Whether it’s pride or a spot in the playoffs, there’s always something on the line when Centralia and W.F. West meet in a football game.
As the years have gone on, I was curious: Is the rivalry one of respect or one of hatred? Ask six different people and you’ll probably get six different answers.
“We know guys over there, we’re buddy-buddy over there,” W.F. West linebacker Zach Sloan said. “We just like to play smash-mouth football, go up against each other and have some fun.”
While Sloan sees more respect, some families have ingrained the rivalry into their roots.
“It’s a little bit of both. My dad, he’s instilled that we don’t like them,” said W.F. West quarterback Josiah Johnson, whose father, Chris, was a star running back for the Bearcats. “We don’t really like orange in my family, either. That’s a big thing, orange and black.”
As someone who’s been on both sides of the rivalry, first-year Bearcat head coach Dan Hill sees the respect between the two teams. But between the lines, there may be some hatred.
“There’s a definite respect, but then there’s the definite other side, too, just like any rivalry. You never want to lose to the crosstown rival. There’s always going to be that animosity there,” Hill said. “There is definite respect between W.F. West looking at Centralia or Centralia looking at W.F. West. That part of it has always been pretty nice to see as a guy looking in on it is just on the sportsmanship side of things. Once the whistle blows and that ball gets kicked off, guys are ready to roll.”
It can get nasty in the trenches, but Centralia lineman Justus Kuykendall notes there is a level of respect.
“There’s negative talk on the field and positive talk, because you’ve got to have sportsmanship still,” Kuykendall said.
Centralia quarterback Tanner DeMonbrun has friends at W.F. West, but that won’t stop him from trying to destroy the Bearcats.
“I’d probably go with a combination,” DeMonbrun said. “I definitely am friends with a lot of them. At the same time, I want to beat the crap out of them.”
The rivalry has mellowed out over the years, Centralia head coach Jeremy Thibault said, remembering his own playing days with the Tigers.
“When I played, they used to hang stuff over the front of the stadium and throw stuff at you,” Thibault recalled.
Overall, as the years have gone on and kids have changed, it may have watered down the rivalry.
“I think kids have changed. I think it was a lot more intense and I think Centralia and Chehalis kids are friends and play on the same baseball teams now so it’s kind of weakened it a little bit,” Thibault said. “In the old days, there was no friendships. Now, I think these kids kind of get along and hang out and play their sports together.”
They’re not playing for the same stakes this year, but both teams want to get out of Tiger Stadium on Friday with a win.
Bearcat Stakes
After losses to Black Hills and Tumwater, the Bearcats are third in the Evergreen 2A Conference. A win over Centralia would give W.F. West the inside track to that No. 3 finish and the EvCo’s final crossover spot.
W.F. West has won the last nine Swamp Cup games.
Sloan, a senior linebacker, wasn’t able to play last season due to an injury and is eager to play this season.
“Being hurt during this game last year, I didn’t get to play it and I feel really excited to get back out there with people I haven’t got to play with in a long time,” Sloan said. “I’m just super excited to get back to the Swamp Cup on their turf.”
He hasn’t lost to Centralia in his three years as a Bearcat and Sloan intends on extending the win streak.
“This is what we’re known for. We beat Centralia and that’s just what we do and I don’t think anything different is going to happen,” Sloan said. “Everybody is motivated to beat Centralia every year and I don’t think it’s going to be a problem.”
Josiah Johnson has seen his entire family play or coach against Centralia and he’s ready for his turn to beat the Tigers.
“My dad’s been a coach forever so I’ve been on the sidelines. It’s always been one of the bigger games of the year,” Johnson said. “We’ve grown up disliking them. It’s always been a rivalry. It’s a big deal.”
If there’s any pressure on the starting quarterback, Johnson’s not feeling it.
“That’s going to be fun,” he said. “It’s usually packed. It’s fun going in there and hopefully tearing it up.”
After joining Bob Wollan’s staff last season, this is Hill’s first time as a head coach in his six years being a part of the Swamp Cup rivalry.
