CHS football team ready to defend league title

Camas head football coach Jack Hathaway has gathered his Papermakers into a giant huddle on Camas High’s Cardon Field to give some words of advice and psych the players up for their season opener.

It’s Monday, Aug. 29, the first day of school for Camas School District students, and the football team has already been practicing for more than a week in preparation for their first match-up of the 2022 season, an away game against the Yelm Tornadoes on Friday, Sept. 2.

Hathaway has been here before, amping up his team a few days before their first game of the year, but he’s never been here as the Papermakers’ official head football coach.

Last year, Hathaway kicked off the 2021 season as the Papermakers’ interim head coach, having taken over for renowned coach Jon Eagle, who led the Papermakers to nine league titles and three state championships before accepting an assistant coaching job at Portland State University in the summer of 2021.

Hathaway, a Camas High physical education teacher who worked under Eagle’s direction for seven years before taking over the interim head coaching position, earned the official head coach title in November 2021 after leading the Papermakers from a rough 0-4 start at the beginning of the season to an impressive finish that included the 4A Greater St. Helens League (GHSL) title and a two-game run in the 2021 4A state football championship playoffs.

Now, Hathaway is gearing up for his first official head coaching season and says he’s excited to see how his Papermakers play in the Sept. 2 away game against Yelm.

“Last year, we had a ton of injuries, but this year we’re as healthy as we can be,” Hathaway told The Post-Record on Monday, Aug. 29. “It’s a good group of guys … and I’m looking to our senior quarterback (Taylor Ioane) to take the reins.”

Ioane has shown consistency, leadership and maturity coming into his senior year with the Papermakers, Hathaway says, and will lead a team that has an “explosive offensive line,” strong defense and promising group of returning seniors, including Zach Blair, Ethan Ouchi, Carson Osmus, Brad Prouse and Holt Williams.

Hathaway also hopes he and his assistant coaches can help instill in the Camas players a few valuable life lessons.

“We’ve been talking about having a strong work ethic, having compassion and honesty,” Hathaway said.

Of course, with a history that includes two Class 4A state football championship titles in the past five years, the Camas football players likely feel pressure to be the best, but Hathaway said he also wants them to find some balance and enjoy their time on the gridiron.

“There is a lot of pressure on them … but there should be a balance. This should be fun,” the coach said.

The Papermakers take on Yelm Tornadoes at an away game on Friday, Sept. 2, but will be back on their home field at Doc Harris Stadium, playing the Glacier Peak Grizzlies out of Snohomish, Washington, at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 9.

To view the varsity Papermakers football team’s 2022-23 schedule, visit chspapermakers.com/teams/3437891/boys/foot ball/varsity/schedule.