Ilwaco players gather around head coach Ron Rood at the conclusion of practice last week. The Fishermen football team had a solid turnout this year, including roughly 30 players.

ILWACO — Fresh off their first winning season in nearly a decade, the Ilwaco Fishermen football team is hoping to keep their momentum rolling heading into the 2024 fall slate.

2024 Ilwaco football schedule

2024 Ilwaco football schedule

Sept. 6 home VS Toutle Lake

Sept. 13 away VS Winlock

Sept. 20 home VS Wahkiakum

Sept. 27 home VS Morton/White Pass

Oct. 4 home VS Forks *

Oct. 11 home VS Pe Ell/Willapa Valley*

Oct. 18 away VS Napavine*

Oct. 25 home VS Adna*

Oct. 31 away VS Raymond/South Bend*

(All games begin at 7:00 PM, * denotes league games)

Ilwaco third-year head coach Ron Rood and fellow staff are excited about the turnout this year, featuring nearly 30 players that is led by a dedicated group of freshmen.

“We’re way ahead of where we’ve been because we had a legitimate spring practice session then went straight to football camp, where we got to play against other teams,” Rood said following their first official team practice last week.

“We had 25 guys here today, but we will have over 30 for sure.”

The Fishermen will rely on a mix of seniors and juniors, bolstered by a big freshman class.

“We have six seniors and seven juniors. We only have four sophomores, but we have about 15 freshmen. A bunch of them participated in the spring and summer and played well. There’s going to some freshmen starting, because they’re that good.”

The offensive and defensive lines are anticipated to be a strength for the Fishermen this season.

“We return six of our front seven guys, so that should be a strength. In the backfield, we’re young, but we’re really athletic and deep. There were times last year where, if someone got hurt, we didn’t have a viable replacement. But we’re pretty good and deep there,” Rood said.

Season outlook

The Fishermen went 1-9 under Rood in 2022, his first as head coach. The team improved to 5-4 in 2023, their first winning season since 2016.

Ilwaco lost eight senior starters to graduation, including Boston Caron, Kaemon Sawa, Derrick Cutting, Andrew Gaerlan, Ethan Hopkins, Sam Needham, Grady Cox and Cannon Johnson.

Among the returning starters are four players that were previously named to the all-league list, including offensive lineman Cooper Petit, defensive lineman Marcus Lynch, linebacker Wade Smith and tight end Robert Sanders.

“Cooper Petit spent the majority of summer fishing in Alaska, but is a leader for our lineman group on both sides of the ball,” said Ilwaco assistant coach Eric McMillan.

“Ben Davis, Rigo Gonzalez and Marcus Lynch are returning linemen with plenty of experience. Corbin Johnson made the transition from offensive lineman to running back and will replace his older brother Cannon in the backfield. Dylan Pelas is a Swiss army knife and can play any position asked of him. Cody Miller has gotten stronger and faster, those two (Miller and Pelas) will get quite a few touches on the offensive side while providing veteran presence in the defensive backfield. Tight ends Robert Sanders and Wade Smith play their positions well and have helped the younger guys get up to speed and will be impact players on the defensive side of the ball.”

Haddox Hazen and Dylan Pelas will split time at quarterback to start the season. The Fishermen will continue their run-heavy approach offensively while a new quarterback settles under center.

“The QB will potentially change with the formations,” McMillan said.

“Both are great athletes and have a solid grasp of the offense. Dylan hasn’t played QB while Haddox hasn’t played at the high school level. There may be one that takes over full-time later on in the season, but both will get time until that happens.”

The freshman class will have a direct impact on the Fishermen’s success this season.

“About half of our team are freshmen, so a lot of new faces in the program. The youth of the team is pretty exciting because they’re coachable kids who love to compete. Haddox Hazen, Cody Kaino, Connor Ryden and Mark Ragan have shown enough to be in contention for starting spots, while multiple other freshmen will definitely have spots rotating in and may eventually earn a starting position,” McMillan said.

Ilwaco will compete in the newly-formed 2B North Division along with Adna, Forks, Napavine, Pe-Ell/Willapa Valley and Raymond/South Bend.

The 2B South Division will consist of Toutle Lake, Morton/White Pass, Mossyrock, Rainier, Onalaska and Toledo.

“It’s a pretty tough league. Instead of three divisions there’s two, and we’re in the big-boy division,” Rood said.

Napavine, the preseason No. 2-ranked 2B team in the state with three straight state title appearances, is again expected to be among the best teams the Fishermen will face in the regular season.

Ilwaco will kick off their season at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 7, hosting Toutle Lake, a team they beat twice last season by a combined 83-0 margin.

Ilwaco coaches remain the same, with Rood as head coach and assistants including Brett Hopkins, Eric McMillan and Matt McKinstry. Members of the 2024 Ilwaco football team include:

Sr., T/DT Marcus Lynch, 210 pounds

Sr., C/DT Ben Davis, 305 pounds

Sr., End/LB Wade Smith, 165 pounds

Sr., End/DB Carter Humphries, 155 pounds

Sr., End/DE Robert Sanders, 205 pounds

Sr., T/DT Rigo Gonzales, 205 pounds

Jr., Back/LB Corbin Johnson, 195 pounds

Jr., QB/DB Dylan Pelas, 175 pounds

Jr., G/DT Abraham Mendez, 185 pounds

Jr., Back/DB Cody Miller, 155 pounds

Jr., T/DT Andrew Walls, 290 pounds

Jr., G/DE Cooper Petit, 195 pounds

Jr., G/DE Lucas Jackson, 175 pounds

Jr., G/DT Seth Robertson, 165 pounds

Soph., E/DE Preston Haskins, 205 pounds

Soph., Back/LB Zephan Miller, 160 pounds

Soph., G/DT Ryker Vaughn, 170 pounds

Soph., T/DT Blaine Swanson, 200 pounds

Fresh., QB/DB Haddox Hazen, 160 pounds

Fresh., Back/LB Mark Ragan, 155 pounds

Fresh., C/LB Braden Vandermeulen, 155 pounds

Fresh., Back/DB Colten Vandermeulen, 110 pounds

Fresh., Back/DB Cody Kaino, 165 pounds

Fresh., G/LB Chris Arnett, 170 pounds

Fresh., Back/DB Odin Murray, 140 pounds

Fresh., Back/DE Michal Wright, 160 pounds

Fresh., Back/DB Sethe Mclure, 140 pounds

Fresh., T/DE Sixto Arena, 205 pounds

Fresh., Back/DB Conner Ryden, 165 pounds

Fresh., Back/DB Brexton Weidner, 140 pounds

Fresh., T/DT John O’Reilly, 190 pounds

Fresh., B/DB Santino Accuardi, 130 pounds

Fresh., T/DT Austin Bullock, 175 pounds