Few high school football players in the Northwest had a better weekend than class of 2020 McNary linebacker Junior Walling.
After starting the season 0-5, the Celtics have bounced back to win three consecutive games, highlighted by a 35-23 victory over preseason state-title contender West Salem on Friday to clinch the Mountain Valley Conference championship.
For the 6-foot-2, 220-pound athlete, rated the nation's No. 10 inside linebacker by 247Sports, the dramatic turnaround boiled down to the team coming together through early-season adversity.
"We had some young guys and were playing against some really tough teams out there, like Lake Oswego and Tualatin," Walling said.