Central Catholic (Oregon), Bellevue (Washington) coaches get together to provide special memory for Rams senior Daniel Zavage

Zavage, a developmentally delayed member of the program, scored a touchdown at the end of Rams’ win

HILLSBORO, Ore. — There was a touching scene Saturday at the end of Central Catholic’s 48-27 victory over Bellevue (Wash.) in a matchup of Pacific Northwest powerhouse programs. 

The Rams of Southeast Portland got the ball back with 1:33 remaining after a goal-line interception by senior Roan Beaupre, needing to run just a handful of plays to run out the clock.

But there was a moment of confusion when Rams coach Steve Pyne called timeout after the turnover and strode across the field to confer with Wolverines coach Michael Kneip and the officiating crew.

“When I called timeout, (Kneip) was a little surprised,” Pyne said. “He was like, ‘What? What?’ But when I told him what was going on, he was like, ‘OK, yeah, no problem.’”

After two plays ran the clock nearly to zeroes, Pyne sent out senior Daniel Zavage, a developmentally delayed member of the program whom he described as “a fiery kid. He likes to motivate the other players and comes to practice every day and does what he can to contribute in practice.”

Pyne called a running play for Zavage, who burst through the line as the Wolverines stood aside and ran 63 yards to the end zone while the crowd and both sidelines cheered him on.

The touchdown might not have counted on the scoreboard, but Pyne thanked Kneip and the Bellevue staff for allowing Zavage to have his moment.

“It was very gracious of them to agree to that,” Pyne said. “I honestly didn’t think we were going to be in that position to do that at the very end of the game. So, I was very thankful to the Bellevue head coach for letting that happen.”