Bellevue vs. De La Salle: Classic matchup long time coming

BELLEVUE — People ask how it happened. How Bellevue High, without playing in the state's largest classification and with virtually no previous national exposure, landed a football game with one of the country's best high-school programs.

That would be De La Salle of Concord, Calif., the very team that has finished ranked No. 1 in the nation by USA Today five of the past six years, including the last four. The very same Spartans who have a streak of 151 consecutive wins, whose head coach, Bob Ladouceur, has more career perfect seasons (17) than career losses (14).

So, how did it happen?

How is it that at 8 p.m. Saturday, under the lights at Qwest Field, these two programs will square off in a game some have called the biggest prep football contest ever staged in Washington?

The story actually starts in the spring of 2001, before the Wolverines won the first of three consecutive Class 3A state titles, before anybody thought to link the words "Bellevue" and "dynasty" in the same sentence.

It was then that Butch Goncharoff, Bellevue coach, and Herb Mead, a prominent University of Washington booster and local businessman, had a series of conversations about ways the program could be improved. One of those ways included bringing in some stiff out-of-state competition early in the season.

Mead, whose son, Clint, played on Bellevue's first state championship team in 1983, had seen the benefits of a tough preseason schedule firsthand when the Wolverines opened that year in Hawaii against Radford High, the 1981 Hawaiian state champion.

With that experience in mind, Mead said he discussed with Goncharoff several possible opponents.

De La Salle was mentioned.

Mead, who had met Ladouceur at a coaches clinic and was friends with Ken Hofmann, one of De La Salle's benefactors and a former part-owner of the Seahawks, offered to initiate talks.

"I said, 'We could contact them,' " Mead said. "So I did. I followed up and placed a phone call."

Mead said Ladouceur met his inquiry coolly, explaining that at that point the Spartans had their hands full with other in-state challengers. But the call put Bellevue on the Spartans' radar, the first step toward getting the game.

In late September 2001, Mead got a firsthand look at the Spartans when he visited Hofmann in the Bay Area during the weekend of the Washington-California football game. The two toured the De La Salle campus and later watched the Spartans play.

"I took a hard look," said Mead, quickly noting the Spartans' superior athleticism, coaching and conditioning. "And, boy, I was overwhelmed almost."

Continued conversations with Ladouceur and Hofmann eventually led Mead to contact De La Salle athletic director Terry Eidson, who made it clear from the outset that any trip would have to be paid for by the host team. Airfare, lodging, transportation, meals — all of it would need to be covered.

"What it looked like right out of the box was a $40,000 package," Mead said. "And that was it. (Eidson said) if you're willing, if you want us to keep talking, we'll keep talking."

Undaunted by the cost, Mead began assembling a group of investors to pay for the game, while at the same time, he and others began exploring possible venues, chief among them Memorial Stadium.

But the timing had to be right. De La Salle had a 2002 trip to Hawaii in the works, and Bellevue, projecting a young team the following year, wanted no part of the Spartans in 2003.

Mead said the focus eventually turned to this year, and a potential date in the Emerald City Kickoff Classic. But by the time Bellevue administrators contacted the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association in the fall of 2003, the classic's four-game schedule had been set.

The game, if it were to happen, would have to be an add-on.

Initially, the idea met with some resistance. But late last year, the WIAA Executive Board approved the addition with the understanding that Bellevue had offered to pay De La Salle's expenses.

"That's the only reason the board approved us putting on a fifth game," said Kevin Griffin, former WIAA assistant executive director and now fan development manager for the Seahawks. "The whole premise of the board was that if somebody wants to fund this, this is wonderful."

But as talks progressed, Mead said he made it known his investment group would also be interested in recouping its money, and if possible, making a little for Bellevue. A variety of ideas were discussed, from ticket sales to sponsorships, but Griffin said such reasoning went against the WIAA's core principles.

"He (Mead) was really honest," Griffin said. "But the problem comes in when you have two groups with two philosophies. The state association does not operate to be funded by private investors and those investors making their money back."

After a bit of wrangling, and to the relief of both sides, the WIAA agreed in March to assume De La Salle's expenses, which have come in under budget at slightly more than $30,000, according to WIAA assistant executive director Leah Francis.

"Everybody felt more comfortable that way," Griffin said.

"It was a good move because they (WIAA) were concerned about what we (the investment group) would be looking for," Mead said. "I think they felt like the best way to go was for them to take it. They could see then that the game was starting to build."

The hype has grown steadily since last December when WIAA executive director Mike Colbrese, with Griffin at his side, held an impromptu news conference during the state football championships at the Tacoma Dome to announce that the game was likely a go.

It has been the talk of Seattle since. T-shirts have been printed. Internet message boards have buzzed. As of last week, 63 media credentials had been issued.

Last year's inaugural Emerald City Kickoff Classic drew about 8,500 fans. Francis said the WIAA is hoping to at least double that this year.

"I think we'll be disappointed if we don't," she said.

So why, of all the teams that want a shot at De La Salle, did the Spartans choose Bellevue?

"They called up, they had a plan, they had a game, they had the arrangements," Eidson said a few weeks ago at a news conference to promote the event. "They're three-time state champions. It's a beautiful area to play and a great stadium. ... It seemed like a great opportunity for our kids."

And so "The Streak" comes to Seattle and the anticipation builds, a game years in the making now only days away.

Matt Peterson: 206-515-5536 or mpeterson@seattletimes.com

Emerald City Kickoff Classic


Saturday at Qwest Field

10 a.m.: Kennedy vs. Tahoma

12:30 p.m.: Camas vs. Mead

3 p.m.: Walla Walla vs. Olympia

5:30 p.m.: Ballard vs. Bothell

8 p.m.: Bellevue vs. De La Salle (Concord, Calif.)

Saturday

Bellevue vs. De La Salle

@ Qwest Field, 8 p.m.