Not so fast with closing that championship window on Mountain View's football team.
The Cougars went on a terrific run the last two years, pushing for their first 5A title since 2011, but fell one game short both times by losing to Wilsonville in the state final.
This season – as No. 2 Mountain View (3-0) prepares to visit No. 1 Summit (3-0) in an Intermountain Conference showdown Friday – the Cougars once again appear to be a serious title threat, despite graduating several star players.
“We felt really good about who we had coming back,” Mountain View coach Brian Crum said. “Last year, we had to replace 17 starters. This year, we had to replace eight. We had a lot of good kids who had experience.”
The Cougars dominated Springfield 42-13, Lebanon 42-0 and 4A Mazama 55-6 in their first three games. But Summit, which won at Wilsonville 28-20 last week to knock the Wildcats off the top of the coaches poll, is a different animal.
The Mountain View-Summit game has become a big event in Bend. The Cougars defeated the Storm 21-6 in 2023 and 28-27 last year – overcoming a 21-7 deficit – in games that ultimately decided the conference title. Crum believes his players will respond under the spotlight.
“Our kids are used to big games,” Crum said. “We've played a lot of them over the years, particularly the last two years. We start about seven or eight juniors that played as sophomores last year.”
Last week, Mountain View took care of business on the road trip to Mazama, owning a 455-118 edge in total yards. The Cougars showed excellent balance, rushing for 251 yards and passing for 204.
“I think we played our best game last week,” Crum said. “The first two games, we didn't take care of our own stuff. We've got some dudes, so we got away with not blocking and still scored a touchdown. That's not going to happen this week. Last week, we tightened up the ship a little bit. I think that gave our kids some confidence going into this week.”
Mountain View has one of the state's most dominant two-way players in 6-foot, 200-pound senior running back and defensive end Angel Valenzuela. Despite playing with a torn posterior cruciate ligament last season, he rushed for 1,161 yards and had 10 sacks.
Valenzuela had surgery after last season and was cleared for action in August. He has rushed for 250 yards and five touchdowns on 24 carries and been a disruptive force on defense, racking up four sacks against Lebanon. He combines with junior Ryder Carpenter (19 carries, 220 yards, seven touchdowns) to make a lethal backfield duo.
“Angel and Carp are just special,” Crum said. “I'm not doing our team justice if I don't give them the rock 25 to 30 times a game, especially when it's necessary.”
They run behind a line led by senior left tackle Cody Calvert (6-2, 290), a 5A two-way first-team selection in 2024, and two other returning starters in senior left guard Damian Micheletti (6-1, 240) and junior right tackle Brady Nichols (6-5, 255).
Mountain View's offense took a hit with the graduation of quarterback Mason Chambers (43 touchdown passes in 2024) and receiver Jack Foley (17 touchdown catches). At quarterback, the Cougars are alternating series between junior Liam Wheir and senior Alex Toolan, a transfer from Summit.
Mountain View's running game sets up its play-action passing. The quarterbacks have been highly efficient, combining to complete 28 or 38 passes for 466 yards and four touchdowns.
Summit, the 2022 state champion, will be looking for some payback against the Cougars. A missed extra-point attempt in the fourth quarter proved to be the Storm's undoing in last year's game.
Summit is surging after the win over Wilsonville. In that game, junior Andrew Guthrie passed for 275 yards and four touchdowns, senior Connor Conneely caught 11 passes for 171 yards and three scores and senior Jude Anderson rushed for 157 yards on 23 carries.
Crum said it's the best team Summit coach Corben Hyatt has had since the 2022 champion.
“He's got a lot of depth. He's got some special athletes,” Crum said. “They can play you in a lot of different ways. They're going to come out and hit you in the mouth. They are super physical.”
Other top match-ups from Week 3:
Thursday
5A No. 4 Wilsonville (1-1) vs. Hillsboro (2-0) at Hare Field, 7 p.m.: Two-time reigning state champion Wilsonville, smarting from a home loss to Summit last week, can't afford to overlook the Spartans in the Special District 2 opener. Hillsboro outscored its first two opponents 99-27.
Friday
6A No. 9 Mountainside (1-1) at 6A No. 6 Nelson (2-1), 7 p.m.: Mountainside bounced back from an opening loss to Lakeridge with a 35-0 rout of Oregon City. The Mavericks now face the Hawks, who beat Lakeridge 26-21 in their opener.
6A No. 4 Central Catholic (1-1) at 6A No. 8 Jesuit (1-1), 7 p.m.: One week after doing a respectable job against Lake Oswego star tailback LaMarcus Bell (87 yards, 15 carries) in a 21-0 loss, Central Catholic must contend with Crusaders junior Luke Ortner, who has rushed for 568 yards in two games, including 357 in last week's 34-21 win over Tigard.
6A No. 2 West Linn (2-0) at Sumner, Wash. (1-1), 7 p.m.: The Lions, who rolled 49-7 at Sherwood last week, take on Sumner in a battle of reigning big-school state champions. Sumner's only loss last year was 34-27 at West Linn, a game the Spartans led 20-0 in the second quarter. Next week, the Lions are home to play Camas, last year's state runner-up to Sumner.
6A No. 10 Sherwood (1-1) at 6A No. 3 Tualatin (3-0), 7 p.m.: Like last year, Sherwood started the season by beating Roosevelt and losing to West Linn. The Bowmen will try to break that form against the Timberwolves, a team that beat them 55-35 in their third game in 2024.
5A No. 10 Corvallis (2-0) at 5A No. 5 Dallas (2-0), 7 p.m.: Dallas is looking like a legitimate state title contender after outscoring Churchill and Wells 95-6 in its first two games. Corvallis is 2-0 for the first time since its 2006 state title team, dominating North Eugene 48-21 and rival Crescent Valley 44-12.
4A No. 2 Henley (1-0) at 5A No. 8 Thurston (3-1), 7 p.m.: Thurston originally was scheduled to play South Eugene, but the Axe forfeited due to lack of players, and the Colts filled the void with Henley. The Hornets rushed for nearly 300 yards to defeat Marist Catholic 33-7 last week, avenging a loss in last year's 4A final.
4A No. 1 Cascade (3-0) at 4A No. 3 Tillamook (3-0), 7 p.m.: Cascade left little doubt that it deserves to be No. 1 in 4A by thumping then-No. 2 Scappoose 59-37 last week. Tillamook already holds wins over No. 7 Estacada and No. 9 Marist Catholic.
4A No. 4 Scappoose (2-1) at 4A No. 7 Estacada (2-1), 7 p.m.: Scappoose is looking to rebound from a 59-37 loss at Cascade, a game the Indians led 14-0 in the first two minutes. Last year, Scappoose beat Estacada 47-26 at home.
3A No. 5 Siuslaw (1-1) at 3A co-No. 2 Cascade Christian (3-0), 7 p.m.: Cascade Christian surely remembers last year's game at Siuslaw, a 40-35 loss in which the Vikings scored the winning touchdown on a two-yard run on the final play. Siuslaw rushed for 451 yards in the win.
2A No. 5 Gold Beach (3-0) at 2A No. 6 Lost River (1-1), 7 p.m.: Gold Beach, 2-7 last year, has made an about-face with a 3-0 start. A win over Lost River, which rolled at Gold Beach 38-6 last year, would be another big step forward.
1A-8 No. 2 Union (3-0) at DeSales, Wash. (2-0), 7 p.m.: The interstate contest against DeSales of Walla Walla, a Class 1B quarterfinalist in Washington last year, should be the best test yet for Union, which is averaging 54.0 points per game.
