Week 10 of the high school football season is the famed “rivalry week” for the teams in the Times News area.

There are numerous prime time games slated for Friday night, but a game with serious postseason implications between two historic rivals stands out above the rest.

Palmerton, which needs to win to get in the District 11 2A playoffs will head to Slatington to try and make it five straight victories against Northern Lehigh, which needs a victory in order to stay in the hunt for an Eastern Conference Playoff berth. The stakes are high in this one, which is why this week’s Times News Game of the Week.

This has been a turnaround season for the Bulldogs (4-5), who were coming off an 0-10 year in 2017. Northern Lehigh has the chance to get to .500 for the first time since 2014 (7-5) when they won an Eastern Conference Championship.

The bread and butter as usual for the Bulldogs has been its ground-and- pound rushing attack that has come from both the prototypical power running formations, and the spread, as they’ve rushed for 188.6 yards per game on the season. Northern Lehigh has a stable of running backs it can depend on with Justin Paul (585 yards), Mike Repsher (340), Cameron Kline (199) and quarterback Gage Hunsicker (198).

Palmerton has struggled defending downhill running teams throughout the season, as its giving up 206.3 rushing yards per game.

“We need to be physical, and we need to be able to tackle well, and we need to do all of that from the onset of the game. I think that we’ve shown flashes of really playing well up front on the defensive end against the tough running teams, but we haven’t been consistent,” said Palmerton head coach Chris Walkowiak. “Northern Lehigh has tough backs that all bring a different element to the table. We just need be physical in the trenches and limit the big chunks of yardage in the run game.”

For Palmerton (3-6), it’s been a bit of a roller coaster ride in 2018. Four different quarterbacks have taken snaps for the Bombers, but they seem to be settled in now with junior Jordan Nelson. Turnovers have been the issue in most of Palmerton’s losses as they have had a staggering amount against it that were returned for touchdowns. On the season, seven touchdowns have been scored off an interception returned to the house by the opponent.

However, in the Bombers victories they have been one of the more dynamic offenses in the Times News area led by Nelson, who has 1,068 total yards (counting passing yardage) and 13 touchdowns. Skill players Aaron Stasko (1,062 totals yards, 6TDs), Eli Rivera (317 receiving yards), and Cody Waterhouse form a unit that is tough to match-up with in the Bombers spread offense scheme.

Palmerton is averaging 52 points per game in its three victories this season.

“I think what you’re going to see from us and how we need to play is fundamental and physical football. We need to be a very fundamental team on both sides of the ball and control the line of scrimmage,” said Bulldogs head coach Joe Tout. “There’s no doubt they have a stable of skill players that can hurt you, so we really need to do everything we can to not give up the big play, and then we need to control the clock to limit their opportunities.”

As noted earlier, the playoff implications in this one are huge. Palmerton needs to win to qualify for a District 11 2A playoff berth, where it would be the No. 4 seed if it gets in. The Bombers have already qualified for the Eastern Conference playoffs, where if they lose to the Bulldogs, would probably face off with Minersville.

Northern Lehigh needs to defeat Palmerton to stay in the hunt for an Eastern Conference spot. The Bulldogs also need Schuylkill Valley to lose to Hamburg. Right now, Northern Lehigh’s probable Eastern Conference matchup if it qualified would be Palisades.

“Talking to our kids this year, I’ve expressed to them the strides we’ve made. Going from zero wins to four wins and possibly five wins is a huge leap, and they should be proud of the work they put in because it has paid off,” said Tout. “We’re excited to have a chance at getting to that .500 mark and finishing up the season against a rival in Palmerton. It should be a great atmosphere come Friday night.”