LaMarcus Bell Powers Lake Oswego to Oregon 6A Football State Title

The Utah-bound senior ran for 126 yards and a TD as the Lakers flipped last year’s heartbreak, seized early momentum, and rolled to their first state championship since 2018

The Lake Oswego football team celebrates after winning the Class 6A state championship Friday afternoon. / René Ferrán

LaMarcus Bell ran out with the rest of the Lake Oswego offense with 7 minutes, 40 seconds left of the OSAA Class 6A state football championship game Friday against Central Catholic.

Bell Rings for the Final Time

In a month, Bell will receive his diploma and head to Salt Lake City to enroll early at the University of Utah.

But on this gray afternoon at Hillsboro Stadium, he took a handoff off left end and was shuttled out-of-bounds 4-yards downfield.

Then, he and the starters were subbed off en masse to a rousing ovation from the west end of the grandstand, their job complete.

Bell ran for a game-high 126 yards and a touchdown to lead Operation Blue Trophy to a successful conclusion, with the Lakers romping to a 35-6 victory and their first state title since 2018.

“Winning a state championship, that’s been the dream since you’re a little kid,” Bell said. “It’s such a great feeling. To get the last carry of our last game of the season is just so great. I’m so happy; words can’t even describe it.”

LaMarcus Bell / René Ferrán

Operation Blue Trophy kicked off the second that last year’s state final finished with the Lakers falling to Three Rivers League rival West Linn 44-30.

“This means so much,” said senior quarterback Hudson Kurland, a Washington State commit who was 10-of-14 passing for 125 yards and a touchdown while running for 79 yards and another score.

“I mean, last year, we were on the other side. We’ve been working our butts off for so long to get back to this point. And now that we’re here, we executed. There is no greater feeling.

“We are brothers,” said Kurland, who joined the Lakers from Sunset after his sophomore year, following in the footsteps of his father, Justin, an all-state receiver at Lake Oswego in 1995. “That’s the culture we have here. We’re a family. I love these boys so much. I’ll do anything for these boys, for Coach Coury, for Coach Nick (Hallberg). I’m going to miss them so much. But forever, I’m going to be a Laker.”

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Here are four takeaways from Friday’s game.

Lake Oswego Flips the Script With Explosive Start

Last year, the Lakers quickly found themselves down 17-0 to West Linn and spent the rest of the game playing a desperate game of catchup.

That memory gnawed at them as they prepared for this year’s final.

“We knew we had to be the hammer,” Kurland said. “We couldn’t be the nail like last year.”

Bell, Craigwell, and Kurland Fuel a First-Half Avalanche

Lake Oswego (12-1) took the opening kickoff and needed just five plays to grab the lead, with Kurland finding senior Jalen Bauman all along behind the secondary for a 55-yard bomb.

“I was so happy to put my team out front and give them a chance,” Bauman said. “Hudson made a great throw, great blocking from the line, and I mean, it was all thanks to them that I had a chance to do my job. And I knew I had to do my job. I did it, and I couldn’t be happier.”\

A couple of minutes later, Bauman stepped up again, this time stepping in front of a deep ball destined for Rams senior Dayvion Curtis and intercepting it at the goal line to thwart a promising drive.

“Just the right place,” Bauman said. “We’ve been practicing it all week, just staying on top. I knew it was coming, and I mean, right time, right place, and it was right there.”

This time, the Lakers needed just eight plays to find the end zone and push the lead to 14-0, with Bell trucking a defender on a punishing 35-yard run before capping the drive with a 2-yard score.

Even though there were still 40-plus minutes to play, you sensed then that the Rams (10-3) were in trouble.

“It’s been a really long season, and when you’re playing for so much, a lot of guys get a little down on themselves, and it just kind of builds,” said Central Catholic senior Cole Thomas.

“We’re still out there competing, but it’s just not the same. We tried to respond, but when they just keep hitting you, it’s tough. Football is a game of momentum, and if you don’t have it, it’s kind of tough to counter it.”

Lakers keep foot on gas, builds 27-0 lead by halftime

The teams met in Week 2 in mid-September, with the Lakers winning 21-0 despite gaining just 208 yards, taking advantage of two interceptions — including a Bauman pick-six.

This time around, there was no stopping the Lake Oswego attack. A young offensive line that returned just one starter matured over the course of the season into a road-grading unit that spearheaded two long second-quarter scoring drives.

“We had to come out fast and strong and early, and then we had to keep our foot on the gas,” Kurland said. “And that’s exactly what we did.”

René Ferrán

The first followed a Rams punt and took 16 plays and 6 ½ minutes to march 90 yards before Kurland burst for a 5-yard score.

Then, after Rowen Lewis forced a fumble that Cash Wilks recovered for the Lakers at the Rams 34, LO used 10 plays and took another 5 ½ minutes to cover the 34 yards, with Justin Craigwell scoring the first of his two touchdowns from a yard out for a 27-0 lead with 56 seconds left before halftime.

“I think they just came in a little more hungry than us,” Thomas said. “It’s really hard to stop guys like LaMarcus and Justin Craigwell and Jasiah (Agnimel), all these weapons they have. We game-planned well, but I think we just got a little outphysicaled.”

Week 7 Loss Became the Spark That Transformed the Lakers

Lake Oswego’s only loss this season was in Week 7 to West Linn — a thorough 38-16 beatdown that left the Lakers searching for answers.

“After losing to West Linn, we just had to improve and get better and do what we do,” Bell said.

The result was a season-ending six-game win streak during which they outscored opponents 249-56.

Besides the improvement of the offensive line, another wrinkle that coach Steve Coury threw into the offense was to use Kurland more in the run game.

The 6-foot-4, 205-pound signal-caller looked more like a wildcat quarterback at times, getting almost as many carries (14) as pass attempts (15) in the final.

As a team, the Lakers ran for 262 yards and amassed 387 total.

“We are brothers,” said Kurland, who joined the Lakers from Sunset after his sophomore year, following in the footsteps of his father, Justin, an all-state receiver at Lake Oswego in 1995. “That’s the culture we have here. We’re a family. I love these boys so much. I’ll do anything for these boys, for Coach Coury, for Coach Nick (Hallberg). I’m going to miss them so much. But forever, I’m going to be a Laker.”

Lake Oswego’s Defense Nearly Pitches Back-to-Back Shutouts

Once Ethan Uecker hauled in Kurland’s two-point conversion pass following Craigwell’s second touchdown with 3:54 left in the third quarter, the only suspense left was whether the Rams could avoid becoming the first team since Tigard in 2014 to be shut out in the 6A final.

It came down to the final snap of the game, with the ball squibbing back to senior KK Sombe in the backfield, unsure if the clock hit triple zeroes. Once allowed to play it out, he ran left, tiptoed the sideline and scored on a 21-yard run.

That was the only sour note on an otherwise stellar day for the Lakers defense, which held the Rams to 166 total yards and forced three turnovers.

“Oh, my goodness, I thought the clock hit zero,” Bauman said. “But, I mean, we went almost eight quarters — seven and pretty much like the final three seconds to get to the eighth without giving up a touchdown to them. That’s almost eight quarters of shutout football, and I’m so happy.”