When Stephen Nesmith took over the Parkrose High School football program, he was met with question marks when asking about the youth football program.
Three years later, Nesmith’s high school-aged Broncos practice right next to the nearly full squads of players that are in grades 3-8.
Creating that foundation is starting to show at the high school level as well after Parkrose picked up two wins in 2023. Now in 2024, the Broncos feel they have the talent to make a run at returning to the postseason.
“I am so excited about (the youth program),” Nesmith said. “Give this a couple more years and Parkrose is gonna be a dangerous place, you’re not gonna want to put us on your homecoming schedule anymore, that’s for sure.
“Our motto this year is 1% each day, so if we can continue to climb at 1% each day, at the end, we’ll look back and be on top of a mountain.”
Helping Nesmith make the climb this season is a bevy of talented two-way stars that started making their mark last season.
Junior Corinthian Littleton is one of them after earning second team honors for the 4A Special District 2 league last year at wide receiver. He led the Broncos with 25 catches for 457 yards and three touchdowns through the air.
Making plays next to him on offense will be senior Desmond Armstrong, who had 64 carries for 426 rushing yards and four TDs in 2023.
Senior DeVontae Hillman will be contributing as well, especially after a strong track and field season where he took second place in the 5A boys triple jump at state and 12th in the event at Nike Outdoor Nationals.
“We can either run the ball, we can throw the ball, the QBs can run and the linemen know how to get off the ball really fast,” Armstrong said.
Orchestrating the stable of talent will be a new quarterback though in Jabri Smith who moved to Portland from Las Vegas last winter and is guiding a new-look offensive scheme from Nesmith as well.
Smith said it’s been easy to mix in with the guys over the spring playing baseball and over the summer with a number of team camps the Broncos attended, including one at Linfield.
And with all the options he has, Smith’s life will be easy taking over the signal caller role.
“I’m so excited (for what this offense can do), especially for the jamboree coming up,” Smith said. “I’m ready to show people what we’re working with, we’re not the same Parkrose anymore.”
Keeping Smith safe will of course be the task of the offensive line, a group that is led by junior Kimball Napaa, someone coach Nesmith is the cornerstone of the 2024 Broncos.
Napaa plays center on the line for Parkrose and switches to the defensive line as well, and he’s ready to get back to work in the trenches once more.
“Give it your all,” Napaa said of his biggest lesson from last season. “I remember something my coach said, ‘Forget the pain for nine seconds,’ because that’s how long the average play goes. Just forget it all, forget the pain and just keep going.”
Parkrose hopes to deal out some pain on the defensive side where Littleton, Armstrong and Hillman all play as well. However, the defense has some more holes to fill, especially at linebacker.
Sophomore Kavion Combs got some time at LB last year as a freshman and will be expected to step up in the middle of the defense. Combs is a running back on offense as well.
Henry Rodgers is a junior playing football for the first time, but the Parkrose wrestler already has some of the traits needed for the gridiron according to Nesmith.
Sophomore Jeremiah McCauley is another name to watch at LB and at WR, and Armani Peterson will join him at the defensive back spot for defense as young players to keep an eye out for.
“We lost a lot of hitters last year, so I just want us to find them again,” Littleton said. “We have a lot of new guys that are prepared and ready to hit. I just want that to be effective again because that’ll be a big factor during the game.”
The first team Parkrose will get a chance to hit is Cleveland on Sept. 6, followed by more nonleague games against Centennial, St. Helens, Woodburn and Crook County.
As for league play, the Broncos have Molalla and Gladstone at home and will take on The Dalles and Estacada on the road.
The winds of change are certainly blowing in the Northeast for Parkrose football as the excitement from varsity bleeds all the way down to third graders.
And if 2024 goes how the Broncos want, the sky will be the limit.
“Come out this Thursday (at a jamboree) and show that we mean business,” Hillman said. “Hopefully take the win home against Cleveland first week and just go into the season with good momentum.”
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