Dalton Clymer plays downhill.

Whether it’s on offense as a bruising ball-carrier, or on defense delivering laying the lumber from his linebacker position.

Clymer’s style is straightforward. And it’s usually hard to stop.

The senior ran the ball 14 times for 181 yards and four touchdowns in last Friday’s 43-15 victory over Saucon Valley. Clymer was also tied for the team lead in tackles with eight.

It was a performance that earned him Times News Football Player of the Week honors.

“I would say, just being the two positions that I play are running back and middle linebacker, you’ve got to love and be able to take that contact, and I do,” said Clymer. “That’s the type of player I am. I don’t shy away from it. I’ll go lay the wood just to set a tone, and that’s one thing our linebacker coach (Ryan) Hulmes tells me before every game. ‘Hey, if you get a chance on one of these first runs, go lay somebody out. Send a message.’

“It’s always a good feeling when you get those good pops. But that’s just my running style. That’s how I’m able to run, and that’s how I’m able to succeed, so it’s fun, but it’s definitely what I’m good at.”

And Clymer was great at it last Friday, as he averaged 12.9 yards per carry and ripped off a 43-yard run.

“You can tell he’s a three-year starter,” said Tigers’ head coach Josh Snyder. “He’s everything that you’d want in a leader with all that experience. Breaking in two new quarterbacks (Shane Leh and Mason Bollinger), I think what’s nice for me and us really is, he helps them out with directing the offense, with audibling the O-line and making sure they’re seeing the signals and communicating that to the rest of our team, first and foremost.

“And that just goes to show, A: leadership; and B: just the IQ, the sense of the offense, knowing where everybody needs to be and things like that. How we go is how our run game goes. We sort of need a back that’s going to gain positive yards, not a guy that’s going to go east and west, but a guy that’s going to go north and south. And he’s always been that kid. He’s always been that guy, and he’s learned to be patient, he’s learned to sort of find the seams and alleys, and when he squares up his shoulders and he’s going north and south, he’s a difference-maker for us. We move the chains that way, and with the development of the other guys, everything goes off of that; then the speed sweeps start to kick in, and the play-action starts to kick in. But everything is predicated off of our ability to run the ball downhill, and Dalton’s our man, and he’s been our man for three years there, and he’s only just gotten better and better and better.”

This season, Clymer is third in the area with 656 yards rushing (7.63 yards per carry) and has scored 12 touchdowns, second-best in the area.

Northwestern has been firing on all cylinders on both sides of the ball. The Tigers are tied for an area-best averaging 43 points per game, and have allowed a total of just 49 points in their 6-0 start.

The defense’s 136.0 yards per game allowed is the best in the area, while the offense’s 376.8 yards per game average ranks second.

Leh (636 yards) and Bollinger, both sophomores, have spearheaded a passing attack that has put up almost 1,000 yards (915) this season in their first season behind center.

A year ago, quarterback Cade Christopher ran for 1,888 yards and 27 scores, while Clymer piled up 1,445 yards and 17 TDs.

The year before that, quarterback Justin Holmes passed for 1,295 yards and 18 scores and ran for 1,267 yards and 20 TDs, while Clymer rushed for 590 yards and nine scores.

Clymer has been a stabilizing - and pulverizing - force for the offense throughout his career.

“That’s kind of all thanks to coach Snyder,” said Clymer. “He comes up with a great game plan every year. It might be a new cast of characters that we always have, but he always finds a way to fit everybody in and come away with the best possible groups we can to succeed, and that’s what he’s done again so far this year.

“Not much has changed for me year to year. I’m the type of back I am; I’m very downhill, I’m going to run it whenever he needs me to. But I think the rest of it is him. He’s done a great job putting together that group.”

Northwestern has won 11 games (22-4) each of the last two seasons, and captured the District 11 Class 3A crown a year ago.

The Tigers are on track for another big season in Clymer’s final campaign, something he hopes will end with another deep postseason run.

“With every win, we definitely gain more confidence going into the end of the season,” said Clymer. “The more confidence we can build going into the end, I think the better off we’re going to be. Everybody’s performing at a super-high level right now. You saw it on Friday, probably our best game yet, and so hopefully with that the more and more confidence we grow we can continue to perform and just make this season last as long as possible.”