No. 1 Royal rolls into 1A Quarterfinal game against No. 9 Mt. Baker
Rodney Harwod/Columbia Basin HeraldRoyal quarterback Sawyer Jenks leads an offense that has outscored its oponents 403-3 in the past seven games.
Rodney Harwood/Columbia Basin heraldRoyan running back Alonso Hernandez has been the work force on a Knights offense that outscored its opponents 403-3 in the past seven games.
ROYAL — One-game-at-a-time is as much a part of Royal tradition as the fact they haven’t lost in 52 straight games. But it’s that commitment to excellence and attention to detail that has the three-time 1A state champions on the fast track to the Tacoma Dome again this season.
Saturday’s 1A quarterfinal game at David Nielsen Stadium is just another step closer to where the No. 1-seeded Knights (11-0) want to go and No. 9 Mt. Baker stands between them and the Dome.
Like the No. 16 Riverside Rams the Knights blanked in the Round of 16, Mt. Baker is a quality program and considerably better than their ninth seed might indicate. The Mountaineers (8-4) would like nothing better than to come into the Royal Slope and end the second-longest winning streak in the country. Now, in order to do that, they have to go through a team that has outscored its opponents 403-3 in the past seven games.
“A lot of kids have been there before and we’ll rely a lot on (linebackers) Alonso Hernandez and Jack Diaz’s experience. But the focus is always on each game and each opponent,” said Knights coach Wiley Allred, whose team pitched six shutouts and gave up a fluke 42-yard field goal with a 30-mph tailwind in the last month and a half.
“They’re coming in here with the intentions of taking it to us, so we have to do the same. It’s going to be a good ballgame. Riverside was much better than the No. 16 seed, and Mt. Baker’s better than nine.”
The Mountaineers run the Wing T and try to use as much deception in their predominantly running attack. Three-year starter Michael Kentner, a 6-foot-3, 170-pound senior, is the key at quarterback. They like to mix and match with running backs Jason Lee (5-11, 172) and Sam Barrett (5-9, 173). Both are small and can get lost in the wash with all the fakes and handoffs.
The Knights defense hasn’t given up a touchdown since Sept. 21. In fact, Okanogan, which actually led, twice, is the only team to score a touchdown on the Royal defense in 11 games.
“The first quarter will be a tell-tale point. I don’t want to spend the first half trying to figure out the adjustments,” Allred said. “We need to get after them from the get-go because normally in the playoffs the offensive starts are a lot slower.
“You have to be able to respond to adversity, whether it comes early, later or in the middle. I was extremely impressed in the Okanogan game with how they just kept playing. I don’t know if it helps (playing from behind), but it helps me seeing how the kids react.”
The Knights outscored their opponents 159-0 in the previous three games going into Okanogan, where they gave up two touchdowns and a field goal. They have since outscored their opponents 403-3 in the seven games that followed, including 119-3 in the SCAC Crossover and Round of 16 to start the 1A tournament.
“It looks like we do a lot of stunting up front, but it’s actually the kids reacting to the football,” Knights defensive coordinator Jeremy Scroggins said. “We have a lot of kids that have been there before, but what I like about the shutouts is that they’ve come with reserves on the field and even the young guys are playing hard, and I like that.”