WOODLAND HIGH’S past and current gridiron royalty gather before the Oct. 10 game against Mark Morris. From left, they are Cy Whitmire, Jack Whitmire Jr., Jack Whitmire Sr. and Eli Whitmire. Below, Eli races for yardage during the Beavers’ victory.
"MY WHOLE FAMILY is all about football. It's been a family thing my whole life." -Eli Whitmore, Woodland High School running back
ELI WHITMIRE runs for one of his seven touchdowns Oct. 10 in Woodland's victory over visiting Mark Morris.
The green “W” on the helmet stands for Woodland. But football fans with long memories might consider it synonymous with the Whitmire family.
The tradition began about four decades ago with Jack Whitmire Sr., an All-State fullback who set school records while leading the Beavers to their only state championship in 1972, a title determined by their 10-0 record and voting by the Associated Press.
“He was a superstar,” recalled Whitmire’s coach, Steve Hansen. “He was a special kid. He is the consensus best football player in Woodland history.”
“He was pretty amazing back in the day,” agreed Paul Huddleston, Woodland’s current athletic director.
Whitmire’s oldest son, Jack Jr., 25, followed in his father’s fast footsteps as a top running back. So did middle son, Cy, 19. They both earned All-State honors, matching their dad’s accomplishment.
Now the youngest son, 17-year-old Eli, is carrying the ball, both for Woodland High School and his family’s legacy. Given his performances this year, Eli just might steal that best-in-history tag from his father.
He showed his speed and power last Friday against visiting Mark Morris, lighting up the Monarchs for seven touchdowns – and breaking the school record held by Jack Sr. and Justin Leonard. Eli finished the game with 138 rushing yards and another 69 yards on pass catches.
It came before the appreciative eyes of Dad and Eli’s two brothers. Jack Jr. had just returned home for some rest after a nine-month deployment to Afghanistan, where he served in the infantry for the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division. Cy drove from his home in Bend, where he works construction, to see Eli play.
The family reunion included a trip to Long Beach, where they dug 90 razor clams. Of course, the get-together featured lots of football talk, too. That’s been a conversational staple for the sons, each of whom grew up with the sport.
“My older brother, Jack, was always playing in the backyard with us,” Eli said. “My whole family is all about football. It’s been a family thing my whole life.”
Jack Sr. coached the boys in Clark County Youth Football (CCYF).
He recalls young Eli, then a second-grader, tagging along when he went to get Cy’s CCYF uniform. Despite being a year too young to play, league members allowed him to take part because Jack Sr. was a coach and signed a waiver for his youngest son.
He coached them to three youth league championships. But the coaching didn’t stop after the boys reached eighth grade and began playing school football.
“I don’t think you ever stop coaching at home,” Jack Sr. said.
He remembers Jack Jr. as “such a tough-nosed player” at 6-foot-1 and 240 pounds. He played for Central Washington University after graduating from Woodland.
Jack Sr. added that the pressure of winning football games paled in comparison to what his oldest son faced as a machine gunner in Afghanistan. His crew was tasked with patrolling for cars that might be loaded with bombs. Also, improvised explosive devices could be buried almost anywhere.
“He was telling me, ‘Dad, I never felt pressure like this in my life,’ ” said Jack Sr., speaking of Jack Jr.
Like his oldest boy, Jack Sr. also was from the hard-nosed school of play when he wore a Woodland uniform. Former coach Hansen mentioned one game in particular that showed how he played the game.
Hansen said Washougal High School had a much-ballyhooed linebacker, a “stud,” in Hansen’s words, who was out to stop the Beavers’ talented runner. On one play, Hansen said, the two boys collided helmet-to-helmet with such force that it sent the Washougal defender to the ground. He was still there when Jack Sr. reached the end zone, Hansen said.
Jack Sr. said part of Cy’s talent was a ruthless determination.
“Cy was never-say-die,” his father said. “One guy wasn’t going to get him on the ground. It took two, three or four. That’s another thing I could see in myself.”
Jack Sr. also was a talented track and field athlete, winning the pole vault at the state meet and helping the Beavers win the team title with only four performers at the meet. He held the school record in the long jump until last spring, when Eli won the event at the state meet and broke Greg Hansen's of 22 feet, two inches.
Eli has recorded some gaudy offensive statistics on the football field the past two years. He would have added to those marks had Woodland coach Mark Greenleaf not had sympathy for opponents.
“We could have handed the ball off every other time to Eli but we didn’t,” Greenleaf told The Reflector. “I think he was scoring every two times he got the football.”
Ironically, Eli is getting more attention from college recruiters for his track ability than his football skills. He’s already been offered a full scholarship to the U.S. Naval Academy and a 70 percent scholarship to Harvard University – both for track.
His heart is in football, though.
“I like the whole hitting part of it,” Eli said.
He added that being able to play high school football with Cy helped him learn Woodland’s plays and took relieved much of the pressure. The brothers always do some good-natured ribbing when they get together. Eli isn’t hesitant to remind the older two that, while they earned All-State football status their senior year, he did it as a junior.
He’s more likely to use speed and elusiveness than brute power to get past defenders.
“I run at someone and I watch their feet and body movements,” he said. “It saves a lot of energy to get by someone rather than try to run everyone down.”
Jack Sr. never tires of seeing his youngest son’s artistry on the field.
“It’s just so much fun to watch Eli,” he said. “I’ve watched and coached a lot of football players, and even if he weren’t my son I’d want to go back and watch him again. Eli has a fifth gear that I never had.”
Jack Sr. likes to get to Woodland football games an hour before kickoff to soak up the atmosphere. He was there early again for last week’s game with Mark Morris. So were Jack Jr. and Cy.
Eli, already dressed in his uniform, joined the other three for a photo under the east goalpost. Then he scampered back to his teammates to get ready for the game.
He had another big night of work ahead.
