Coupeville Sports

Carson Risner, son and grandson of Wolf legends.

Carson Risner’s mom can beat up your mom.

Not that she would, as she’s actually a really nice person, but Jennie (Cross) Prince didn’t set Coupeville High School records that still stand years later in the shot put and discus by being a pushover. The woman, a three-sport threat in her day (in any day!) could snap you in half and do it with a smile.

Is it any wonder that her son is now flexing both his biceps and his beaming grin as a key member of the Wolf football squad? With an uncle and a grandfather who also lined up in the trenches for CHS, he’s merely carrying on a family tradition of being awesome.

A sophomore who plays both ways on the line, Risner is quick with a joke among his teammates, and then equally quick when it comes to dropping the boom on opposing ball carriers.

“Football is my favorite for sure. I love the contact!,” Risner said. “I guess I was built to play football. I’ve always looked forward to the year I could play because I was always too big to play in the Oak Harbor little league.

“The physical competition keeps me interested. I’m always getting bigger, better, and stronger,” he added. “I think my strengths are that I am always willing to work hard, learn from my mistakes, and no matter how big the guy is, I’m not afraid to hit him.”

While he would like to work a bit on his speed and footwork, Risner, a die-hard “South Park” fan and one of Coupeville’s hardest workers on the gridiron, lives for the big hit.

“The personal highlight for me was finally being strong enough to rock a senior’s world,” Risner said. “For the next two years I would like to be unstoppable, bigger, faster, stronger than any guy on the other side of the line.”

Doing so would be a perfect tribute to his family and their rich history of athletic success at CHS. Like mom, like son. Like grandpa, like grandson.

“My mom has pushed me to be my best,” Risner said. “She has always told me to give 110% on the field and off. Sports are like life, you get out of it what you put into it. No quitters allowed and if you aren’t going to give it your all, then don’t play. No pain, no gain!

“I have a lot to live up to,” he added. “My grandpa (Wolf legend Murph Cross) was the one that made my mom that way. He has always been right there for me, teaching me what he knows and pushing me to be better at everything I do.”

A music buff who plays guitar, Risner also breaks the stereotype of the lineman who is great on the field and not so talented in the classroom. This kid has book smarts to go with his biceps of steel.

“My favorite class is weight training, but I do have a 3.8 (GPA) so I must be okay at the rest of them, too.”

Smart. Funny. Athletic talent for days. Definitely following in the footsteps of his mom. 

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Riled-up Wolves (left to right) Caleb Valko, Carson Risner, Danny Savalza and Nick Streubel prepare to unleash hell on the people who planned the District 1 football playoffs. (Shelli Trumbull photo)

OK, this might get complicated. Or not.

Looking ahead at the playoff possibilities for the Coupeville High School football team, one thing is certain. Nobody knows anything … yet. Two weeks from now we might know a whole lot more … or not.

So, let’s try and break it down as simply as possible. There are three 1A schools in the eight-team Cascade Conference — Coupeville, King’s and South Whidbey. Two of those teams are going to the playoffs and one is staying home.

Regardless of the three teams final records, all that really, truly matters is how they do in their three-team round robin. Right now, with King’s having thrashed South Whidbey and Coupeville not having played either team yet, we’re sitting with a pecking order of King’s (1-0), Coupeville (0-0) and South Whidbey (0-1).

A Wolf win this Friday in Langley would eliminate the Falcons and guarantee Coupeville a playoff berth. Its home game the following Friday (Oct. 19) against King’s would then be for the top seed and an automatic berth in the tri-district playoffs.

So yes, a 3-5 CHS squad could be higher-rated than a 7-1 King’s team.

Two straight losses, however, and Coupeville is out of playoff contention and has to take out its frustration in a regular season finale at Sultan (Oct. 26), one of the five 2A schools in its league.

Now, if South Whidbey beats Coupeville, and then the Wolves rebound to stun the unbeaten Knights, everyone finishes 1-1 and things get really sticky.

Whichever team earns the top slot advances straight to tri-districts on Friday, Nov. 2, while the #2 team faces a tougher road.

That squad will have to win two shortened games in the same night (Tuesday, Oct. 30) to advance. They will open against the third seed from the Northwest Conference, a league that includes Blaine, Friday Harbor, Mount Baker, Lynden Christian, Meridian and Nooksack Valley.

Coupeville has already played, and lost, non-conference games to Lynden Christian and Nooksack Valley this season.

Win that first game, which will be two quarters, and you return to the field a half hour later to play two quarters against the second seed from the Northwest Conference.

The final team standing will then join the top 1A schools from the Cascade Conference and Northwest Conference and advance to tri-districts, just with a lot less rest time.

OK, got all that? There will be a quiz.

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Gunnar Langvold. Has there ever been a better first name for a quarterback?

When Gunnar Langvold is healthy, he’s a pretty darn good football player.

The only trouble has been keeping the Coupeville High School junior, who doubles as a quarterback and safety, in one piece. A concussion suffered against Nooksack Valley knocked him out of two games and he’s now expected to miss this week’s South Whidbey showdown after being in a car accident.

But, in the first four games of the season, when all the body parts were working the way they were supposed to, he had a pretty good run in his first time under center as the Wolf starting signal caller. Running the wing-t, which puts an emphasis on running, Langvold was precise enough with his passing to keep defenses guessing.

He completed 15 passes for 170 yards, with a long of 28, while also churning his legs for 70 yards and three touchdowns on just 16 carries.

While he’s enjoyed his success on the field, not being in uniform has eaten away at him a bit.

“The transition has gone very well since it was my first year and there wasn’t that difficult of an offense to learn,” Langvold said. “I have been proud of the way I’ve played, just not about the decisions I’ve made off the field.

“My goals for the rest of the season are to get my spot back, throw for more than 100 yards, upset King’s and focus on getting good grades and becoming a better football player,” he added.

A quick hard-hitter who first made his impact felt in the team’s secondary, Langvold won a quarterback competition in the preseason. He replaced Jake Tumblin, who moved to the wing in Coupeville’s new-look offense, and showed good leadership skills when he could stay upright.

“My strengths as a QB are being able to see who’s open,” Langvold said. “But I would like to work on getting air under the ball to allow my receivers to get under it and make a play.

“Only time, practice and dedication can make me a better athlete.”

Away from the field, Langvold, who enjoys a diverse range of music (“I like to listen to soft songs, hip hop and classic rock”) and shows good taste in movies by picking the very-funny “21 Jump Street” as a favorite, can be found with his head under the hood of a car most days.

“I like to work on cars and restore them with my dad,” Langvold said. “I love Chevys and hate Fords and I love classic cars, mainly Camaros.”

For now, his biggest project is staying healthy and continuing to refine his football skills. With part of a season left and a full senior campaign ahead in which to impress coaches and scouts, he wouldn’t mind if his talent drew some interest at the college level.

But, most of all, he appreciates those who have helped get him to this point in time.

“I don’t really know what’s gonna happen after school at the moment,” Langvold said. “I wouldn’t mind playing at the next level, but my family does not have the money to send me through college; if it’s possible to get a scholarship, I would love to play college ball.

“I would like to thank my friends, family, coaches and The Lord for getting me where I’m at today and making me a better person.”

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