Tides open playbook to spread attack

Bulk of defensive team returns

Marques Hunter

of the Gateway

Gig Harbor football is washing up on shore.

The Tides’ program is bringing in a completely new offense and a few other surprises along the way.

The trend in college football has fallen upon the Gig Harbor football team, as the Tides are moving to a shotgun-spread formation.

The move is an unprecedented offensive strategy under head coach Darren McKay, who traditionally used a modified Wing-T formation.

No longer will Gig Harbor run the ball 90 percent of the time. The Tides won’t necessarily rely on smashing the football up the middle or running the ball off tackle to win games.

Instead, Tides senior quarterback Chet Thompson will lead an offense that will attack in a number of different ways. McKay believes their personnel fits the newly designed offense.

“We force people to make tackles if we spread it out,” McKay said. “There have been games when we didn’t throw the ball and guys were getting banged up.”

McKay said he has enough depth to substitute an entire defense, which will help keep his offensive players fresh in a more balanced attack.

Wide receiver Tanner Davis and safety Jeff Filmer could likely be the only two players going both ways, McKay said.

The players are excited about the new offense, saying it could produce a deeper run in the playoffs. Last year, Gig Harbor reached the Class 4A state preliminary round before being shut out by Bothell.

“I think when you run the ball, it wears your body through the season,” said Davis, a senior. “For us to make a run in the playoffs, we have to stay healthy. That’s a big issue.”

Thompson will assume the bulk of the offensive responsibilities. He’s excited, though, and can’t wait to play in the Tides’ first game against the Olympia Bears at 7 p.m. Friday at Roy Anderson Field.

“It’s going to be fun,” Thompson said. “We’re going to mix it up a bit.”

In a sense, it’s been easy for the opposing teams to predict what Gig Harbor would do on offense. The Tides’ philosophy has been to run the ball right at opponents, daring them to stop it.

“If we’re passing more or running with different people, it’s harder for them to know who gets the ball,” Thompson said.

Gig Harbor lost a bulk of its offensive line to graduation, so the team will rely more heavily on speed and smart blocking.

“We’re not going to be as big up front, but our linemen are a lot faster and built for this type of offense,” Davis said.

McKay said the Tides may look similar to the NCAA’s West Virginia Mountaineers, who run a misdirection ground game out of the shotgun, as well as quarterback options.

On the defensive side of the ball, a strong nucleus returns for Gig Harbor. One of those athletes is middle linebacker Dalton Darmody, who was an all-league honorable mention selection last season.

“We’re fast and physical, and we have a lot of seniority,” Darmody said. “I just want to get some hits in.”

Another returning defensive player is first team all-league pick Jim Dahl, a senior who missed the final three games last year due to a season-ending knee injury.

“Most people get bored just seeing runs up the middle,” Dahl said. “It’s going to be an exciting year to watch.”

Dahl said the defense seems to be generally faster and they will “come after you.”

“I think the senior leadership helps your chances,” he said about not only going to the state tournament but advancing deep into the playoffs. “We have a tough schedule, and it will prepare us for the rest of the season.”

The Tides have a top-heavy schedule with Olympia, Bellarmine, Central Kitsap and South Kitsap for the first four games. They won’t play Stadium or Lincoln, two teams that won only two league games combined last year.

Davis said he’s happy to be playing those teams at the beginning.

“When the end of the season comes, we’re going to say we played the best of the best in our league,” Davis said. “We’re going to be tested the first four weeks. People are going to know what we’re about.”

McKay said the Tides return more players than any of their opponents.

“It’s tradition that we are a playoff team,” he said. “It’d be disappointing if we didn’t make the playoffs.”

Key returners

Defense

Tanner Davis, sr., S/WR, 5-feet-10, 187 pounds, first team all-league DB as a junior, three-year starter, 11 career INTs. Power cleans 305 pounds, bench presses 315. Runs 4.63 seconds in the 40-yard dash. Only two-way starter on the team and is also a special teams returner

Jim Dahl, sr., LB, 6-3, 217, first team all-league LB despite missing three games with season-ending knee surgery. Three-year starter and most recruited upperclassman on the team. Power cleans and benches more than 300 pounds. Runs 40 in 4.67 seconds.

Dalton Darmody, sr., LB, 5-11, 207, honorable mention all-league selection as a junior. Three-year starter. Bench presses 290 and power cleans 285. Runs 40 in 4.90 seconds.

Jeff Filmer, sr., S, 5-10, 180, honorable mention all-league selection as a junior. Three-year starter. Bench presses 280 pounds, power cleans 250. Runs 40 in 4.70 seconds. Only player outside of Davis who plays on both sides of ball (RB). Also a kick returner.

Dane Burki, sr., LB, 6-2, 210, two-year starter. Runs 40 in 4.77 seconds.

Tyson Flath, sr., LB, 5-11, 218. Started multiple games as a junior. Played both DE and FB. Moved to LB this year.

Shane Owens, sr., DE, 6-2, 220. Started multiple games as a junior.

Offense

Chet Thompson, sr., QB, 6-2, 175. Although his 40 time of 4.63 seconds is tied with two others for the second fastest on the team (Nico Youngren runs a 4.62), Thompson is considered the fastest on the field. All-league center fielder and college/pro prospect in baseball. Thompson had two surgeries in the offseason that have completely healed (foot, hernia). He is also the team’s punt returner.

Nico Youngren, sr., RB, 5-11, 191. Started half of his sophomore year and was expected to carry the load last year. Became ill during the third game of season and was later diagnosed with juvenile arthritis. Came back for the last two games. He’s healthy now and was selected as an all-league baseball player this past spring. Power cleans 290 pounds and squats more than 400. Runs the 40 in 4.62 seconds.

Ben Reimer, sr., TE/WR, 6-4, 210, three-year starter. Power cleans 315 pounds and squats more than 400. Runs 40 in 4.8 seconds.

Nick Johnson, sr., OL, 6-0, 240, two-year starter. Bench presses 335 pounds; power cleans 275.

Austin Hershman, sr., OL, 5-10, 220.

Zach Olson, sr., OL, 6-2, 250.

Louis Lanza, sr., WR, 5-10, 170.

Drew Burghardt, sr., WR, 6-0, 180.

Zach Hodges, sr., WR, 6-3, 205.

Austin Seferian Jenkins, so., TE/WR, 6-6, 255. Jenkins, who has raw talent with big potential, likely will be one of the most recruited football players in the state in the next three years. After attending the University of Washington football camp this past summer, he was offered a scholarship. Coaches from USC, Arizona State and Washington State all came by this past spring to gather information while Jenkins was still a freshman.

Jay Ubben, sr., K, 5-11, 180, first team all-league as a junior.

Gig Harbor Tides football

Coach: Darren McKay

Team history: Last playoff appearance was last season, when the Tides reached the Class 4A state preliminary round. They have Narrows League Bridge Division titles in 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2006. The Tides have never finished lower than second place in the Narrows League.

Biggest upside: Quarterback and nucleus of defense is back

Key losses: Tyler Hopkins, Brendan Saltvick

Biggest games: Season-opener on Friday at home against Olympia and at South Kitsap on Sept. 26.

Tides football schedule

Date Opponent Time

Sept. 5 Olympia 7 p.m.

Sept. 12 Bellarmine 7 p.m.

Sept. 19 at Central Kitsap 7 p.m.

Sept. 26 at South Kitsap 7 p.m.

Oct. 3 at Peninsula 7 p.m.

Oct. 10 at Foss 7 p.m.

Oct. 16 Wilson 7 p.m.

Oct. 24 Mount Tahoma 7 p.m.

Oct. 30 at Shelton 7 p.m.