“It’s huge for both the Centralia fans and the Chehalis fans. It’s always a lot of fun,” Hill said. “The kids get excited, the communities get excited. It’s always a great thing to be a part of. I’m excited for the game to happen.”
Hill knows his team must be prepared for the Tigers’ Wing-T formation.
“I know they run the ball, the Wing-T stuff. Their quarterback Tanner (DeMonbrun) had a good game (against Fort Vancouver) throwing the ball that week,” Hill said. “I’m excited to play those guys. I know all those kids over there. I’m sure they’re going to be amped up ready to play.”
Centralia Stakes
The Tigers are fifth in the EvCo standings with one league win over Rochester. Centralia would need a win against the Bearcats and a little luck with the rest of the league schedule to get the third and final crossover spot.
While they aren’t the best playoff odds, it wouldn’t matter if they were winless coming into the game against W.F. West.
“I would honestly be OK with losing every game this season and then beating Chehalis,” DeMonbrun said. “It’s just the biggest game. I would say close to like winning state, that’s how much it means to me.”
DeMonbrun is in his first and only season as a starting quarterback for the Tigers.
“They’ve been a rival since we were little kids. We’ve always been beaten by them and it’s been pretty bad every year,” DeMonbrun said. “My sophomore year, we almost beat them and it’s about the same kids they’re playing this year so I think we definitely have a big chance against them.”
As a senior leader, DeMonbrun plans to step up and get the Tigers’ newcomers pumped up before Friday’s contest.
“It’s going to be huge because a lot of their mindsets aren’t there yet. A lot of them are from different schools and they don’t really know the rivalry,” DeMonbrun said. “I think that we’re going to do pretty well in that we’re going to get their spirits up and say how much it means to us and they’re going to understand and play their hearts out.”
This will be the penultimate game of DeMonbrun’s football career and he wants to make the most of it.
“I was super happy to hear that my senior year, it was going to be at our home and I hope that a lot of people show up,” DeMonbrun said. “I’ve been talking to a lot of people and they said they’re going to come and support us and we’re going to put on a show for them.”
Kuykendall had his first experience playing in a Swamp Cup game last season and knows that experience will help him this season.
“It was a big experience. I’ve never experienced it before, it’s different, wasn’t really expecting that much motivation for it,” Kuykendall said. “Bringing it into this game, it’s easier now because I’ve done it already. I’ve been through it.”
Kuykendall wants to be on the team that ends the Bearcats’ win streak.
“We’ve been training all year, this whole time, and we’re not just going to do it for nothing,” Kuykendall said. “We’ve got to give it our all and everything we’ve got so we can hang that Swamp Cup up in our new school.”
Thibault is in his second season as Centralia’s head coach. He felt his team played well last year but their offensive struggles were too much to overcome.
“Chehalis has their stuff together. I thought our game was OK last year for our first drive, and then I thought we played them well defensively and just couldn’t get anything going,” Thibault said. “I hope that it’s a little different this year, that we’re a little more productive on offense.”
With the Bearcats slinging the ball around through the air more than in previous years, the Tigers will need an on-point pass defense against the W.F. West passing attack.
“If you’re off an inch or two, it’s tough to throw the ball,” Thibault said. “If the kid’s not on, maybe we can benefit. We’ve had a hard time covering the pass this year, it’s not our safeties fault only, it’s a lack of pressure and so it all depends. Obviously, we need to block and tackle, and hold onto the ball.”
Regardless of the either team’s record, it’s sure to be a battle until the final whistle. Thibault believes that if his team can execute the fundamentals of blocking and tackling, the Tigers have a chance of winning their first Swamp Cup game since 2008.
“It’s been so long, I can remember the last one here on a Saturday, and half these kids weren’t even in school yet,” Thibault said. “I think it’s a winnable game for anybody. I don’t think either one of us are world beaters or have a big downfall. If we go out and don’t play well, they’ll beat us by 20 or 30 points.”
