Last April’s NFL Draft was a sign of what the Wildcats would face come fall. University of Southern California Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Caleb Williams and Penn State University offensive lineman Olu Fashanu — both Gonzaga alumni — were selected with the No. 1 and No. 11 overall picks. They made history becoming highest selections ever for high school teammates in the same NFL draft.
“They have a really good program,” said Springfield coach Maurice Douglass. “They’ve got a rich tradition. They’ve got guys that have been in the Olympics recently. They’ve got a nice contingent of players that have gone to play at the college level. They’ve got a really good tradition and they’re going to be a formidable opponent for us this week.”
Springfield fell to Winton Woods 16-6 last Friday night. They played most of the game without starting quarterback Brent Upshaw, who was hurt early in the first quarter. Wildcats junior Sherrod Lay took over for Upshaw.
“(Lay) did a good job for being thrown in when he was,” Douglass said. “I think he’ll do a good job in the future if we need to use him.”
Upshaw, Lay and sophomore Braylon Keys could all see time at quarterback this week, Douglass said.
“We’ll use all three of them,” Douglass said.
Defensively, the Wildcats held Winton Woods to 157 yards of total offense despite having seven new starters on that side of the ball. They trailed 16-0 at halftime, but weren’t able to get within striking distance in the second half.
“We’ve got to have some consistency on offense,” Douglass said. “We’ve got to take advantage of the situations that we’re given on the offensive side of the ball.”
The Eagles finished 6-5 last season, but return 12 players who earned All-Washington Catholic Athletic Conference honors. Gonzaga has several players committed to play D-I college football, including senior safety Kainoa Winston (Michigan), senior cornerback Lonnie McAllister (Stanford) — the son of former NFL cornerback Chris McAllister — and senior cornerback Devenchi Arnold (Bowling Green). Eagles junior edge Carter Meadows and junior linebacker Kedric Golston II — the son of former NFL defensive lineman Kedric Golston — each have multiple Power 5 offers. Offensively, junior wide receiver Lincoln Fisher is committed to FCS Holy Cross.
“(Gonzaga) will be what we wanted when we signed up and took this game on,” Douglass said. “We wanted to get prepared for the GWOC and beyond. These first three games are going to be what we asked for.”
The Eagles and the Wildcats played a common opponent last season in DeMatha Catholic. Springfield fell to the Stags 35-7 at the Ironton Gridiron Classic. Six weeks later, Gonzaga lost to the Stags 14-7.
The Wildcats had won five straight season-opening home games, dating back to 2014 when they fell to Trotwood-Madison in Week 1 at Evans Stadium.
“They’ll be excited about the opportunity to play Friday night,” Douglass said. “I know they want to get that terrible taste out of their mouth from losing that game. We hadn’t lost an opening home game in a long time. I’m sure they’ll be excited.”
Game at a Glance
Matchup: Gonzaga D.C. at Springfield
Kickoff: 7 p.m.
Where: Springfield High School
Tickets: $9
Streaming: FloFootball.com (subscription required)
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