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Seven days until the biggest game of their lives!!

Posted in Football, Middle School, Ranting and Raving on October 4, 2012| 1 Comment »

The rock is ours! (Bob Martin photo)

A preview of what’s to come, as the CMS football squad squares off with King’s in a game earlier this week. (Barb Cope photo)

When you get one home game in a football season, that game is epic.

Win or lose, when the Coupeville Middle School football team steps onto the turf at Mickey Clark Field next Thursday, Oct. 11 for a 3 PM game against Langley (that most arch-rival of all possible rivals), it will be an event to rival the Super Bowl.

Work will come to a stop across town. Businesses will close down early. Traffic jams will stretch from the elementary school parking lot back to Oak Harbor. Small children will cry as the skies above crackle with lightning, as Football Armageddon plays out!!

It will … OK, it may not be that intense, but a lot of grandmas will be happy to get to see their offspring play in their own back yard. So, they’ve got that going for them, which is nice.

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Josh Bayne eats for free!!

Posted in Booster Club, Football on October 3, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Dinner is on the house for Josh Bayne.

The Coupeville High School sophomore was selected Wednesday by the Booster Club as the second Star of the Week for the CHS fall sports season. His name and picture will be on display at Applebee’s and he’ll get a gift certificate to the casual dining restaurant.

Following in the footsteps of netter Aaron Curtin, Bayne was honored for his two-touchdown, two-interception performance on the gridiron last Friday against Orcas Island. Starting at quarterback for the first time as a varsity player, he helped lead the Wolves to a 47-14 victory, their first win after four tough losses.

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Caleb Valko is the new Hunter Hammer!!

Posted in Big Time Secrets, Football, Ranting and Raving on October 3, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Caleb Valko pities the fool who thinks he can take away his title of Page Hit King. (Nanette Streubel photo)

Back in my days at the Whidbey Examiner, pre-Canadian sell-out, there was no bigger draw on the sports pages than Hunter Hammer.

Whether he was on the basketball court, crushing anyone who dared to drive into the paint, or launching a shot put into orbit, Hammer Time equaled big page hits. And he still does, even in his college days.

But, having taken a moment to peruse the stats here at coupevillesports.com, I come to one conclusion, and that is this — Caleb Valko is the new Hunter Hammer.

If you look at the top ten stories (in terms of readership) out of the 133 articles I’ve posted, Valko is the primary focus in two and appears in two others as a supporting character. So, the Wolf senior lineman currently has a stake in a solid 40% of my top stories, more than any other single person.

In case you’re curious, here’s the top 10, as it sits at 1:36 PM Wednesday, Oct. 3.

1) “Farm Dog — forever a friend of the world!!” (Almost 150 more views than any other article.)

2) “Fleming, Arnold go bonkers in close loss!!”

3) “47 reasons to detest ATM!!”

4) “The girl ‘that hits really hard’ is alive and well!!”

5) “Bayne brings the pain!!” (And it’s only been up for five days.)

6) “Caleb Valko talks smack about freshmen!!”

7) “Wolf receiver a man of many moods”

8) “Valko to foes: I must crush you!!”

9) “I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but…”

10) “Superheroes used to roam the courts at CHS!!” (Another fast mover up the charts, as Ashley Ellsworth-Bagby works the old school magic.)

Now, Mr. Hammer currently sits at #11 with “It’s Hammer Time!! All over your Kia…” He still has a chance to recapture that Top Ten Magic, even if Mr. Valko is comin’ for him hard.

I’ve seen a picture on Facebook, a picture of a six-foot-seven former Wolf legend riding an itty bitty trike. That picture’s gold, Hammer, gold!! Maybe you should send it to me to use on the blog, cause, unless you do, I think it’s safe to say we’re living in the Age of Valko now.

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Streubel crushes puny foes, gets noticed!!

Posted in Football on October 2, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Coming to a college football team near you in two years? (Nanette Streubel photo)

Nick Streubel is a beast.

Easy-going and friendly off the football field, the Coupeville High School junior sheds the mild-mannered disguise once he straps on the helmet and shoulder pads. Then it’s time to start looking for ripped-off and discarded body parts, as he rampages through opposing team’s lines.

His play is garnering him some notice off the Island, as well, with Northwest Elite Index, a leading online talent rater, ranking him as one of the top offensive linemen in the state. The honor may have long-term impact, as the site looks beyond current results to project which players they believe have the best chance of achieving football success at the college level.

Streubel, a six-foot-three, 280-pound force of nature with surprising quickness honed by his time as a successful high-level competitive swimmer, is currently threatening to eat parents David and Nanette Streubel out of house and home. College scholarship offers could be on the horizon, however, for a player who the site describes as “a strong kid that loves the pancake block. A hard worker that moves well.”

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Josh Bayne: A Star is Born!!

Posted in Football on September 30, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Josh Bayne coasts into the end zone with one of his two touchdowns Friday night. (Shelli Trumbull photo)

All the stars came out Friday night.

Brett Arnold and Bryce Fleming each scored a pair of touchdowns for Coupeville High School in its 47-14 dismantling of visiting Orcas Island. Jake Tumblin ripped off a sound barrier-busting 67-yard run to the end zone and big, bad, buff linemen like Caleb Valko, Nick Streubel and Carson Risner spent most of the game deep in the Orcas backfield, usually sitting on someone’s head.

And then there was Josh Bayne.

The sophomore had a coming-out party under the Friday night lights — even if the lights had barely flickered on by the time the game was winding down, what with a 5 PM start. Replacing injured Gunnar Langvold at quarterback, Bayne bolted for a touchdown on the ground and added another off of one of his two interceptions.

He was not only ready for the big time, he grabbed the spotlight and brought the house down.

Not bad for a guy who had a couple of quarters of JV football as his only prior QB experience. Not that you would have known it from his calm demeanor once he took the first snap.

Well, calm on the outside.

“I was very nervous until I stepped on the field, then I knew I had to play with a level head and no fear,” Bayne said. “It felt great and was fun to help contribute to the team like that.

“I like both offense and defense,” he added. “I feel stronger on the defensive side of the ball because I’m still learning our new offense and gaining experience at QB.”

With big, bruising backs like Arnold and Danny Savalza ripping away for chunks of key yardage, and Fleming and Tumblin always one stutter-step away from taking it to the house, the Wolves showed how impressive their running attack can be, especially when backed by solid play from both lines.

“Our running backs were great all night, taking advantage of the huge holes our line was making all game,” Bayne said. “Our defensive line and the linebackers did a great job stuffing the run and putting pressure on the Orcas QB.”

The win, the first for the Wolves after four close losses, could be the spark for the rest of the season. A spark that Bayne is thrilled to have helped light.

“It gave us confidence and a lot of momentum going into our next game,” Bayne said. “I’d like to continue to improve and help my team get some more wins.”