Tigard strikes back hard, quick

The Tigers roll to a 49-6 win over Forest Grove in league opener

By Dan Brood

The Times, Oct 3, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009

DAN BROOD / The Times

FOLLOW THE LEADER — Tigard senior Travis Howe (left) follows the block of senior Marcus Sutherby on his way to scoring on a 34-yard touchdown run in the Tigers' 49-6 win over Forest Grove.

FOREST GROVE – It wasn’t exactly the start the Tigard High School football team was hoping for in its Pacific Conference opener.

Just minutes into their league contest with Forest Grove, the Tigers found themselves facing a 6-0 deficit.

But all that seemed to do was upset Tigard – and the Tigers answered back in hard-hitting, fast-striking fashion.

After giving up that early touchdown, Tigard rolled to a 49-6 win over the Vikings in the game played Friday at Forest Grove High School.

“Everyone was upset after they got their touchdown,” said Tigard senior wingback Steven Coburn, who rushed for 108 yards on just five carries in the victory. “We had to come back and get our morale back up. This was really big for us.”

Forest Grove, with the loss in the league opener, saw its season record even out at 3-3. Tigard improved to 4-1 on the season with the victory. But, more importantly to the Tigers, is the 1-0 start in Pacific Conference play.

“It’s awesome. It’s the first step for us,” Tigard senior guard/defensive end Jonathan Langvin said. “Winning the league title is a big goal.”

But, for Tigard, which shared the league championship with both Canby and Tualatin last year, the quest for the 2008 Pacific Conference crown didn’t get off to the best of starts.

Forest Grove, in its first possession of the game, marched 72 yards in 10 plays, capping the drive with a 9-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Aaron Huson to senior receiver Brett Baumgartner, giving the Vikings a 6-0 lead with 4 minutes and 5 seconds left in the first quarter.

“We didn’t want them to score at all, so we were pretty mad,” Langvin said. “We played great after that.”

The Tigard defense, with senior linebacker Spencer Hansen providing big hit after big hit, allowed the Vikings to gain just 109 yards of offense following their first scoring drive.

Meanwhile, the Tiger offense had four scoring drives – if you can call them that – lasting just 24 seconds or less.

“Our linemen get great blocks and the running backs run hard,” Coburn said of the team’s penchant for scoring quick touchdowns. “We just take off.”

Coburn, and the Tigers, answered Forest Grove’s early touchdown in a quick way. On the very first play from scrimmage following the Viking TD, Coburn swept around left end and ran 52 yards for a touchdown that tied the game at 6-6 with 3:44 left in the first quarter.

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