‘The talent is here’: Mount Tahoma chasing more than Tacoma’s football crown
In a storied city rivalry renewed between Mount Tahoma and Lincoln last weekend, the Abes were first to strike. Quarterback Sione Kaho found wide receiver Kasey Williams over the middle, racing untouched for a 75-yard touchdown that pushed Lincoln ahead, 7-0, after the first quarter.
It was a slow start, Mount Tahoma linebacker Shan Jones admitted. And in hindsight, it was the anomaly. What followed for the remainder of a cloudy Saturday afternoon at Lincoln Bowl illustrated what separates this T-Birds team from years past — its ability to disrupt, dominate, and dispose of the area’s best offenses. Lincoln never scored again.
Mount Tahoma QB Mikkah Cordero delivered a 36-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Durr midway through the second quarter, equalizing Saturday’s rivalry and stealing momentum. RB Felix Diaz raced home for a four-yard touchdown as time expired in the first half, securing a locker-room lead. All while Kaho ran for his life, forced out of comfort as the T-Birds established themselves as the dominant team up front.
RB Naesirhc White added a four-yard score in the second half and Durr caught another touchdown, this time a 35-yard catch-and-run. A deficit became a dismantling: Mount Tahoma 28, Lincoln 7.
What was made clear in their fifth-straight win: Mount Tahoma is Tacoma’s best team this fall.
“What impressed me about that game was the way my defense locked back in after (Lincoln) had that big gain,” said Durr, a three-star UW commit. “My linebacker, Elijah Tinitali, tipped it to my guy, Felix Diaz, for a pick, and that changed the game around.
Jones agreed. “We got through adversity and pushed through. Our leaders were able to communicate, and get the team back to our regular football.”
They traveled to Camas, some 144 miles down Interstate 5, and blew out the defending 4A runners-up by four touchdowns. They shut out Yelm and quieted Mount Si. They entered enemy territory at Lincoln Bowl and rattled one of the area’s best quarterbacks, planting their flag as the city’s best.
But Mount Tahoma doesn’t want to be Tacoma’s best team.
They’re chasing something much bigger.
“We want to be the best team in the state,” Durr said. “We want to make it all the way to the chip. That’s a cool (title) to have at the start, but we know what the main goal is.”
‘PICK YOUR POISON’
Let’s back up to that monumental Week 2 win at Camas, when the T-Birds built a 35-2 halftime lead and stunned the defending 4A runner-up and perennial power. White handled the lion’s share of rushing work, taking 20 carries for 130 yards and a touchdown, and KeShawn Hines rushed for 65 yards and two scores. Cordero found Durr for a 23-yard touchdown catch that commenced a 49-22 blowout.
In front of the biggest crowd Durr can remember his T-Birds playing for, his defense had kept one of the state’s premier programs out of the end zone for two and a half quarters, forcing a fumble, securing an interception, and blocking a Papermakers field goal. It’s what makes Mount Tahoma one of the area’s top contenders: There isn’t a true weakness.
“It just seems like defenses can’t stop us, no matter what we do,” Cordero said. “Whether we throw it or run it, we’re going to have 200 rushing yards or 200 passing yards. Pick your poison.”
Cordero’s right. He’s thrown for 200+ yards in each of Mount Tahoma’s last two wins, and the T-Birds ran for 250+ total yards three times.
It starts with a stable of running backs featuring White, Hines and Diaz, all embracing unique roles behind the dual-threat Cordero. White has assumed the lead role (76-469-5) and Hines is the thunder to Diaz’s lightning, each with 100+ yards and 4+ touchdowns through five games.
“It’s one of those things about being in South Tacoma. If we don’t have anything else, we’re gonna have a running back,” head coach Keith Terry said. “They understand what we’re looking for. We’ve got change-of-pace. We’ve got a home-run guy, and we’ve got a guy that knows how to get us five yards when we want.
“To be able to have that running back by committee… First of all, it keeps those guys healthy. But (for) the defense, they don’t know what to expect because everybody brings something different. It’s fun being able to call the plays for those guys… they trust in what we do, and our big offensive line takes care of business.”
Terry scheduled Yelm, Mount Si, and Camas — all 4A programs — for Mount Tahoma’s first three games, an early gauntlet by design rooted in a desire to run into the state’s top programs head-first. Last year, he scheduled Yelm, Mount Si, and Eastlake en route to a 3A state quarterfinals appearance.
Mount Tahoma is tied with Eastside Catholic at No. 2 on the latest AP statewide 3A poll. They’re No. 2 on the coaches poll and No. 3 in The News Tribune’s latest ranking.
“When you’re building a program, it’s never about the city,” Terry said. “Just being honest, in my opinion. When we do things the right way, it’s bigger than that. Really honing in and teaching these guys my vision of what winning looks like, and let’s find some common ground and let’s do it this way. These guys have really bought into that.
“The bigger goal is, we want to compete for a state championship. Within that, it’s one game at a time and one week at a time. We did what we’re supposed to do in the city, and now we’re ready to take the next step.”
‘THE TALENT IS HERE’
When Terry took the helm of the Mount Tahoma program in 2022, his first goal: Keep South Tacoma’s talent in South Tacoma. From 2017-2020, the T-Birds won a total of two games. The team hadn’t won a playoff game in four decades.
But the talent bought into Terry’s championship mentality, and the wins followed. Mount Tahoma has registered 7+ wins in each of the last two seasons with a chance to complete an undefeated regular season this fall with Bellarmine Prep, Gig Harbor, and Silas looming. The playoffs come next, where Cordero hopes for a string of home games before a trip to the 3A championship game at Husky Stadium on Dec. 5.
“Guys started to stay home,” Terry said. “They wanted an opportunity. By the time they left, (we had) our first playoff win in over forty years. Now, it’s just been stacking. Showing that we can compete at that level. We’re a good staff, and this is a great program. We just want to feed back into those kids, and they believe in what we’re doing. Now, you see it on the field.”
Jones’ 65 total tackles (15.5 TFL) rank third statewide. Junior defensive end Teaven Jones has logged nine sacks; Diaz and Quentin Hodge have snagged two interceptions.
A consensus among Terry, Durr, and Cordero — this is the best team they’ve helped guide at Mount Tahoma.
Another consensus — a state title is priority No. 1.
“We’re trying to win the championship,” Jones said. “We already know we’re the best team in Tacoma.”
