Lathrop looks to claim second straight Division II Alaska prep football state championship

The Lathrop Malemutes and Soldotna Stars seem like they have been on a collision course to square off in the Alaska high school football Division II state championship game all season. Both teams come in with perfect 10-0 records and are coming off dominant shows of force in the semifinals.

The teams have played each other for the state title in three of the last four years, excluding the 2020 season where there wasn’t any state playoff due to the pandemic.

Lathrop and Soldotna face off for the 2022 title Saturday at noon at Service High School.

The Malemutes graduated a large contingent of players from last year’s championship team and neither coaches nor players envisioned that their season would have unfolded in such a dominant fashion.

“We came in with a little tempered expectations for this season having graduated so many pieces from last year’s team,” Lathrop head coach Luke Balash said.

Senior star wide receiver and defensive back Earl Parker was one certainty for the Malemutes.

But they had question marks at several spots on both sides of the ball including quarterback, wide receiver, backup running back behind returning starter Tyler Clooten, defensive back, both the offensive and defensive lines and even kicker.

“I recruited a soccer kid,” Balash said about starting kicker Ryan Thomas. “He’s been an incredible find. He’s 54-of-54 on PATs, kicks several touchbacks every game, and has really helped us in the special teams world.”

Lathrop was able to add more depth to its offensive backfield when ASAA approved Monroe Catholic senior Marlon Mease Jr to join the team after his school decided not to field a team this year due to lack of participation.

Senior twin brothers Aaron and Jacob Johnson stepped up at the free and strong safety spots. Parker’s younger brother, Wayne Snowden, was the anchor in the trenches on both offense and defense.

“We had a whole bunch of people doubting us thinking because a bunch of seniors left, we weren’t going to be able to fill those shoes,” Parker said. “We worked in silence, didn’t let anyone know we were grinding, and we ended up just shocking them.”

He believes that after the team came out of the gates with a commanding 49-33 statement win over West Anchorage in Week 1, the rest of the state was put on notice that this year’s team is the real deal and could go toe-to-toe with anyone at any level.

“We love when people doubt us so we can prove them wrong,” Parker said. “We’ve worked hard in the offseason and had some big shoes to fill.”

[Lathrop rolls past West Anchorage in football season opener]

Balash said the team’s development has made this one of his most rewarding seasons as a coach.

“I’ve been coaching for over 20 years now and this is going to go on my top shelf of memories,” he said. “The way they have risen to the occasion and answered all the questions. Whether we win or lose this weekend doesn’t change that fact.”

Breakout star has been key offensive success

After mostly playing defense as a junior in his first year on the team, Parker’s production on offense in his senior year increased astronomically.

“Earl has been one of those pleasant surprises this year,” Balash said.

The converted basketball player went from recording just one reception for 38 yards and no touchdowns in 2021 to exploding for 756 receiving yards and a whopping 15 touchdowns through the first nine games, according to MaxPreps.

“I got the easy part,” Parker said of the wide receiver position. “I just run the route and get open, catch the ball.”

He credited his position coach and Lathrop alum Garrius Maiden for his tremendous improvement from his junior to senior year.

“He helped me get where I’m at today,” Parker said. “Timing, working on routes and releases, hand-eye coordination. That’s what helped me be able to catch on.”

After an offseason of dedicating himself to improving his craft, he has become the total package and the top weapon in the team’s passing game.

“He had the athletic ability. He was already an elite level basketball dude,” Balash said. “His speed, vertical jump, and all those kinds of things were the tools you need. Just learning the craft of wide receiver, how to run routes, and catch the ball, and combat catches. He’s still learning and growing.”

Double trouble for opposing defenses

Lathrop is one of the rare teams that runs a two-quarterback system on offense with juniors Jenner Webb and Solomon Webb. While that strategy can sometimes cause friction and division among some teams that rotate signal callers, the Malemutes unselfish duo is helping the team thrive despite alternating from drive to drive

“They’ve both done such a great job all season long and they really compete with one another and push each other in a very positive manner,” Balash said. “If one of them goes out and makes a big throw then the next one wants to do it. When one goes out and gets a good runs then the other one wants to get a good run.”

While their individual numbers are near the bottom of the top 10 for most statistical categories, combined they measure up well with the best of them.

“If you add their numbers up and throw in the numbers of senior (Isaac Corcoran) who backs them up and plays in mop-up duty, we actually have the best quarterback in the state,” Balash said with a laugh.

Since Webb also starts on defense at middle linebacker, Wade gets the initial start to open the game before subbing out on the ensuing drive.

“We go with Solomon to get the cold start out of the way and then Jenner, by the time he gets in there he’s usually played some special teams and defense,” Balash said.

Cross-state rivalry with Stars

Even though the two teams don’t regularly play each other in the regular season and aren’t in the same conference, both Parker and Balash admit that they “definitely” have a rivalry with Soldotna.

“Not a rivalry like a crosstown rivalry where the kids grow up and know each other kind of things but definitely a sense of ‘Wow, here we go again,’ ” Balash said. “I wouldn’t say its a nasty rivalry at all. It’s a fun rivalry.”

While there is no bad blood between the two programs, Parker admitted that the anticipation to prove who the better team is can be agonizing at times.

“I think it’s the worst when no one is saying anything to each other and we’re just waiting for the moment,” Parker said.