Looking back on its three losses this season – all to one-loss teams ranked in the top 10 of the OSAAtoday 6A coaches poll – Newberg's football team sees missed opportunities.
The Tigers were competitive in all three games, but got burned by two of the state's better senior running backs in Lake Oswego's LaMarcus Bell and Glencoe's Daniel Heninger, and their late rally came up short in three-point defeat to Nelson.
“It doesn't make it fun to lose, but it's respectable,” Newberg coach Jeremy Johnson said. “You take star performances out of it, you take turnovers out of it, we're in great positions to win. We've got to find a way to win those games.”
Friday night, the Tigers (5-3, 3-1 Pacific Conference) get another chance when they visit No. 9 Sherwood (6-2, 4-0) in the regular-season finale. With a win, Newberg can earn at least a share of the Pacific title with the Bowmen and possibly No. 10 Glencoe (7-1, 3-1), which visits McMinnville (1-7, 0-4) on Friday.
In the event of a three-way tie, the conference's No. 1 seed would be determined by the OSAA power rankings. Second place, and the conference's second automatic bid to the 16-team 6A playoff bracket, would come down to the head-to-head result between the remaining teams.
Considering the teams' current OSAA power rankings – Glencoe No. 7, Sherwood No. 8 and Newberg No. 11 – the Pacific is in good position to have three entries in the 16-team bracket.
The Tigers played in 6A's secondary playoff bracket the last three years, making the semifinals in 2024 and the quarterfinals in 2023, and they are hopeful to make the top bracket this year.
“That's where we want to be,” Johnson said. “We want to play against the best teams.”
Johnson said that last year's playoff run made the Tigers hungry for more.
“It helped with our kids' mentality for what they wanted out of this season,” Johnson said. “There was a confidence, an eagerness, to take it to a different level. If you look at our rankings for the past five years, the ascension is there. Now can we compete? I think we're showing that we can.”
Newberg, which lost to Glencoe 42-34 last week, can make a statement Friday heading into the playoffs. Sherwood has won 26 consecutive conference games going back to the COVID-shortened season in the spring of 2021, when the Tigers defeated the Bowmen 14-9 and claimed the Pacific title.
“We've got to go out and beat them,” Johnson said. “They're a rival, a storied program. That's a game that we certainly have on our calendar every year that we want to go out and win. You beat them, and you establish yourself as one of the better teams in the state, because they've been there.”
Sherwood has outscored Newberg 155-14 in their last three meetings, including 55-14 last year, when the teams clashed for the conference title in the final game.
The Bowmen aren't as dominant this season, but scores against common foes suggest they have the edge against the Tigers. In conference games, Sherwood's point differential is plus-121 and Newberg's is plus-61.
The Tigers must shore up their run defense, which gave up 401 rushing yards to Heninger last week, to have a chance against the Bowmen and their precision wing-T offense.
“Defensively, we've got to do our jobs,” Johnson said. “We've got to know our gap responsibilities. We've got to play hard. You watch Sherwood on film, they fire off the ball hard.”
Other top match-ups in Week 9:
Thursday
6A No. 3 Nelson (7-1, 4-0 Mt. Hood) at Clackamas (4-4, 2-2), 7 p.m.: Last week, Nelson ended Central Catholic's 39-game Mt. Hood winning streak to clinch at least a share of the conference title. The rival Cavaliers would like nothing better than to spoil the Hawks' outright title.
6A No. 2 Lake Oswego (7-1, 3-1 Three Rivers) at 6A No. 6 Lakeridge (5-3, 3-1), 7 p.m.: Assuming No. 1 West Linn takes care of business against Oregon City, the Battle for the Lake will determine second place in the league. Lake Oswego won 28-18 last year, ending the Pacers' two-year reign in the series.
1A-8 No. 8 North Douglas (6-2, 2-1 SD2) at 1A-8 No. 7 Perrydale (7-1, 3-0), 7:30 p.m.: Perrydale, which won 50-44 at North Douglas on Oct. 3, already has wrapped up the district title. But the Warriors get a rare chance to redeem themselves in a nonleague game.
Warrenton (5-2, 4-1 SD1) at 3A No. 2 Banks (8-0, 5-0), 7 p.m.: Banks, winner of 42 consecutive league games, looks to wrap up the outright district title. The Braves have won all of their games by at least 23 points.
Friday
5A No. 6 Dallas (6-2, 4-1 Mid-Willamette) at 5A No. 5 Lebanon (7-1, 5-0), 7 p.m.: Lebanon already owns a piece of its first conference title since winning the 2016 state championship. By beating Dallas, the Warriors won't have to share it with the Dragons or Silverton.
4A No. 1 Cascade (8-0, 3-0 SD2) at 4A No. 6 Estacada (6-2, 3-0), 7 p.m.: The teams meet to decide the district title. Cascade has blitzed through its schedule, winning by an average of 34.4 points. Estacada has lost only to No. 3 Tillamook and No. 4 Scappoose.
Junction City (5-3, 3-1 SD3) at 4A co-No. 7 Marist Catholic (4-4, 3-1), 7 p.m.: The district title hangs in the balance in the game between the Tigers and Spartans. Reigning state champion Marist Catholic has rebounded from a 1-4 start. Junction City, which went 1-8 last year, can win its first league title since 2014.
Nestucca (6-2, 4-1 SD1) at 2A No. 6 Clatskanie (8-0, 5-0), 7 p.m.: Clatskanie, off to its best start in school history, is one of the feel-good stories of the 2025 season. The Tigers beat Knappa last week to take sole possession of first place, but need to defeat the Bobcats to avoid sharing the title.
2A No. 10 Oakland (4-3, 2-1 SD4) at 2A No. 3 Bandon (7-0, 3-0), 7 p.m.: Special District 4 has been a mine field this season, with all five teams in the top half of the OSAA power rankings. With a win, Bandon can grab the outright title and complete the regular season unbeaten for the first time since 1993.
1A-8 No. 1 Adrian (8-0, 4-0 SD4) at 1A-8 No. 3 Union (7-1, 4-0), 7 p.m.: A much-anticipated showdown between teams that are unbeaten in Oregon. Adrian has four shutouts and is winning by an average margin of 46.8 points. Union's only loss came against undefeated DeSales, Wash.
jerryu@osaa.org
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