Tamaqua faces PJP in PIAA opener

“Just win baby.”

That phrase — coined by former Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis — is one of the most iconic in NFL history.

The Tamaqua football team has shown over the last two weeks that it can depend on both its offense and defense to get wins.

The Blue Raiders have had to use different methods during the postseason, but the bottom line is they found a way.

Al Davis would be proud because Tamaqua has practiced what he preached. The Raiders have “Just won baby.”

It was Tamaqua’s offense, led by Nate Boyle’s school-record 382 yards rushing, that helped it to a 49-28 District 11 Class 3A semifinal victory over Notre Dame. Last week, in the district title game against North Schuylkill, it was the Raiders’ defense that led the way in a 20-0 win over the Spartans.

“I think a big part of everything this postseason has been our experience. We have three or four guys who are seniors that have started since they were freshmen and then six or seven since they were sophomores,” said Tamaqua head coach Sam Bonner. “We have been in the mix over the past few years, we just came up short and I think this senior class wanted to leave their mark on the program.

“They’ve been able to do that twice now this playoffs and hopefully they can continue to do it as we play on.”

The victory over Notre Dame was the first District 11 football playoff victory in school history. The win over North Schuylkill was the first District 11 football championship in school history.

Tamaqua will get a chance at another “first” on Friday night — the first PIAA state playoff victory in school history.

But entering the PIAA state tournament means the competition gets even tougher as the Raiders (10-2) will face off against the District 1/12 champ Pope John Paul II (PJP).

PJP defeated Neumann-Goretti 29-28 last week to claim its first ever district championship, stopping Goretti on a two-point conversion attempt late in the game to seal the win.

The Tamaqua defense was impressive last week against North Schuylkill, holding the Spartans to just 105 total yards, while pitching a shutout. But this week, the Raiders’ defense is most likely in for its toughest test of the season against a high-powered PJP passing attack.

PJP’s Kamal Gray is an impressive dual threat quarterback that has put up big numbers this season. Gray has thrown for 2,530 yards and 35 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. He has also rushed for 539 yards and seven scores. Gray’s top target on the season has been Justin Kormos who has over 900 yards receiving and has hauled in 10 touchdowns.

PJP is a pass first team, but it will run the football as well with five players rushing for 275 yards or more on the season. The overall theme of the offense is speed as it likes to spread teams out and get the ball to its athletes.

“Offensively, the way they do things they remind us a lot of Notre Dame Green Pond. They’re going to try and spread you out and they’re going to throw the football,” said Bonner. “Our defense has been pretty good all postseason, up front we were great last week and since the fourth quarter of the Notre Dame game our secondary has been really playing well.

“The key will be to keep their quarterback from escaping the pocket. He’s actually better throwing on the run, so that will certainly be a focus for us.”

The PJP defense has been impressive this year as well, holding teams to seven points or fewer six times. But it’s likely it hasn’t faced as physical of a team as the Raiders.

One thing Tamaqua has proved this season is that it can be equally dangerous running or passing.

The Raiders are a versatile offense that can rely on the ground game — running back Nate Boyle has over 1,300 yards rushing — or the passing game — quarterback Brayden Knoblauch has thrown for over 1,600 yards.

Tamaqua’s talented offensive line and Boyle’s combination of power and speed makes the ground game tough to shut down without committing extra players. But Knoblauch’s ability in the passing game makes stacking the box a dangerous proposition.

“We have to do what we do, we have to be physical up front and we have to be physical running the football,” said Bonner. “But if we’re going to see eight or nine guys in the box, we’re confident in our passing attack with Brayden.”

Bonner said at this time of the season, there are no easy games. Any team you play is going to be very talented.

“It’s tough to compare schedules and stuff like that,” he said. “We need to play like we’ve been playing so far in the postseason. Running the ball, passing the ball, on defense, and on special teams, we’re just going to go out there and make plays.”