Greg Lee

Who would have thought that a Gonzaga Prep victory would come down to a pass play? Facing fourth-and-7 from the Ferris 17-yard line, quarterback Kevin Thomas was patient, let the play develop and found wingback Nick Wood on an out pattern. Wood caught it short of the goal line and did the rest, escaping a would-be tackler for the go-ahead touchdown.

Who would have thought that a Gonzaga Prep victory would come down to a pass play? Facing fourth-and-7 from the Ferris 17-yard line, quarterback Kevin Thomas was patient, let the play develop and found wingback Nick Wood on an out pattern. Wood caught it short of the goal line and did the rest, escaping a would-be tackler for the go-ahead touchdown. Ferris got the ball back with 45 seconds and moved to the Bullpups 22 where with 4 seconds left a 39-yard field-goal attempt by Matt Beaulaurier fell short of the crossbar by 2 yards as time expired, giving the defending Greater Spokane League champions an invigorating 38-35 win Friday over the visiting Saxons.

It’s generally difficult to read Mt. Spokane football coach Mike McLaughlin’s face following a win or a loss. McLaughlin was his usual unflappable self Thursday but inside he was more than satisfied as his Wildcats knocked off slight preseason favorite Central Valley 35-16 in a Greater Spokane League game at Joe Albi Stadium.

It was the dream of a little boy at the time. Eight-year-old Gunnar Amos had a T-shirt on with a statement about the 2012 Vikings being state champs. He ran out on the field after a game – as was custom for him, his mom and sister to do – to give dad, CdA head football coach Shawn Amos, a hug – win or lose.

Coeur d'Alene senior quarterback Gunnar Amos is like most sons of coaches. He’s known nothing but football since his earliest memories.

Mistakes plagued the Coeur d’Alene Vikings from start to finish Friday. And the visiting Skyline Spartans of Sammamish capitalized on all of the Vikings’ miscues, the final one being an 84-yard interception return by Drew Lunde with 2:21 left as the two-time defending Washington 4A state football champs downed Coeur d’Alene 38-23.

Ferris pulled out a game plan from the 2010 state championship football game Thursday. The Saxons used a three-man front and dropped eight into coverage to slow down the usually prolific Brett Rypien, Shadle Park’s junior quarterback.

The Karstetter name is readily recognizable to those familiar with Greater Spokane League athletics and beyond. The last branch of the second generation in the Lilac City is Cole Karstetter.

There’s no denying that speed in football is difficult to defend. Ferris’ speedy junior Jalen Hicks accentuated that Friday, especially in the second half.

The first night of Greater Spokane League football took a backseat to lightning. A severe weather cell moved into the Spokane area about 8:30, shortly after the second half began Thursday night. Eight minutes later, the game was suspended with Mead leading University 21-0 and 9:52 remaining in the third quarter.

When I started predicting high school football games at the newspaper 20 years ago, the format we used was yours truly taking on a guest picker each week. In a way we’ve come full circle. Beginning this week and through the playoffs it will be the Scribe against the Talking Head. That bald-headed mug attached to this feature belongs to KHQ/SWX sports director Sam Adams.

I thought it was going to be a relatively easy project. Pick the five must-see high school football games in the area this year and explain to you why the games should be circled on the calendar.

The Capital Eagles punished Post Falls through the air and on the ground as the Boise school throttled the Trojans 35-0 in a season football opener for both teams Friday. What made watching it transpire more difficult for the Trojans is they had opportunities in the first half to stay close to the visiting Eagles.