Tigers had title in bag

TACOMA – Fancy travel bags as football accoutrements were not for Lewis and Clark.

When the Tigers traveled four weekends out of five during the state playoffs, twice to the Tacoma Dome, they carried their belongings in plastic garbage sacks.

When they lined up for introductions prior to the State 4A championship game Saturday, the Tigers were outnumbered by Bothell by nearly 30 players.

Numbers in the stands were lopsided, too. The Cougars packed their side of the Dome. With five buses of LC fans, including cheerleaders and band, delayed by Snoqualmie Pass conditions and a road-blocking accident on their way to Saturday’s game, many Tigers faithful arrived late.

None of that mattered. After falling behind in the fourth quarter, LC scored twice for a 21-14 victory in their first state championship appearance.

“This place is going crazy!” shouted punter-receiver-kicker Alex Gauper, in the euphoria of the postgame celebration. “All year we’ve been the underdog. … We come in here, their side is packed and our bus gets caught on the pass and we have no crowd. But we come back with a ton of energy, which we’ve done all year long, and were not intimidated. We play our game, ram it down their throat and come out successful.”

The garbage-sack tote bags symbolized LC’s work-ethic style and underdog mentality and served the Tigers well.

No ‘I’ in team

Wandering through the crowd of dazed and delighted Tigers there was one common theme: This state title wasn’t about the individual, Alex Shaw‘s 151 carries and 793 yards in five games notwithstanding, it was about selflessness and team.

“We put our heads down, got behind Shaw and let him take us in,” said Jordan Hanson, a first-year player, “but this has always been a team that responds well when stuff’s going bad. We never gave up.”

The final thought came from coach Tom Yearout.

“When it was 14-7, they came off the field with more resolve that they were going to tie it,” he said. “I thought they’d get it to overtime, but they did it one better. They found a way.”

So much for a game plan

The Almira/Coulee-Hartline plan was to spread out Odessa in the 1B championship game with a passing attack and enable the Warriors to run.

“We wanted to pick them apart a bit and run it late,” said coach Brandon Walsh.

So much for that idea.

Quarterback Josh Goodwin passed only 11 times for 56 yards compared to the team’s 37 rushes for 289 in the 38-14 win.

“The fact they had to honor it, might have been a little bit of the issue,” said Walsh.

It was a day of futility for Odessa, which had 11 first downs to ACH’s two in the first half but trailed 8-0. The Tigers reached the Warriors’ 2-, 1-, 5- and 9-yard lines but were unable to score.

State attendance

Two-day attendance for Gridiron Classic XIII in the Tacoma Dome surpassed 20,000.

Friday’s 3A game between Skyline and O’Dea attracted the lion’s share of the 8,050 spectators that day, although 1B rivals Odessa and Almira/Coulee-Hartline were well-represented.

Saturday, four games drew 12,708 fans.