Harris leads Oak Harbor over Everett 55-7

OAK HARBOR — A few key injuries opened the door for Oak Harbor wide receiver Dyllan Harris.

After four of the Wildcats’ top five running backs were injured in Oak Harbor’s season opener against Monroe, Harris moved to running back out of necessity for the Wildcats for a Week 2 matchup against Ferndale.

Oak Harbor hasn’t lost since.

Harris had eight carries for 191 yards and two touchdowns to lead Oak Harbor to a 55-7 victory over Everett in both teams’ Wesco 3A North opener Friday night at Wildcat Memorial Stadium.

“In week one we had four of our top five running backs go down with an injury,” said Oak Harbor head coach Jay Turner. “So, in week two we moved Dyllan from a receiver to a running back and we think we might end up keeping him there.”

Both of Harris’ touchdown runs were more than 60 yards, with Harris notching a 62 and 66-yard scores. The senior, like his coach, doesn’t mind the position switch.

“I like getting the ball,” Harris said. “Running back is a huge change for me. But I’m liking it and I’m working really hard at running back.”

Things didn’t immediately start out great for Oak Harbor, which began its first drive of the game on its own three yard line after a good punt by Everett.

In a hint at how things were going to go, the Wildcats covered 97 yards in five plays, capped by a 32-yard score from junior Princeton Lollar Jr.

Lollar’s first two runs went for a combined 54 yards, with the junior also scoring on a 2-yard run in the second quarter. The 6-foot-1, 235-pound running back missed the Wildcats’ last game against Ferndale after being injured in Oak Harbor’s season opener against Monroe.

But Lollar, who finished with 87 yards on seven carries, was back on Friday and made his presence felt early on.

“He’s a big part of our offense so having him back healthy is good,” Turner said. “It’s really nice to have him there.”

Along with Lollar and Harris, Savion Hollins-Passmore added 61 yards and a score on seven carries to help Oak Harbor (1-0 league, 2-1 overall) build up the early lead.

“We like to call it a lethal trio in the backfield,” Harris said. “We always pick each other up. I’m so excited that we won. I was not able to pay attention in school today.”

A bye week last Friday gave Oak Harbor a bit of time to heal up after a 55-6 loss to Monroe in the Wildcats’ season opener. Turner said the bye week, which arrived after a Week 2 win over Ferndale, was a nice break for Oak Harbor and provided a chance for several Wildcats to heal.

“We got really banged up in week one,” Turner said. “We had something like six two-way starters go out during the game. We’re getting a few back this week. The bye week came at a perfect time.”

The loss was the first of the season for Everett, which went 3-0 in its non-conference schedule. Aki Howell led the Seagulls, who continue league play with Stanwood next week, with six carries for 57 yards.

Everett (0-1, 3-1) got on the scoreboard in the third quarter with a 36-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Murdock Rutledge to Louis Davis.

“They’re not the Seagulls of old. They were 3-0 and they had some momentum coming in,” Turner said of Everett, which was 3-27 over the past three seasons before starting its 2015 campaign with three straight victories. “Our kids knew we couldn’t take them lightly. We had a great week of practice, kids were locked in and I could see it before the game. They were ready.”

“We were expecting them to improve because they’re 3-0,” Harris added. “We were not going to underestimate them. We knew they were going to be good.”

Oak Harbor goes up against Arlington, which also won its league opener over Marysville Getchell 34-7, next Friday in another key Wesco 3A North matchup.

“It’s really important to start off 1-0 in the league,” Turner said. “With so few league games we really want to have that first win. That should be a pretty big game.”

At Oak Harbor H.S.

Everett 0 0 0 7 —7

Oak Harbor 13 21 14 7 —44

OH–Princeton Lollar Jr. 32 run (kick failed)

OH–Tyler Snavely 22 run (Eric Jensen kick)

OH–Lollar Jr. 2 run (Jensen kick)

OH–Dyllan Harris 62 run (Jensen kick)

OH–Savion Hollins-Passmore 9 run (Jensen kick)

OH–Harris 66 run (Jensen kick)

OH–Andrew Miller 2 run (Jensen kick)

E–Louis Davis 36 pass from Murdock Rutledge (Alberto Castaneda kick)

OH–Thomas Gilham 29 run (Jensen kick)