After a lopsided home loss to Venice in its Western League opener, the Palisades High varsity football team was merely hoping to qualify for the City playoffs.
Three big wins later, the Dolphins find themselves on the verge of their first league title since the present Western League was formed in 1999. If it beats visiting Westchester this Friday on Senior Night, Palisades will clinch at least a share of first place. A Palisades victory coupled with losses by Venice and Hamilton would make the Dolphins sole champions.
Coach Tim Hyde, however, is only concerned about one team: Westchester. The fourth-place Comets will arrive at Stadium by the Sea with confidence after getting their first league win, 36-21, against University last week.
“We’re playing our first true zone read option team so we need to play assignment football and swarm to the ball on defense,” Hyde said. “On offense we’ll see an eight-man front all night long. We need to keep working hard on the run. We’ve had a great week of practice and it should be a great atmosphere Friday.”
Palisades’ junior varsity squad will try to cap an undefeated league season, having already secured at least a share of the league title with last week’s win at Fairfax. If Palisades loses and Fairfax wins its final game against Hamilton, the Dolphins will still be co-champions.
The JV game begins at 4 p.m., followed by the varsity at 7. The seniors will be honored in a brief ceremony before the opening kickoff.
— Steve Galluzzo
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