There’s still plenty of time for Ryan Griggs and Co. to turn things around. (John Fisken photo)
What do you say about 41-0?
Probably as little as possible.
Week #2 of the 2015 football season is in the books, and the best news for Coupeville High School is that the future looks a lot brighter than the present.
Surrendering six touchdowns to 2A Sequim Friday night, four on the ground, the Wolves were blown out on the road, dropping their early-season record to 0-2.
The good news is that both of those losses have been non-conference affairs, and Coupeville, barring a major upset, is primed to get off to a strong start in the 1A Olympic League.
The Wolves will be on the road for the third straight week Sept. 18 (they open with four in a row away from Whidbey) when they catch the ferry over to play Chimacum (0-2) in the first league game of the season.
Coupeville will be a huge favorite in that contest, as the Cowboys, who fell 33-28 to Forks, have lost 14 straight games.
The streak covers parts of three seasons, with Chimacum’s last win coming Oct. 28, 2013 against Vashon Island.
Klahowya (1-1) will play Port Townsend (2-0) in the other league contest next Friday.
The Eagles nipped Bremerton 7-0 in overtime to get their first win, while Port Townsend, the defending league champs, has outscored its non-conference opponents 93-0 this season.
Facing off with a much-bigger school in Sequim, Coupeville had trouble dealing with their hosts two-quarterback rotation.
Sequim (2-0) jumped on the Wolves with three quick touchdowns, as freshman quarterback Riley Cowan threw for two scores and senior quarterback Nick Faunce scored on a 11-yard run.
While the score wasn’t what he had hoped for, Coupeville coach Brett Smedley saw a lot of positives.
“We as a coaching staff are extremely proud of the effort that was put forth in yesterday’s game,” he said. “We are a young team at a lot of positions and we are getting better on a daily basis.
“With the exception of a few plays in the first half our defense did a great job holding a very good offense in check,” Smedley added. “Our offense is continuing to progress, and we are all looking forward to this weeks game at Chimacum.”
Coupeville was fairly precise with its passing, with three chuckers (Hunter Downes, Gabe Eck and CJ Smith) combining to go 21-28 for 123 yards.
Hunter Smith hauled in eight passes, while Wiley Hesselegrave topped the Wolf receivers with 56 yards on five snags.
The ground game hurt CHS, though, as the Wolves combined to net minus 37 yards. Jacob Martin (12 yards on seven carries) was the bright spot.
Freshmen Ty Eck (eight tackles) and Chris Battaglia (6) and senior Mitchell Losey (5) paced the defense. Battaglia and Brenden Gilbert each recorded a sack, while Hesselgrave snared an interception.
Now, in the words of Taylor Swift, the Wolves need to “shake it off” and move on, knowing if they stay on course, this time next week they could be sharing first place in the league standings.
And hey, it’s not like they were the only Whidbey team to get blasted Friday.
South Whidbey traveled down to Anacortes and absorbed a 40-0 drubbing of its own.
It happens.
Coupeville Sports 