The preseason hype train has left the station with the high school football season just 24 hours away. During the week, area football fans have been discussing which teams and players are expected to have big years.

As far as hype is concerned, there are two players in the Times News area that fans are talking about.

All-State players from a season ago, Palmerton quarterback Matt Machalik and Jim Thorpe defensive tackle Noah Rosahac, have proven over the last two seasons that the hype is no hyberbole.

Syracuse commit Rosahac and Lehigh commit Machalik are expected to have dominant senior campaigns in 2023.

The phrase “Offense sells tickets” perfectly sums up Machalik’s career for the Bombers, because there hasn’t been a bigger gate draw on Friday nights in the fall in Carbon County. Machalik has put together a career that features both video game highlights and video game statistics.

The senior signal caller has surpassed most of the Bombers’ offensive records with a season yet to go.

He owns the following Palmerton Blue Bombers football records: single-season passing yards (2,554 yards), single-season passing touchdowns (31), career touchdown passes (49), career rushing yards (3,206 yards) and career touchdowns scored (58). He is 69 yards away from breaking the career passing yardage mark, sitting at 4,526.

Last season, Machalik also became the first player in District 11 history to throw for 300 yards (305) and rush for 200 yards (230) in the same game, doing it against Jim Thorpe.

“I’ve obviously been there on the sidelines for every one of his high school games, and sometimes it does look like you’re watching a video game with some of the things he can do out there on the field,” said Palmerton head coach Chris Walkowiak. “He has certainly put up some video game like numbers in his career, as he owns most of our program records already.

“It’s incredible what he is able to do with both his legs and his arm from the quarterback position. And this season, we’re really excited to see what he is going to do. This is his fourth year now at quarterback for us, and the game has really slowed down for him. So, when you couple that with his natural instincts and athleticism, I think you’re going to see some special performances.”

Rosahac - the Olympians’ physical and towering defensive tackle - has been casting a shadow over Thorpe’s opponents for the past two seasons. The 6-6, 275-pound monster possesses both the size and speed that can’t be replicated and, in most cases, can’t be defended.

Last season, Rosahac put together one of the most dominant defensive line performances in recent history, collecting 84 tackles, eight sacks and an extraordinary 25 tackles for loss. In his career for the Olympians on the defensive side of the ball, Rosahac has 170 tackles, 9.5 sacks and 52 tackles for loss.

“Noah has size, explosiveness, athleticism, the footwork and most importantly an amazing understanding of the game. He really has it all and I think that’s why you see programs the caliber of Syracuse and other Division 1 schools wanting to make him a part of their programs,” said Jim Thorpe head coach Mark Rosenberger.

“Pair all those attributes with a tremendous work ethic and what you get is one heck of a good football player. And a lot of that is a credit to his family. He comes from a great family, his two brothers came through our program and were great kids and players, so I think that definitely is a contributing factor to all of Noah’s success, so far, in his career. We’re really excited to see what he can do this season. He looks great and once again dominant, and has definitely stepped up his leadership, bringing along some of our younger and less-experienced linemen, helping them to get better.”

It’s no secret that Machalik at quarterback and Rosahac at defensive tackle have been dominant at those respective positions, but both have also made significant impacts on the opposite side of the ball.

Rosahac is actually headed to Syracuse to play the tackle position on the offensive line for the Orange.

“Again, Noah’s football IQ up front for us on the offensive side of the ball is also next level, and that has been huge for us this offseason, as we are breaking in a younger starting offensive line unit. He has been working hard to help get that unit better every day,” Rosenberger said.

“The way he reads his blocks and protects and then also his athleticism at getting out and blocking in space for someone his size is something you rarely ever see at the high school level.”

Machalik not only starts at safety on the defensive side of the ball for the Bombers, but also serves as Palmerton’s punt returner, kick returner and holder on extra point attempts.

“Matt is just a dedicated kid. Whether that’s on the field, off the field in the classroom or in any of the other sports he plays. He’s always been selfless, and he’s always the first one to thank his teammates and give them credit for any individual accolades he may receive,” Walkowiak said.

“He has the respect of both his teammates and his coaches for the way he plays the game. I think anyone who has watched Matt play is excited to what his future holds.”