The Papermakers played in new uniforms Friday night, proudly displaying Mill Town across their jerseys

Paul Valencia
ClarkCountyToday.com

It is the premier football program in Southwest Washington, a contender every year.

Hey, it wasn’t always like that in Camas.

This century, though? Pure excellence. 

The Camas football program has seen nothing but winning regular seasons since 2000, plus 14 league titles and two state championships.

These are the Camas Papermakers, and today they are the top-ranked Class 4A team in the state. 

Oh that name. That glorious, famous-around-the-country name. Papermakers.

Even before this century, back when Camas was awful at football or just good at football or anywhere in between, this team — this school — always had that magnificent name.

Papermakers.

It is a nod to the city’s history, the paper mill. 

It is an homage to the dedicated people who worked factory jobs and everyone who did all they could in order to feed their family, shelter their family, raise their family.

Sure, Camas might be part of the Silicon Forest now, but Camas was built on the blue-collar efforts of its people long before the computer chip.

The athletes who wear Camas gear these days will always appreciate this triumphant name:  Papermakers. They understand what that name means in this city.

After all, this city always felt like a town. A Mill Town.

That is what we all witnessed Friday night when the Papermakers beat Oregon City 48-14 to improve to 4-0 this football season.

There was no Camas on the jerseys. The was no mention of Papermakers on the jerseys.

The players sported new, black jerseys Friday night at Doc Harris Stadium, with “Mill Town” in cursive letters across their chests.

While it might not be for everyone, trust me, it is still part of the tradition of Camas.

This is not some athletic administration or school board hoping to get away from using Camas, or trying to erase Papermakers. 

I still remember when the high school moved to its current campus that there were some newcomers to the area who wondered if it was time to update the name.   

Don’t you dare, the town shouted.

Even if they did, it would only be an update. Couldn’t possibly be an upgrade.

After all, Papermakers, for this city, that name is perfection.

With that said, in this context, Mill Town has the same soul as Camas, the same spirit as Papermakers. 

No one is trying to change Camas or the Papermakers. It is just an opportunity to create buzz, to experience a fresh look. By picking Mill Town, these Papermakers captured the essence of Papermakers: They are still saluting those who worked graveyard at the mill or asked for double shifts in order to make ends meet. 

And they are still proud to be from Camas.

“I was blown away. I thought it was super cool, what it represents. The whole city is about the mill,” said quarterback Jake Davidson, who threw seven touchdown passes in the win Friday night.

“It makes me think of the community and the support we have from the community. Without the community, we wouldn’t have these jerseys” said Chase McGee, who caught three touchdown passes. 

The jerseys arrived earlier this week.

“When I first saw it, it was like, ‘Wow, those look good. Those are freakin’ cool. They’re awesome,’” McGee said.

Camas coach Adam Mathieson has a straight-to-the-point philosophy.

“At the end of the day, we are in the kid business. What do the kids like? The kids love them,” Mathieson said.

There is another reason for the new-look jerseys. The school has a contract with Nike to provide its athletic uniforms but Nike limits Camas to nine characters. The white road uniforms say Camas. The red home jerseys say Makers.

The Makers name has been used for uniforms in other sports, as well. Some do not like it, but 

Camas administrators promise they are not trying to get away from Papermakers. Just the opposite.

“We do that as a way to honor Papermakers. Like ‘Hawks in Seahawks,” said Stephen Baranowski, the athletic director at Camas.

This year, while ordering new uniforms, school officials, coaches, and athletes wanted a new way to salute the old ways.

“This time, we thought we’d really try to honor our past and put Mill Town across the chest,” Baranowski said. “We’re excited to showcase that we are a mill town and for all the people from our area to honor our history.”

The best football program in Southwest Washington tried something different on Friday night. It was new, yet it kept up with Camas tradition.

The Camas Papermakers, with that Mill Town look, maintained their integrity. 

And continued with their winning ways.

Note: Paul Valencia is a longtime reporter, with decades of experience covering high school football in Southwest Washington.