WOODLAND’S ELI WHITMIRE (40) roars around end for a sizeable gain during the 2014 high school football season. He recently received first-team All-State honors as a ball carrier
HOCKINSON’S AUSTEN JOHNSON (33) was a key contributor to a stellar Hawks’ defense this season. Johnson’s play earned him a spot on the Class 2A All-State second team as a defensive back.
Eli Whitmire of Woodland High School earned first-team All-State honors as a running back in polling by the Associated Press for the 2014 high school football season.
He also was named to the Class 2A second team as a returner while teammates Isaac Anderson, 6-foot-3 and 255 pounds, made the second team for offensive linemen and Troy Flanagan, 6-feet and 175 pounds, made the second team for defensive linemen.
“With those kids, it is due to all the hard work they put in during and prior to the season,” said Woodland coach Mark Greenleaf. “It has paid off for them. Each of those kids is deserving.”
He added that the individual honors came from strong team support, saying, “They didn’t just do it on their own. There’s 11 guys on the field.”
In addition to the trio of Woodland players, Hockinson senior Austen Johnson was named to the 2A second team as a defensive back.
Hockinson coach Rick Steele called Johnson his team’s “linchpin’’ on both offense and defense this season, helping the Hawks advance to the quarterfinals of the state playoffs.
“He’s just such a good tackler,’’ Steele said of Johnson. “To be able to put him at safety allowed him to come off both sides of the ball to make tackles for us was huge. There weren’t too many kids who got past our front seven but when they did Austen was right there. And, when he comes up, he hits like a Mack truck.’’
Led by Johnson, Hockinson’s defense allowed just 30 points in nine regular season games. Johnson also provided the play that sparked a Hawks’ comeback in a playoff win over Black Hills when he intercepted a pass and returned it to the 1-yard line.
Despite being injured during the final two games, Whitmire racked up a season total of 928 yards on 109 carries, according to MaxPreps.com, which logs players’ statistics. That’s about 8.5 yards per carry.
Whitmire and Flanagan are both seniors who have progressed steadily through their four years in the Woodland football program, Greenleaf said.
“It’s through their hard work and being able to make great plays” that they earned the all-state honors, the coach said. “It just solidifies Eli’s legacy as part of the Woodland football program and what he’s been able to do.”
As for Anderson, a sophomore, Greenleaf called it “a really big feather in our hat” for someone that young to get statewide attention.
“With two years to go, who knows what he’ll be capable of,” Greenleaf said. “It’s through his hard work, too.”
The coach said the Beavers weren’t the same team after Anderson was injured late in the season.
“It just shows how much a contribution Isaac had,” Greenleaf said. “When he got hurt and we had to play Fort Vancouver, our offensive performance wasn’t like it was when he was in there.”
Greenleaf said he had hoped wide receiver Trevor Huddleston might make the all-state team, too. The 5-foot-10 senior caught 38 passes for 842 yards for an average of 22.2 yards per catch.
