It’s success that’s easy to see.

But it started with work that was far from the spotlight.

Luke Kane and his Tamaqua teammates put the time in during the offseason. And it’s paid dividends.

Off to a 5-0 start, the Blue Raiders have been firing on all cylinders. And it continued last Friday.

Kane threw for 150 yards and a score, and ran for another 101 yards and two TDs as Tamaqua rolled to a 49-7 win over Salisbury.

It was a performance that helped the Blue Raiders close out the first half of the regular season with another dominant victory, and one that earned Kane Times News Football Player of the Week honors.

It’s success Tamaqua head coach Sam Bonner saw coming.

“It started off in the summer. We have a 90 percent club. He didn’t make 90 percent, he was here 100 percent of the time in the summer,” Bonner said of Kane. “He decided to not even go on vacation with his parents. He wanted to make sure he had a successful senior year and he did everything to prepare for that. I think it’s shown. And the other thing is, last year we started running him a little bit. We threw some extra stuff in this year to get him running the ball a little bit as well as throwing it.

“And it’s shown. I think he had over 100 yards rushing in the last two games. He’s been doing a pretty good job for us with his feet and with his arm this year. And that came with a lot of preparation. We threw some new stuff in, and you can’t throw that new stuff in in August. We started throwing that new stuff in June. And he was here, so we were able to kind of rep that and get good at it before the season started.”

Kane has done damage with his arm and legs all season. He is second in the area in passing with 619 yards, and sixth in rushing with 343 yards on 40 carries.

“We knew this was a very important year for us,” said Kane, who also had four tackles. “A lot of the seniors, I can’t tell you how many seniors are playing both sides of the ball. But we worked together the last three, four years and I think it showed in the last parts of the season last year where we all started to gel together, and that carried over in this season. We came out hot, came out working and I don’t think anyone wants to take their foot off the gas because everyone, in the back of their minds, knows it’s our last season together. So we want to continue to work together and have a great year.”

Last Friday, Kane was 6-of-9 passing, with Victor Schlosser making five grabs for 147 yards and a score.

The ground game was balanced and dynamic, rolling up over 300 yards. Bradley Whalen carried 10 times for 75 yards, Terrence McDowell had three carries for 68 yards and a score, Schlosser had four carries for 53 yards and two TDs, and Ace Schickram added a TD.

“I think we came out a little slower than we wanted to, but we still made plays on the ball,” said Kane. “But once we kind of locked it in, we gelled really well. Linemen getting downfield blocking for the running game. Passing-wise, Victor Schlosser getting open, that’s nothing new. I think everyone really came out hot last week and we really put it together. I had so much time in the pocket last week. I didn’t really have to run until I was physically forced to. But Bradley Whalen, Terrence McDowell, they both ran the ball very well for us. And I think it just really helped us get that dominant win last week.”

Tamaqua has the top offense in the area, averaging 394.4 yards per game, and has outscored opponents 194-59 this year.

“This senior class have been doing this since freshman year, so I think they all understand their assignments,” said Kane. “But I think they trust me as a quarterback. Starting for three years, they trust in me, and it helps in all phases. Victor Schlosser has been a receiver the last two years, but he knew exactly what he’s been doing since freshman year. And Declan Coleman is probably one of the best blocking tight ends I’ve ever seen in this area.

“That really helps us. And just our line in general. They’re all tough kids. They’re never going to stop until that final whistle.”

And that’s all these blue collar Blue Raiders know.

“I tell the guys before every game, go 1-0 every week,” said Kane. “We can’t look forward. We have some tougher games coming up, but I think we can compete with every single team. If we come out, and we play (our best) it should be a good game every single game. Coach (Eddie) Titus has told us every single week that we haven’t played our best game yet. And we still have time to play our best game, and it’s going to show when we do.”