PORT TOWNSEND — The Port Townsend Redskins remember last year’s football game against Vashon Island well.
And it’s not just because of the importance of its outcome.
Port Townsend went ahead 19-7 midway through the second quarter when its junior quarterback, Eric Thomas, was injured on a helmet-to-helmet collision with a Vashon player during the following kickoff.
It was a hit many Redskins saw as a cheap shot at the time and one that may very well have cost them a shot at the playoffs.
Vashon rallied for a 26-25 victory with Thomas out and inexperienced backup Izak Neziri forced into action.
And when all was said and done, the Pirates finished one game ahead of the Redskins in the Class 1A Nisqually League standings, earning the league’s third and final playoff spot.
Despite all of that, Redskins coach Brian O’Hara says his team (2-1 overall) comes into tonight’s game against the seventh-ranked Pirates (3-0) focused on the task at hand.
“We can’t let something that happened last year influence our preparation for the game,” said O’Hara, who returned more than a dozen starters from last year’s team.
“We’re focused, and we see this as an important game for us to establish ourselves this year. It’s not only a league game, but one against a state competitor from last year.”
It’s also one against a ranked team, likely the second of four such contests for Port Townsend this fall.
If things go the way they did the first time around, when the Redskins beat Chelan 26-0, the Redskins should be looking pretty good after their first Nisqually League game.
Although that is easier said than done considering the opponents Vashon has outscored 110-33 in three games this year. That includes a 28-7 dismantling of 3A Bainbridge (2-1).
“They’ve had three pretty solid victories, so it’s a real opportunity for us to get a chance to play against a ranked team,” O’Hara said.
“They are a spread team, and they gave us a little bit of problems last year in the running game.
“They are throwing the ball a lot more this year, but I see that as a strength [for PT]. Our defense is pretty solid in the secondary.”
Port Townsend’s defense has been solid all the way around since its 22-16 opening week loss to Coupeville.
Not only did it shut out Chelan in Week 2, but it saved the day at Orcas Island last week in a 14-12 win, batting away an attempted two-point conversion late in the fourth quarter to hold on.
If Thomas and the rest of the offense, considered the team’s strength heading into the season, can put it together against Vashon, the Redskins might just have a shot at knocking off their second ranked team this season.
They could also get a little bit of revenge in the process.
“I think we’ve been getting better actually [on offense],” O’Hara said.
“Last week we had a couple of things that happened to stall drives with penalties and sacks. You can’t do those things and score points.
“Our defense kept us in the game and we scored enough to win [last week], but we’ve got to eliminate those kind of mistakes against a team like Vashon in order to be successful.”
Sequim at Steilacoom
STEILACOOM — The Wolves remain on the road again this week with their Nisqually/Olympic League opener against the Sentinels.
Sequim (2-1) is hoping for a better result this week against Steilacoom (0-3), the only team to hand the Wolves a league loss in six years.
Steilacoom beat the Wolves 35-21 last season on their way to the league title.
Yet the Sentinels have fallen on hard times this season after the graduation of all-everything quarterback Greg Herd, now redshirting at wide receiver for Eastern Washington.
Chimacum at Charles Wright
TACOMA — Chimacum (2-1) finds itself in an unfamiliar position against an unfamiliar offense in this week’s 1A Nisqually League clash.
The Cowboys’ good start to the season is their best since at least 2000.
Charles Wright (1-2) uses a form of the A-11 offense, a formation that used a loophole in the rules governing kickoff formations to disguise which offensive players are eligible to receive a pass on any given play.
It features three down linemen with three receivers on each side of the field.
“It spreads out the defense and we’ve just got to be able to tackle,” Chimacum coach Shawn Meacham said. “It will be the first time I’ve seen an offense like this.”
The A-11, which came to fame in northern California in 2007, was banned by the National Federation of State High School Associations in February.
Schools are getting around the rule by allowing quarterbacks to wear ineligible numbers (50-79, traditionally worn by down linemen). This lets quarterbacks switch positions with offensive tackles in between plays.
No. 5 Lummi at No. 5 Neah Bay
NEAH BAY — Something’s gotta give in this matchup.
The two squads are tied this week in the Class 1B Associated Press Football Poll.
While a nonleague affair, Saturday’s game is being hyped by many 1B fans as a potential state semifinal preview.
Neah Bay (3-0) will have Drexler Doherty back behind center this week against the Blackhawks (2-1).
Doherty’s younger brother Leyton and eighth-grader Josiah Greene filled in for the junior in last week’s 42-28 win over Crescent.
Port Angeles at North Thurston
LACEY — The Rams (1-0, 2-1) are coming off a 38-34 upset of then-No. 10 Olympic last week.
Port Angeles (0-1, 0-3) is still looking for its first win of the Dick Abrams era.
Forks at Onalaska
ONALASKA — The Spartans (1-0, 2-1) look to hand the Loggers (1-0, 3-0) their first loss of the season in an SWL-Evergreen Division clash.