Baker's Izek Cleveland tackles La Grande quarterback Mathias Fields for a loss near the La Grande goal line on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023. On the next play, Fields fumbled in the end zone and Baker's Jimmy Sullivan pounced on the ball for a safety.

Baker needed a win, and any team would do.

That the opponent was La Grande, which has dominated the schools’ football rivalry over the past decade, was good.

Even better that Baker got its first win of the season in dominating fashion, trouncing the Tigers 36-6 Friday night, Sept. 29 at Baker Bulldog Memorial Stadium.

And sweeter still that Baker seniors, who were honored before kickoff, accounted for 34 of the Bulldogs’ 36 points.

This confluence of factors explained why the post-game celebration on the field continued, with players, friends and families congregating for photos and hugs, despite a light rain that started late in the game.

“The feeling was great,” said senior lineman Russell Walden, who helped anchor a defense that stifled La Grande’s running game and held the Tigers scoreless for the final three quarters. “I thought we did really well.”

Baker’s only win over La Grande since 2013 was a 22-7 victory on April 9, 2021, when the football season was moved to spring due to the pandemic.

This was the Bulldogs’ first win in the series during a normal fall season since Oct. 11, 2013, when Baker routed La Grande 43-8.

Senior Malaki Myer, who had one of the game’s most exciting plays, taking a swing pass from quarterback Paul Hobson in the second quarter and outrunning or shrugging off more than half the La Grande defenders on the way to a 48-yard touchdown, said it was special to beat the Tigers.

“They’re our longtime rival, and the last time we beat them was the COVID year, our freshman year,” Myer said.

As for his touchdown, when he appeared hemmed in by a trio of Tigers but extricated himself from the situation and raced into the end zone, Myer said he just focused on finding open grass.

“I caught the ball and just said I’ve got to move,” he said with a smile. “That’s what I do best.”

Baker did a lot of things well against La Grande.

On defense the Bulldogs limited the long gains that proved costly in losses to Cascade, Homedale, Vale and Scappoose to start the season.

Those teams have a combined record of 19-1.

“We’ve said all along we think we’re a pretty good football team, but we’ve played against some tough competition,” Baker coach Jason Ramos said. “But we think that will serve us well as we go along if we trust ourselves.”

“I thought our defense played really well,” Ramos said. “We knew (La Grande) was going to have to run the ball, and we practiced all week on that. The kids just came out and executed.”

Offensively, Baker largely avoided penalties and turnovers that have thwarted many promising drives in the first four games.

“We had one turnover and a few penalties that probably cost us another scoring opportunity, but we played clean otherwise,” Ramos said. “I thought we ran the ball better tonight.”

Baker called on Hobson to carry the ball several times, and his effective fake handoffs to running backs froze La Grande defenders and led to wide running lanes that he took advantage of.

Hobson, who also threw three touchdown passes, two to fellow senior Hudson Spike, scored Baker’s final touchdown on a 6-yard run midway through the fourth quarter.

Ramos said Hobson’s designed runs add “an extra component to the offense, something he’s willing to do and that opens up some other things for us.”

Baker’s fast start

The game could hardly have started better for the Bulldogs.

Myer took the opening kickoff for 65 yards, weaving through La Grande defenders and sprinting down the right side before he was stopped at the Tiger 25.

Fellow senior Kayden Garvin gained 7 yards on the first play, and on third and 3 from the La Grande 18, Hobson escaped multiple Tiger rushers and found Myer open for 10 yards and a first down at the La Grande 14.

On third and 6, sophomore Rasean Jones gained 8 yards on a fly sweep to the La Grande 1, and Garvin bulled in from there. Spike’s extra point kick was just wide, but Baker led 6-0 with 9:13 left in the first quarter.

La Grande responded, albeit in much slower fashion.

The Tigers, who rely heavily on their running game, opened with 10 straight runs, six by senior Dominic Fields, to methodically advance to the Baker 5.

After the Bulldogs stopped Fields for a loss of 2 yards on first and goal, Tiger quarterback Mathias Fields threw his first pass, but the completion to Griffin McIlmoil only gained back the 2 lost yards, setting up third and goal from the 5.

La Grande’s Landon Hood got wide open in the end zone, though, and Fields whipped a pass for a touchdown that evened the scored at 6 with 2:33 left in the first quarter.

The Tiger holder fumbled the snap on the extra point, and the Bulldogs swarmed over him before he could reach the end zone.

On Baker’s second possession the Bulldogs appeared poised to regain the lead.

Hobson lofted a perfect pass to Spike down the left sideline for 41 yards to the La Grande 19. The senior duo connected again for 12 yards, setting up a first and goal at the Tiger 5.

