Tualatin football Head Coach Dom Ferraro thinks momentum is a big part of athletics.
Even though Tualatin’s season last year ended in the first round of the playoffs, a furious late-game comeback to force overtime and a strong offseason have Ferraro anticipating a big year for the Timberwolves.
“Momentum can go both ways, good and bad,” he said. “You got bad energy and bad thoughts, and things aren’t going to go well for you. But if you can kind of maintain a positive outlook, you can do some great things. This group has that.”
Ferraro said the team has been showing up for summer practices with a lot of intensity and determination.
“This group has a lot of fight in them,” he said. “They play every snap of the whistle, and they really try to be relentless in everything they do.”
That was on display in that playoff loss to Jesuit. The Timberwolves trailed by 11 with eight minutes to go. Up to that point, Tualatin used a two-quarterback system all season with senior Owen Hagerman and junior Carter Powers. Powers got hurt late in the season, and Hagerman got hurt in the playoffs, forcing Tualatin to bring in sophomore Lincoln Keeney, who had seen some time late in fourth quarters during blowouts.
Keeney led a touchdown drive from around midfield, capped off by a 20-yard pass to Calen Simonelic that floated in between two defenders. He then completed a two-point conversion on a pass to Cole Newton.
After a forced punt, the Timberwolves got the ball with 2:18 left in the game, and Keeney and the offense drove to the 22-yard line, where Trent Dearborn drilled a 39-yard field goal to tie it with less than a minute to go.
While Tualatin lost the game by one point in overtime, Ferraro was impressed with Keeney’s ability to come in cold in a road playoff game and put Tualatin in a position to win.
He and Powers both competed in the summer to see who would start this year, and ultimately it was Keeney under center when the Timberwolves opened their season with a 52-13 win against Mountainside at home.
Keeney’s best throw came early in the second half, when he connected with Hunter Grubb on a deep pass down the sideline where Grubb outran his defender for a nearly 70-yard touchdown.
Ferraro knows Keeney and his family well, as Lincoln Keeney is the younger brother of Nolan Keeney, who played quarterback for Tualatin for two seasons and was recruited by BYU after graduating.
“Nolan was special in that if he wanted, he could have started at defensive end or linebacker or safety,” Ferraro said. “Nolan had this huge arm and was the most athletic kid on the field every week no matter who we played. Lincoln is very athletic, but he plays the mental game really well. His arm isn’t as giant as Nolan’s, but he throws a really good deep ball, and he’s accurate all over the field. He understands coverage really well.”
Tualatin also boasts a few big-time targets for Keeney this year, starting with 6-foot-5 tight end Brady Knips. The junior saw a lot of playing time last year and is expected to be a key part of the offense this year.
Another big target on offense is fellow junior Brock Estes, the 6-foot-6 wide receiver.
“He has got a great frame and a great catch radius,” Ferraro said. “Brock had an awesome sophomore year running track. He’s deceptively fast. He’s got those long legs, and he can step on top of you real fast.”
Perhaps the strong suit of the offense, though, should be the run game led by senior Cole Hachmeister and junior Iden Rule. Ferrao said that anytime the team gets the ball in Hachmeister’s hands, good things happen.
Rule saw a lot of playing time last year as a sophomore and was named to the All-Three Rivers League First Team as a running back. Ferraro said Rule is “an old-school” type of player who just finds a way to get the job done no matter what is asked of him.
Ferraro said a third running back who can make an impact this year is Easton Grubb.
“We’ve got three really great running backs,” Ferraro said. “We’re excited for all three.”
All three showed up big time in the season-opening win. After a bit of a slow start, Hachmeister ran in a touchdown for Tualatin’s first score. With less than a minute to go before the half, Hachmeister intercepted a pass in the end zone and returned it more than 100 yards for the score.
Rule ignited the Tualatin offense once he touched the field, dashing between defenders and barreling over opponents to help Tualatin start moving the chains. He rushed in a score, as well.
Easton Grubb didn’t have many rushes in the game, but he did field an attempted onside kick later in the game and return it more than 50 yards for a touchdown.
A major reason for the success of all three will be the offensive line, which Ferraro said his team is very deep at.
“We have some big, athletic, physical kids on the line,” he said. “I think we legitimately have a two-deep rotation, like 10 guys who can play. When you get into high school ball, if you have eight linemen, you feel really good. We’ve got 10 guys we feel good about.”
That crew will be led by junior Mason Powarczuk, who started all games last year for the Timberwolves; Rocco Grady, who started a few games and in the playoffs; and Anthony Fernandez, who is a returning starter and was an honorable mention for All-League last year.
Ferraro said he’s also excited about his defensive line, which includes returning starters Luke Patzke and Zane Carley. He’s also excited for two new additions to the roster: seniors Isaiah Ormond and junior Kolby Wofford, who are both over six feet and 300 pounds each.
The back half of the defense is led by senior Carter Lemon.
“It’s huge having a guy like him there,” Ferraro said. “He’s the leader back there and he’s making all the calls.”
In the season opener, Patzke and Lemon combined on a huge play before the half to put Tualatin ahead for good. Mountainside went to punt the ball away from its own territory, but Patzke blew through the offensive line to block it. The ball flew high in the air and bounced around a bit, and Lemon picked up the live ball and raced through a crowd of Mountainside players for the touchdown.
The Timberwolves are on the road for two straight games now, heading to Sherwood on Sept. 4 and then Glencoe on Sept. 11. Tualatin’s next home game will be against Milwaukie on Sept. 18.
