Just days away from one of the biggest games in Canby High School football history, and you could tell there's a buzz in town about this year's Cougars.
Coming off a
63-36 victory over Centennial in the Class 6A state quarterfinals, Canby will now take on top-ranked Sheldon in the semifinals with a berth to the state-championship game on the line.
You probably know by now that the Cougars have been here before -- in fact, five other times, but have yet to push through to have that chance at a state championship.
The Irish are coming off a
44-7 victory over Lake Oswego at home in the quarterfinals.
Sheldon is led by senior quarterback Jordan Johnson, who has basically passed for nearly 3,000 yards and rushed for 1,000 more.
The Irish also possess University of Oregon recruit Curtis White, who is a 6-4 tight end and linebacker. Before the season, he was among the
Top 150 recruits in the nation by ESPN, and the second best prospect in the state. White is ranked No. 73 in the nation currently.
Sheldon seemingly has no weaknesses and it's simply a matter of beating them and being better that day.
An interesting note, Canby made
ESPN's bubble team in its rankings for the Top 20 West Regional teams. Sheldon is on the list, ranked 13th among schools in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
