Bombers fall in District 11 title game

It’s no secret Schuylkill Haven likes to play smash-mouth football.

And that’s exactly what the Hurricanes did during the District 11 Class 2A title game against Palmerton.

Haven dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, star sophomore Kobe Brish took care of the rest, and the Hurricanes bullied their way to a 48-13 D-11 championship on a freezing Friday night at Northern Lehigh.

“Tremendous,” said Schuylkill Haven head coach Mike Farr of his offensive line. “They dominated last year and they dominated again this year. They’ve done nothing but get better every week. We’re a run-first team and we’re going to take what they give us. Up front, we did a great job of adjusting. They tried a couple of different things defensively and we made a few more adjustments. We got into some other offensive sets and it gave us the advantages we were looking for.”

Palmerton fumbled on its opening possession and the Hurricanes marched right down the short field, resulting in Brish’s first score of the game.

“After that first drive, if you’ve been around me at all ... I knew they weren’t going to be able to stop us,” said Farr. “We came out in multiple formations and we did some things that we wanted to do.”

The Bombers went three-and-out in their next two possessions, and a punt of only 19 yards on the second one set up Haven with another short field. Brish plunged in for his second of six scores.

“We didn’t execute,” said Palmerton head coach Chris Walkowiak. “We had about three or four three-and-outs to start the game. You’re not going to win many games doing that, and they (Haven) made some big plays.”

It was pretty much all gravy after that for the Hurricanes.

Haven threw the ball just three times, while racking up 410 yards on 50 carries. The strength of the Haven line was too much for the Bombers.

“Kobe kept getting stronger, and stronger, and stronger tonight,” said Farr, whose team led 21-0 at intermission. “But it’s a total team effort. We have assignments and we have jobs. We play selfless, and the most important thing was for us to win the football game — it didn’t matter how we did it.”

Brish added four more scores in the second half and was the main reason his team led 35-7 after three quarters. He exploded for TD runs of 57 and 47 during the final pair of periods. The sophomore finished with 322 yards on 39 carries.

“From play one, they came off the ball and won the battle up front,” Walkowiak said. “In any football game, at any level, it’s won up front ... Credit to them, Brish is a good player, but I’m sure Brish will tell you it starts with his line doing things. They did a great job of making plays there and we didn’t get clicking offensively.”

The Bombers did show some signs of life in the second half. Tekoah Guedes threw a 14-yard pass to Mike Eckhart in the third, and a two-yard jump-pass score to Luke Yaindl in the fourth. Guedes also busted out for two impressive runs, one which looked video-game-like for 63 yards, which set up the Yanidl score.

“I thought Tekoah Guedes had a great game in the second half,” said Walkowiak. “He made plays and left it all on the line. But it was a little too late for us. Tekoah is a special player and I loved watching him this year. He’s exciting and he left everything on the field every single game. He’s a very poised leader and he’s going to be sorely missed. I’m just super happy to have the opportunity to have coached him this year.”

With a convincing win and district gold medal, Schuylkill Haven’s 0-4 start to the season is just a vague memory. Farr had a meaningful conversation with his team before they left the practice field on Thursday.

“Last night, before we left the field, we talked and said ‘what’s your legacy going to be?’ This is it; they’re the first Haven team to win back-to-back,” added Farr. “We’re glad to be going down to Philly again; we’re just excited to be in the state playoff again.”

RUNNING MATE ... Aside of Brish, Brandon Koch did damage with 63 rushing yards on only seven carries, and one reception for 51 yards on a play-fake — when Haven was up huge in the fourth quarter. “Koch gives you the speed to the edge and the vertical threat with his length,” Farr said. “It keeps teams honest. I was just holding on and holding on to throw that ball. After they scored, I said ‘You know what, they have 11 guys within three yards of the football.’ I said I had to take it, so that’s the only reason why we threw that football at the end.”

SENIOR CLASS ... The Bombers only had six seniors, but Walkowiak said they made a huge impact on this team. “We only had six of them and they were great,” he said. “We won five games at home, and they brought a lot of positives here. The biggest thing that I can really respect is that they brought a ‘we thing and not a me thing’ and they really exemplified that and they showed that with their leadership.”