Sweet Home suffered a loss on the road Friday night, Oct. 31, at Philomath, but found out Saturday morning that the Huskies are in the playoffs for the first time since 2019.
(Photo by Andy Cripe)
Philomath was disqualified because of a rule violation – the Warriors used athletes in the game who had played two nights before in a junior varsity game against Sweet Home, in violation of OSAA rules.
Sweet Home will play at La Grande Friday night, Nov. 7.
Behind 305 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns from senior Rocco De La Rosa, Philomath scored a 26-14 win over Sweet Home in a must-win battle for the third playoff slot in Special Division 3. The forfeit leaves the Huskies with a 3-2 league record, tied with Marist and Crescent Valley, 7-2 overall. Sweet Home will be seeded 10th going into the playoffs; La Grande will be seeded seventh. The Tigers’ four losses have been to Vale (27-14), Tillamook (33-26), Burns (38-6) and Cascade (51-7). They swept their league with wins over Ontario, Baker, The Dalles and Pendleton.
“Obviously, I feel for the kids at Philomath,” Sweet Home Coach Ryan Adams said. “Philomath did a really good job. No. 5 (De La Rosa) played absolutely lights-out in that game.”
He credited the Warriors’ administration’s “integr
ity” in reporting the violation.
“A lot of programs wouldn’t have done that,” Adams said.
“It’s kind of a unique situation but it gives us a chance to compete and we’re going to give it our best shot.”
La Grande finished first in the five-team Special District 5 with a 4-0 record, 5-4 overall.