Hanford showing growth, faced with another opportunity vs. Kamiakin

Losing to Chiawana 26-7 last week was undoubtedly a setback for the Hanford High School football team, but the Falcons are still primed to prove they belong among the Mid-Columbia Conference’s elite squads this season.

They’ll get another chance to make that case when they take on the defending Class 3A state champion Kamiakin Braves (4-0, 2-0) at 7 p.m. Friday at Lampson Stadium.

Kamiakin blew out Hanford 48-14 last year, but the retooled Falcons (2-2, 1-1) have reason to be hopeful this season with an offense that’s added nuance and a defense that’s ranked among the best in the conference through four weeks.

A look at what’s going right over at Hanford this season:

IT ‘RUNS’ IN THE FAMILY

Inspiration isn’t hard to find for Hanford junior Jared DeVine.

His brother, Jalen, was an All-MCC running back and safety for the Falcons and rushed for a school-record 1,448 yards and 13 touchdowns his senior season in 2012 before heading to play for the D-III University of Redlands.

Now Jared is the team’s feature tailback and safety, and he’s able to draw on the experiences of his older brother to improve his game.

“He lives at home now, so he’s able to give me a lot of tips as a running back,” Jared DeVine said. “He was obviously great here at Hanford; he’s got all those records.”

While DeVine’s ultimate goal is to help the Falcons win games, he wouldn’t be too broken up if that process involved usurping Jalen in the record books.

“Oh yeah, I trash talk him,” he said. “I make sure to tell him, ‘I’m gonna break your records.’ ”

He may be a sibling of one of the greats in program history, but DeVine had to work to get on the field. With Tayvonne Miller, Mateo Valadez and Drezdyn O’Daol carrying the mail last year, he played out his sophomore season on the JV squad and only sparingly got varsity snaps.

But a summer spent getting stronger and faster shot him to the top of the depth chart on both sides of the ball.

“He’s one of the hardest workers in the program, and when you’ve got a hard worker with some athletic talent, you know at some point they’re going to develop,” Hanford coach Brett Jay said. “He’s been been running (hills at) Carmichael (Middle School) with a weighted vest on all summer long, and I think it’s helped his speed.”

Whatever he’s doing, it’s paid off so far. In addition to locking down the back end of the Falcons’ defense — which ranks second in the MCC with 121.8 passing yards allowed per game — DeVine is the league’s second leading rusher with 351 yards and two touchdowns on his 62 carries, and he’s gained the most yards from scrimmage, 496, through four weeks.

The production out of the backfield, which was almost non-existent last season (114.9 yards/game average was second to last), has helped the offense control the ball and keep defenses honest, to the tune of 340.8 yards and 24.3 points per game.

“We love the backers having to stay balanced, having to stay true,” Jay said. “Them not being able to get depth in their drops is huge.”

MATURITY IN THE PASSING GAME

The receiving core is one of the deepest in the league, and second-year quarterback Garrett Horner is having plenty of success finding his friends in purple.

Thomas Kitchens (17 rec., 255 yards, 1TD) and Dmetri Kennedy-Woody (9-136, 4TDs) have been the leaders of the group, but Daunte Blackwell, Moises Galindo and Brett Cowen got in on the act with Kennedy-Woody sitting out because of injury last week.

And the junior QB has taken some big steps forward since his sophomore campaign.

With the emergence of DeVine — spelled by O’Daol — in the run game, Horner hasn’t had to shoulder the entire offense this season, so he ranks fourth in the league in passing yards (833) and touchdowns (nine). But the smaller volume has come with an increase in efficiency, as he’s completed 63 percent of his passes (second in MCC) and has thrown just two interceptions in his first 119 attempts (12 picks on 309 passes last year).

“This year’s going to be a step for him,” Jay said. “He’s more efficient, and that’s what you care about is that efficiency, not having to throw more, but making sure the ones we do throw, we hit on them.”

THE ROAD AHEAD

The schedule is about to open up for the Falcons, as their next three opponents (Kennewick, Southridge and Pasco) have a combined record of 3-9 entering Friday’s games. But they likely have to upset Kamiakin to have those contests count toward a postseason berth.

This story was originally published September 28, 2017 at 10:05 PM with the headline "Hanford showing growth, faced with another opportunity vs. Kamiakin."