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Register-Guard Game of the Week: Churchill Lancers vs. 4A league champions Marist Catholic

edith noriega, eugene register-guard
·3 min read
Churchill wide receiver Andy Womack carries the ball for the Lancers. The Marist Spartans defeated the Churchill Lancers 38-7 at Marist Catholic High School in September 2022 in Eugene.
Churchill wide receiver Andy Womack carries the ball for the Lancers. The Marist Spartans defeated the Churchill Lancers 38-7 at Marist Catholic High School in September 2022 in Eugene.

Each week throughout the 2023 high school football season, The Register-Guard will highlight a local game of the week.

Week 1 will feature an interesting matchup when Class 5A Churchill hosts Class 4A Marist Catholic in a nonleague game at 7 p.m. on Friday.

Not only will both teams faceoff in the season opener for the second straight year (Marist defeated Churchill 38-7 in 2022), but both programs are led by new head coaches.

Layne Coffin new head coach at Churchill

Layne Coffin replaces Churchill coach Kirk Miller, who in one season with Lancers led them to a 3-6 overall record in 2022.

Earlier this year, Coffin resigned as the football coach at Vallivue in Caldwell, Idaho, after 17 years.

Originally planning to enjoy retirement with his wife, three children and four grandchildren in Eugene, football came knocking instead.

Churchill quarterback Tyler Mikel hands off the ball to running back Noa Allison during the first half. The Marist Spartans defeated the Churchill Lancers 38-7 at Marist Catholic High School on September 2022 in Eugene.
Churchill quarterback Tyler Mikel hands off the ball to running back Noa Allison during the first half. The Marist Spartans defeated the Churchill Lancers 38-7 at Marist Catholic High School on September 2022 in Eugene.

Coffin carries an impressive resume as the new Lancers coach: a 124-95 career record that includes two state championships (2000, 2001) at Century in Pocatello. In 17 seasons at Vallivue, he posted a 90-77 record, and the Falcons made the state playoffs eight times, reaching the semifinals in 2018.

But he does have some work to do to at Churchill.

"Overall, I'm pretty happy both offensively and defensively," Coffin said. "We still obviously have some execution things that we need to go over and get better at."

While Coffin did not name key players for Churchill, the Lancers will be led by senior Tyler Mikel at quarterback.

The roster also includes six All-Special District 2 league honorees from the 2022 season: junior running back Ceville Pasi (first team), senior wide receiver Andy Womack (second team), senior offensive linemen Isaiah Meashintubby (second team) and Zane Tuers (honorable mention), and senior running back Danny Doan (honorable mention).

After winning 2022 league title, Marist football fields a young team

Charlie Landgraf has big shoes to fill at Marist after taking over for coach Frank Geske, who in 15 seasons with the Spartans went 120-46, including a state title win in 2009.

In 2022, the Spartans went 8-2 overall, winning the 4A Special District 3 league title and made a playoff appearance in Geske's final season.

Oregon Ducks head coach Mark Helfrich and Oregon Ducks offensive lineman Charlie Landgraf (64) walk from the locker room to the field before the game against the Oregon State Beavers at Reser Stadium.
Oregon Ducks head coach Mark Helfrich and Oregon Ducks offensive lineman Charlie Landgraf (64) walk from the locker room to the field before the game against the Oregon State Beavers at Reser Stadium.

Landgraf was aware of the winning culture at Marist from his days as a player at Oregon.

He completed his career in 2019 with the Ducks after they won the Pac-12 champion and Rose Bowl, and served as the assistant offensive line coach at UNLV the following year.

Landgraf coached the offensive line at Central Catholic the last two seasons in Portland, where he helped lead the Rams to the 6A title in 2021.

"It's a really young team," Landgraf said of the Spartans. "Only seven seniors which is small, but it's a senior class that's going to contribute a lot on the field and their leadership has been really great."

Marist will be led by junior quarterback Nick Hudson. The Spartans return senior linebacker Aiden Hazen, who was an all-state first-team selection on defense, while newcomers include Churchill transfers Brady Bidwell and Aaron Bidwell as wide receivers/defensive backs.

Dennis Jackson Jr., a senior wide receiver, is competing in his first season at Marist after transferring from Colorado last winter.

Edith Noriega is a sports reporter for The Register-Guard. You may reach her at ENoriega@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter at @Noriega_Edith.

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Churchill football hosts 4A league champs Marist Catholic