Coupeville Sports

Nick “The Big Hurt” Streubel opens the holes and then what do we do?

“ATTACK!!” (John Fisken photo)

This is the year. That’s how it feels.

The year the roar returns to Coupeville High School football. The year the red and black shocks the world.

Now, you never know. Injuries. Bad bounces. Errant calls. Anything can derail a season.

But as the Wolves head into the second season of the Tony Maggio era (they open at home Friday, Sept. 6 against Bellevue Christian), things seem as bright as any time in recent memory.

A breakout runner (senior Jake Tumblin), a man-mountain lineman (senior Nick Streubel) who is being actively courted by NCAA Division 1 schools, a roster dominated by seasoned vets and a favorable schedule all point to high hopes for Wolf Nation.

Playing the second year of a two-year plan to give the smallest 1A school in the 1A/2A Cascade Conference some breathing room, Coupeville will not face Archbishop Thomas Murphy, Lakewood or Cedarcrest.

The reduced schedule (they will play 1A King’s and South Whidbey and the smaller 2A schools, Sultan and Granite Falls) marks them as an independent and will prevent Streubel, Tumblin and Co. from being considered for All-Conference honors.

Which doesn’t mean they can’t be as good, or better, than anyone who “wins” those honors.

The Wolf offense will flow through Tumblin, a speedy, college-bound wing who led the team in touchdowns and yards as a junior. He will be operating behind a line led by left tackle/nose guard Streubel, AKA “The Big Hurt,” who held his own last year against King’s Mason Friedline, who turned down every Pac-12 team to accept a scholarship to Yale.

Coupeville’s line will pack in the big boys, with Streubel, junior center Carson Risner, junior tackle Oscar Liquidano and guards Aaron Wright (junior) and Ben Haight (senior) forming a well-oiled unit. Two transfers, senior Xavier Clark (Oak Harbor) and sophomore JR Pendegrass (Nevada) will also compete for playing time.

Senior Gunnar Langvold and junior Josh Bayne are battling for the starting quarterback position as camp plays out, with Bayne also sliding to the wing quite a bit.

Three seniors, receiver Wade Schaef, receiver/tight end Jared Dickson and fullback Brett Arnold, will touch the ball a lot, while the Booker brothers, junior receiver/defensive back Tyree and freshman quarterback/safety Ramon are also in the mix after transferring from Oak Harbor. Sophomore Cole Payne and junior Matt Hampton are other options at receiver.

Other players who have caught Maggio’s eye early include senior lineman/linebacker Joey Edwards (“Joey is having a super camp”) and sophomores Wiley Hesselgrave and Lathom Kelley (“They are physical and fast guys who can bring it”).

Wild cards include junior Joel Walstad, a basketball/soccer standout who has returned to the gridiron after taking several years off, and two basketball players — silky smooth senior Anthony Bergeron and hard-working junior Isaac Vargas.

Which ever players are on the field at a given time will live by the run (the Wolves return players who gained 1,800 of the team’s 2,200 yards last season), while also expanding their ability to attack by air.

“We are going to shore up our passing game quite a bit,” Maggio said. “Just having a year under our belts as a staff has helped. I was happy with our rushing attack last year; we just need a better passing completion percentage.”

The defense, led by assistant coach Brett Smedley, will rely on an abundance of quick linebackers such as Tumblin to force the action.

“We are changing up our defense to utilize what we have most of — quick, fast, athletic linebacker types,” Maggio said. “Coach Smedley has these kids flying around, confident in our coverages, and I feel we are much improved.

“We have five linebackers in our system and three linemen,” he added. “This is great because our depth at line is a concern, so a couple kids can breathe a bit and not always have to play both ways.”

With five non-conference games leading into their four-game set against Cascade Conference opponents, Coupeville will have time to gauge its improvement before playing the games that will decide its playoff hopes.

South Whidbey is the emotional biggie, with The Bucket on the line and the all-Island showdown coming during Homecoming.

But defending league champ King’s, which has restocked after losing Friedline and All-Conference QB Billy Green (Brigham Young University), is still the team to beat, while another squad is on the rise.

“Sultan will be a shocker team this year,” Maggio said. “They are loaded, play very physical and are well coached.”

Hopefully, people will be saying the same things about Coupeville before the season is done.