Showdown time is here for Wash High and Mt. Pleasant
Wash High’s Kurt Adkins (1) cuts away from Mt. Pleasant’s Keith Kalp (3) for yardage in last year’s contest between the teams.
Wash High’s Jordan West (26) breaks out down the sideline in the second quarter for a big gain againt Mt. Pleasant in last year’s game.
Washington High School has a long tradition in football that includes championships, individual records and countless memorable victories, but it’s the athleticism of its players that draws envy from coaches across the state.
The Prexies have long had some of the fastest players in the WPIAL and that’s no different in 2015. Mt. Pleasant head coach Bo Ruffner has witnessed that speed firsthand, but he believes there’s a misconception of what makes the program tick.
“Everybody thinks of Wash High as just a team with speed, but that’s not why they win games,” Ruffner said. “They win games because of how physical they are up front, their offensive and defensive line play. They’re phenomenal.”
Ruffner turned on video from the Prexies’ first four games of the season and was amazed by the physicality. He must find a way to combat that strength when Mt. Pleasant (4-0, 4-0) plays Wash High (4-0, 4-0), which holds a 15-game regular-season winning streak, tonight at Vikings Stadium in a battle of Interstate Conference unbeatens. Kickoff is 7 p.m.
Wash High’s line is led by three seniors: tight end/defensive end Nate Swart (6-5, 230), a Toledo recruit; nose tackle Thomas Cherry (6-0, 275); and nose guard Khalid Blount (6-1, 303), the son of NFL Hall of Famer Mel Blount.
Not only have they helped the offense average 48.5 points per game – third-best in Class AA – but the defense has allowed only 13 points in four games – the fewest in Class AA. The defensive line’s consistent pressure of opposing quarterbacks has led to nine interceptions and the defense is allowing only 78.3 yards per game.
It’s an impressive start, but Blount knows the Vikings present a different challenge with a wing-T offense that runs a variety of misdirection plays to keep defenses guessing. It has produced 1,325 rushing yards.
“That offense is tough to defend against because you never know if they’re going to run or pass, but one thing we’re going to have to do is come off the ball fast. Once we realize it’s a pass, then we have to get off our blocks and get to the quarterback,” Blount said. “You have to be real physical with them and you can’t let their linemen get on top of you.”
With the running game and junior quarterback Johnny Yester, who has thrown for 448 yards and eight touchdowns, the Vikings are one of the top offenses in Class AA, but Ruffner isn’t resting his laurels on playmakers. He had similar teams in previous years that lost to Wash High because of an inability to win the line of scrimmage.
“You can’t simulate the size they have,” Ruffner said. “(They have) some big bodies in there. They look like a Quad-A line playing Double-A football.”
There also are those athletes with tremendous speed who have helped Wash High enforce the Mercy Rule against its first four opponents. Senior running backs Kurt Adkins and Jordan West have combined for 670 yards and 11 touchdowns while averaging more than 16 yards per carry.
Seven different Prexies have rushed for a touchdown, including senior quarterback Markel Pulliam, who has attempted only 16 passes but has thrown for five touchdowns.
It all starts up front.
“Honestly, in my opinion, this might be (Wash High coach Mike Bosnic’s) most overall talented team he’s had since he’s been there,” Ruffner said candidly. “It’s their front play. They’re that good up front and they have the skill behind it to match.”
Wash High’s linemen have paved the way for a dynamic rushing attack that will face its toughest test. The Vikings have won 15 consecutive home games with 14 of those decided by double-digit points.
This is a rivalry that is quickly developing into one of the best in Class AA. The Prexies were trailing in the third quarter of last year’s game at Wash High Stadium before pulling away with 20 unanswered points,. The Prexies lost 47-22 at home in 2013, but handed the Vikings their last home loss back in 2012 and defeated them in the WPIAL playoffs in 2011.
The teams meet again with a possible conference title on the line.
“They are one of the few teams in the conference that isn’t scared of the name on the front of the jersey and they’re going to come out and play us from start to finish,” Swart said. “We have to come out ready to play if we want to take care of them. We have to come out with a chip on our shoulder.”