On the second play of the second quarter, on third and goal from the La Grande 7, Hobson passed to Jones for 6 yards.

Ramos chose to go for the touchdown on fourth and goal, but the Tigers called a run blitz and Garvin had no chance to reach the end zone.

Baker turned the ball over on downs, but the Tigers were pinned at their own 4.

The Bulldogs took advantage.

Mathias Fields lost one yard on a first-down run.

On second down, Baker senior Izek Cleveland made a difficult open field tackle on Fields to hold him to no gain.

Then on third down, Fields bobbled the shotgun snap in the end zone. Baker’s Jimmy Sullivan pounced on the ball for a safety, and Baker led for good, 8-6, with 9:09 left in the first half.

Jones returned the ensuing La Grande kickoff to the Tigers 46, and Hobson passed to Spike for 11 yards on the first play.

After two incompletions and a 5-yard pass to Jones, Hobson, on fourth and 5, again found sophomore Jones, who slipped on the wet turf on his initial cut but scrambled up and caught the pass anyway, for 5 yards and a first down.

Garvin ran for 5 yards, but he couldn’t corral an option pitch from Hobson on the next play, and Dominic Fields recovered the fumble at the La Grande 22 with 7:08 left in the half.

The Bulldog defense ensured that the turnover wasn’t costly, though, forcing a La Grande punt.

Jones fumbled the punt but Spike recovered to avoid a second straight turnover.

Baker quickly took advantage.

Hobson ran for 9 yards to set up a third and 1.

The next play was Myer’s thrilling touchdown catch. Spike’s extra point, which not only went through the uprights but also cleared the fence at the south end of the stadium, gave Baker a 15-6 lead with 4:53 left in the half.

La Grande gained one first down on its next possession, but on fourth and 4 from the Baker 38, the Bulldog defense gang-tackled McIlmoil, giving the Bulldogs the ball again with 1:47 left.

That was more than enough time.

Hobson passed to Spike for 22 yards and to Jones for 16 to advance to the Tiger 19.

Hobson then fired a high-velocity pass to Spike on a slant pattern and he went untouched for the touchdown. Spike’s extra point boosted Baker’s lead to 22-6 with 51 seconds left. That was the halftime score.

Second half

Baker’s defense forced another La Grande punt on the first possession of the second half, taking over at the Bulldog 19.

Baker gained two straight first downs, on a 14-yard pass from Hobson to Spike, and a 10-yard run by Garvin, but the drive stalled near midfield after an offensive pass interference penalty on Spike left Baker with a third and 21.

But again the Baker defense thwarted the Tigers, not allowing a first down and forcing another punt.

This time the Bulldogs capitalized.

Three runs, two by Hobson and one by Jones, netted 24 yards, and Hobson passed for 8 more yards to Myer for a first down.

Hobson’s 13-yard pass to Spike moved the ball to the La Grande 33, and after Garvin ran for 67 yards on first down, Hobson lofted a pass to the end zone that Spike leaped high for and caught for the score.

His extra point gave Baker a 29-6 lead with 1:13 left in the third quarter.

The game was, for all intents and purposes, over at that point.

On La Grande’s ensuing possession, which extended into the fourth quarter, Walden recovered a fumble on the Baker 40.

Hobson ran for 15 yards, but La Grande forced a fourth and 8.

Hobson then passed to Spike, who caught the ball despite being tightly covered, for 9 yards and a first down.

Hobson scrambled for 10 yards, and a late hit penalty on the Tigers moved the ball to the La Grande 6.

Hobson ran it in on the next play, and Spike’s extra point made it 36-6 with 6:16 left.

Sophomore Jake McClaughry took over at quarterback for Baker’s final possession.

Looking ahead

Although the win over La Grande ended Baker’s four-game losing streak to start the season, the victory was more important in terms of the Greater Oregon League schedule. At 1-0, Baker is tied with Pendleton atop the league standings.

The Bulldogs have two straight road games against GOL opponents, Oct. 6 at Ontario and Oct. 13 at Madras.

Ramos acknowledged that playing La Grande gave the Bulldogs extra motivation.

But the reality, he said, is that “every game for us is an important game now” if the Bulldogs are to compete for the league title and a Class 4A playoff berth.

“We’re feeling really good with where we’re at,” Ramos said.

Walden, with rain rolling down his cheeks, said he believes the Bulldogs, now that they’ve erased that zero from their record, are ready to make a run at the GOL championship.

La Grande 6   0    0    0   —  6

Baker       6   16   7    7   —  36

“The feeling was great. I thought we did really well.”

— Baker senior lineman Russell Walden, after the Bulldogs’ 36-6 win over La Grande on Friday, Sept. 29