Luke

Luke Ward (played by Chris Carmack) – (Season 1 – 2): Marissa's jock ex-boyfriend and regular cast member episodes 1–24. Luke is the oldest of the three sons of Carson and Meredith Ward, and the older brother of Brad and Eric Ward (seen in season 4 being Kaitlin's "friends"). When Ryan first comes to town, the two of them get into constant fights, mainly over Marissa. The two of them eventually set aside their differences and become friends. He had an affair with Julie Cooper after he and Marissa broke up. The first main character to leave the show, Luke and his father moved to Portland after the people of Newport learned that his father was gay. He lets Seth live with him and his father in Portland over the summer break before school starts for their final year. This is shown in the first episode of season 2 before Seth returns home with Ryan.