Last season was the beginning of a New era in Wildcat Football. We said goodbye to many familiar faces and players. We found a new Head Coach in Greg Fisher. After loosing 30 plus Cats who moved on after 2007 it was hard to say what would happen. The boys honed their skills and worked very hard in strength and conditioning and preseason. The Canby summer camped proved that the team still had weapons and that 3 year starter Josh Hill was going to continue to be a threat as the Cats competed well in several scrimmages.
Doubles and Triples came and went in the sweltering August heat. The coaches and staff watched and sometimes wondered at what the team would become. Everyone knew there was and talent there. After all this is Westview! But the Cats had doubters to prove wrong. Pre-season finally came and so 2008 began.
The boys scrambled, hit, ran, and scored their way to an incredible 4-1 start beating the likes of Barlow, Grant, and David Douglas along the way. It seemed that all was going great for the Cats. But there was no rest for the wicked. The Metro league opened against Power House Jesuit! That game was one sided and the Cats tasted what defeat was like in the worst way.
The following weeks saw wins against Aloha and Sunset and losses to Beaverton and South Ridge. It was a tough second half of the year.
Many good athletes were lost along the way. Colin Forman, Anthony Munyan, Micah Larimer, and Mitchell Fowles were all lost with difficult injuries. The team had to reload and find a way through murky waters and tough times. Nobody knew for sure what would become of 2008. The season ended and at the last tick of the regular season the Cats found themselves in the 4th slot of the Metro League and were matched in the playoffs against the #1 seed from the Mt Hood Conference Central Catholic.
At PGE Park in that First Round Game we saw a revitalized Wildcat team come out and absolutely dominate the Rams. When it was all over the Cats won big and left 602 yards of total offense on that field. Josh Hill, Casey Kasai, Robert Casteel, Johnathan Pearson, Konner Knudsen, Christian Magdaleno, Ricky Martin, Grady Garrett, Patrick Acosta, David and Daniel Aguilar, Clif Heim, and others, all Seniors, played like seniors with something to Prove and shut down the highly touted CC Rams. It was amazing.
In week two the Cats traveled to Eugene to face the Sheldon Irish. It had been about 14 months since the Wildcats had been at Sheldon and in that Game the 2007 Cats laid down the law on the Irish who had not been beaten at home in 7 years. Once again the Cats were expected by supposed experts to lay down and roll over for the "Superior" Irish.
Somebody forgot to tell the Wildcats. This game was so hardly fought and there was virtually nothing more that could have been done. Leads changed and there in the Fog we all saw it...we saw the 2008 Cats find themselves. Together down by down and step by step they battled. Nothing was left undone except for the final kick from 52+ yards with 2.8 seconds left that could have sent this thriller into overtime. That kick by Patrick Acosta was blocked and after a wild finish that you had to see to believe the Cats season ended 33-30. We will never know what would have or could have happened had that kick gone through but we all knew he was going to make it. This is the stuff that memories are made of and that drive the human spirit on by the thoughts summed up in two simple words....."What If?".
There in the fog and the sweat and blood that is Friday Night Lights we saw this small band of Seniors and a very tough group of Juniors and Sophomores fight harder brother to brother than perhaps any Wildcat team had ever fought. They fought to win and to not disappoint. They fought for the years of pain and suffering and exhaustion they had endured. They fought for the Fans, for mom and dad, for each other but most of all they fought to try and stem the tide of time that they all knew was rolling in on them. They fought for one more chance and one more down.
When it was over we saw what the new era and 2008 season had produced. With full hearts and open but tearful eyes we saw the heart of the Wildcats. In that moment we saw the best these boys had to offer. And it was great....it really was.
"To the Seniors...I love you. My heart is full. Thank you! To you Juniors and Sophomores you use this thing as fuel. Remember this. I love you all."
Coach Greg Fisher
You said it all Coach! Great season boys and the fans, parents, and coaches of the Westview Organization wish to acknowledge the great effort that was given in 2008 by the entire team. We are very proud of you all!
GO CATS! GO CATS! GO CATS!
