THE FRONT ROW with MARK NELKE: Journey to a title in Bonners — with a brief stop in Cd’A

It all started with Cal Bateman.

The Bonners Ferry dad had an idea for some young basketball-loving boys in his town, and Nathan Williams was the man to implement it.

At the time, Williams was living just south of Coeur d’Alene, working as Head of School at Valley Christian School in Spokane Valley for three years, and coaching his sons, Ridge and Asher, in the Coeur d’Alene Parks and Rec league.

Nathan Williams then accepted a job as principal at Valley View Elementary in Bonners Ferry.

“I moved to Bonners Ferry eight years ago from the Coeur d’Alene area, and within a week he had a group of boys in the gym,” Nathan recalled last week. “He heard about my past varsity coaching experience in Oregon, and he said ‘Hey, we want to start playing AAU.’ And he brought me like eight boys, and I’m not kidding you, six of them are still here today; it was awesome.”

ONE OF those boys was Trey Bateman, Cal’s son, and now a senior at Bonners Ferry High.

Eight years later — last Saturday, to be specific — Trey Bateman was one of three seniors celebrating with their Badger teammates, parents and community members in a curtained-off area after Bonners Ferry had won its first state boys basketball championship in school history, defeating Teton 54-47 in the 3A final at the Ford Idaho Center in Nampa.

“The whole process has been completely amazing,” said Nathan Williams, now in his fourth season as the Badgers boys basketball coach. “And the parents … it’s an hour and a half to Spokane, Coeur d’Alene, when we’d play an AAU game, and an hour and a half back, and there were so many times there was 6, 8 inches of snow. And we’ve got a game at 8 a.m. They’d always schedule us at 8 a.m., coming from Bonners. So we’re waking up at 5 … it was crazy. But the commitment from the parents and the kids has been amazing.”

NATHAN WILLIAMS starred at Franklin HIgh in Portland. He ended up at Whitworth, the starting point guard on the Pirates’ 1996 team that played for the NAIA championship, and last summer that squad was honored by Hoopfest, inducted into the Hooptown USA Hall of Fame in a ceremony at Riverfront Park in Spokane.

Also part of that landmark Whitworth team was Jon Adams, now the Coeur d’Alene High boys basketball coach, who played for the Pirates before having to “retire” as a player due to back problems. He was an assistant coach on that ’96 Whitworth squad.

“He and I were roommates in college … really good guy, fun guy.” Williams recalled. 

Could Williams see the future coach in Adams, who nearly led the Vikings to the state 5A title game last week?

“Yes and no,” Williams said. “What he’s great at is relationships. He’s a positive, great guy, always building relationships. But back then, I didn’t see the Xs and Os, because he was like a player/assistant. He was more of a relationship guy back then.”

Said Adams of Williams: “He was as good a shooter as I ever saw; he really was.”

Williams was head coach for seven seasons at 2A Stanfield High in northeastern Oregon, between Hermiston and Pendleton. 

He also coached at basketball camps, coached middle school hoops, and worked in education for 23 years.

After moving to Bonners, Williams was principal at Valley View for five years. He was athletic director at Bonners Ferry High for three years before retiring from education in 2023.

BONNERS FERRY has a proud athletic tradition.

In boys basketball, the Badgers won the state A-2 consolation title in 1991, then some strong teams in the mid 2000s, making four straight trips to state, and six in seven years.

In 2005, Bonners won its first district title in 30 years.

But until 2021, the Badgers hadn’t been to state since 2008.

In Williams’ first season at Bonners, the Badgers went 0-2 at state.

The next year, they reached the consolation championship game.

Last year, Bonners played in the state title game for the first time in school history.

This year … more history.

“Hat’s off to the past seniors,” said Nathan Williams, whose son, Ridge, was a senior on last year’s squad. “The seniors, last year, really paved the way for this year, winning the state championship. Beating Snake River last year by one to get here, it just changes the culture of the program. And the expectations. And it’s been a long journey, and I’m just really proud of them. 

“One other thing,” Nathan Williams added last Saturday night, in that curtained-off area at the Idaho Center. “Eight of the 11 all have bigger brothers that beat up on them when they were little. Made them just a little tougher.”

Trey Bateman had two older brothers, both of whom helped Bonners win its first state title in baseball in 2018. Asher had his older brother, Ridge … and so on.

“Honestly, as a coach, there’s something to that,” Nathan Williams said.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 208-664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @CdAPressSports.

    Coach Nathan Williams at Bonners Ferry boys basketball practice.