City of Hoquiam proclaims Olympic Stadium ‘birthplace of spread offense’ in football

A historic Hoquiam football landmark received national recognition on Friday, Oct. 16, as the city proclaimed Olympic Stadium as the “birthplace of the football revolution and the spread offense.

The proclamation, issued by Mayor Ben Winkelman during Hoquiam High School’s Senior Night celebration, recognizes the work of former Hoquiam head coach Jack Swarthout and Hoquiam quarterback Jack Elway, who began developing the offensive concepts at Olympic Stadium in 1947 that helped lay the groundwork for the modern spread offense.

The designation connects Hoquiam’s football history to offensive schemes now used throughout high school football, college football and in the National Football League (NFL).

The pre-game ceremony brought members of the Swarthout and Elway families to the stadium to celebrate their relatives’ legacies ahead of the contest between Hoquiam High School and Tenino High School.

Jesse Swarthout — a football coach, teacher and grandson of Jack Swarthout — spoke on behalf of the Swarthout family. John Elway, Jack Elway’s son and a Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback — who won two Super Bowls with the Denver Broncos — represented the Elway family. He passed for nearly 51,500 yards in his NFL career, and connected with his offensive targets 300 times for touchdowns over his 234 game run in the league.

Jacki Swarthout, daughter of Jack Swarthout, sang the national anthem, while Mary Swarthout, Jack’s widow, joined John Elway for the ceremonial coin toss.

The celebration preceded Tenino’s 28-14 victory over Hoquiam.

According to the proclamation, Swarthout’s innovative approach and Elway’s ability to execute the scheme helped establish offensive principles that influenced the evolution of football, particularly passing attacks designed to create space and spread defenses across the field.

Reflecting on the historic setting, the proclamation read that Olympic Stadium was built from old-growth fir, reflecting Hoquiam’s timber heritage. It was completed in 1938.

The stadium is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is recognized as the last surviving all-wood stadium of its kind in the United States.

For generations, the venue has served as a gathering place for athletics, civic celebrations and community events.

The city has invested more than $3 million in stadium improvements since 2018, including work on life safety, accessibility, structural integrity, entryways and the playing field. Hoquiam plans to invest an estimated additional $4 million in restoration and improvements over the next five years, according to the proclamation.

Winkelman also recognized Tom Quigg for compiling the stadium’s history and working with Bart Wright, author of A Football Revolution, as well as the participating families and Rick Moyer, who provided photography and video coverage of the event.

The proclamation calls on football supporters, historians, educators, athletes and visitors to honor Swarthout and Elway’s contributions and support the continued preservation of Olympic Stadium.

The designation celebrates both Hoquiam’s place in football history and the city’s commitment to preserving a landmark that continues to connect generations of residents.

Following his time at Hoquiam in the late 1940s, Jack Elway would attend Washington State University in Pullman, where he continued playing the sport for one season until a knee surgery ended his playing career.

After graduating from WSU with his bachelor’s degree and master’s degree, Elway began coaching at Port Angeles High School and would be head coach from 1953 through 1960.

In 1961, Elway was hired as the head coach at Grays Harbor College, a junior college in Aberdeen within close proximity to his hometown of Hoquiam. He was the head coach at the junior college until 1966.

Eventually, he would join the staff at the University of Montana as an assistant coach from 1967 to 1971. Elway also returned to Pullman and joined the WSU coaching staff as an assistant coach from 1972 to 1975.

In Feb. of 1976, Elway joined the University of Idaho’s football staff as an assistant coach, but left after five weeks in March to accept a Division II head coaching job at Cal State Northridge. After three seasons, Elway took his biggest head coaching job yet and joined the San Jose State University team in 1979 — where he was head coach until 1983.

Elway had his final run in the NCAA as a head coach from 1984 to 1988 with the Stanford Cardinal, where he accumulated a record of 25-29-2.

He transitioned into coaching in NFL Europe — the NFL’s European developmental league. Elway coached the Frankfurt Galaxy for two seasons.

In the final stint of his career in football, Elway would join the Denver Broncos’ scouting department, where he’d eventually serve as director of pro scouting. He was with the Broncos from 1993 to 1999, and witnessed his son, John, win two Super Bowls — including Super Bowl XXXIII on Jan. 31, 1999, against the Atlanta Falcons. John, in the final game of his NFL career, was named most valuable player (MVP) of the contest.