From the Sidelines

I just posted this story detailing Newport’s chance to clinch a playoff spot this Friday against Eastlake.

As you can see, the Knights can clinch a playoff spot, and even can finish with the No. 2 spot if Issaquah loses to Skyline Friday, and the Knights beat the Eagles next week.

I’ve been sitting here calculating so many playoff scenarios that my brain is about to burst. But for Newport, things are simple. Beat the Wolves on homecoming, and they’re in.

“They’re going to come out swinging for sure and we know that,” said Knights coach Mike Miller. “They’re fighting for their playoff lives.”

They sure are, largely thanks to that surprising loss to Redmond three weeks ago. After losing to Skyline last week, Eastlake coach Gene Dales had this to say:

“This next week [the Newport game] is a huge week for us,” he told Kevin Endejan of the Issaquah Reporter. “Regardless of what everybody says, if we win that ball game, we’re in a playoff scenario.”

While it hurts my head to list out all the possibilities – one is a three-way tie assuming Eastlake wins out and Newport loses to Issaquah – Newport can make things very simple with a win on Friday.

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I talked with Miller about more than just Friday’s game. We talked a bit about freshman Eric Rodan, who has seen some playing time this season as a member of the Knights backfield, a rarity for a first year player.  Rodan has 158 yards and two scores this season, playing as the Knights “3-back”, or fullback, in their Wing-T offense. After starting off the season on the sophomore team, Rodan jumped up to the varsity squad following an injury to sophomore Tyler Wright. Now that Wright is back, they’re splitting time.

“He performed pretty well so we kept him up on varsity,” Miller said. “He has an opportunity and he’s taking advantage of it.”

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Kevin Martin is a Newport player Miller told me to watch out for before the season began. He certainly made his presence felt last week, returning an interception for a score, and catching a touchdown pass from Ross Quarre for another. Martin has scored three receiving touchdowns this season.

“What he’s done isn’t unexpected,” Miller said. “He’s got really good hands, and when we’re throwing, he’s been a great target to go to. We’re impressed with what he’s done, but we’re not surprised.”

Miller noted that through his work in the offseason, Martin lowered his time in the 40-yard dash from 5.2 seconds, to 4.8.

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I asked Miller for three keys for his team to get the win against the Wolves on Friday.

“I would say securing the football, controlling the clock and having a bend-but-don’t-break defense,” Miller said. “I’m really pleased with the way our defense has played this year. We’re rallying to the football really well.”

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Miller also noted that this will be the first week that the Knights will have their projected starting offensive line playing.

“We had some grade issues, some sick kids and injuries throughout the year,” he said. “We’re excited to finally have our starting guys back.”