterback Jacob Kaepernick, a senior, and Squalicum running back Ben Schlenbaker, a junior, figure to be the county’s flashiest players.
Schlenbaker became the first sophomore to rush for more than 2,000 yards in county history. Kaepernick threw for more than 1,500 yards as a junior.
Much is also expected of these experienced skill player standouts: Squalicum quarterback Mason Binning, a senior; Lynden quarterback Baylor Ayres, a senior; Blaine quarterback Will McKinney, a senior; Mount Baker quarterback Mason Jacoby, a senior; Sehome wide receiver/safety Tim Malo, a senior; Ferndale running back Ryan Pelton, a junior; Lynden Christian receiver/defensive back Cole Moorlag, a senior; Nooksack running back Scout Whittern, a senior; and Sehome running back Craig Dorsch, a senior.
This story was originally published February 19, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
