Special... special teams.

There are many special characteristics that this season’s Northwestern Lehigh football team possesses.

But it’s the Tigers’ approach to an often-overlooked phase of football that has often helped them to swing momentum in games.

A concerted effort to not only be good, but to be dynamic on special teams is yet another reason why Northwestern finds itself in the PIAA 3A state semifinals for a second straight season.

The Tigers’ commitment to special teams once again paid huge dividends, and made a significant impact in their matchup with District 2 3A champion Scranton Prep last week in the PIAA 3A state quarterfinals.

Leading 7-0, a spectacular 80-yard punt return by Eli Zimmerman gave Northwestern a 14-0 lead early in the third quarter, which helped spark a 21-point third en route to an eventual 34-0 victory.

It was Zimmerman’s sixth punt return touchdown of the season, and the team’s seventh overall, with Seth Kern also having scored on a punt return.

“In my tenure here as head coach, we have always made special teams a big point of emphasis. I know it’s not looked at this way by every coach, but we look at it as one-third of the game. We look at the game as offense, defense and special teams,” said Northwestern head coach Josh Snyder. “Of course, when you have a special player like Eli, you’re going to see some dynamic plays, but we look at special teams as a phase of the game that can really swing momentum.

“We believe it deserves a lot of emphasis. The way we do it, is that each coach gets one part of special teams, and they take ownership and responsibility of that team. And all of our coaches really take pride in that. We do our homework, and we do a lot of film study to be as successful as we can week in and week out.

“We are also a big believer on playing a lot of starters on special teams. We want our best athletes out there. We do have a few younger guys that we have on those units that have earned and deserve that opportunity too. Overall, we just think special teams is just too important to not put a big emphasis on it.”

Northwestern (14-0) will once again look for those momentum-swinging plays as it takes on District 4 3A champion Danville (13-0) in the PIAA 3A semifinals at Berwick at 7 p.m. on Friday night. According to the PA Football News State Football Rankings, Northwestern is ranked No. 1 in the state in 3A, while Danville is ranked No. 2.

The Ironmen have one of the best one-two punches on offense in the state in quarterback Madden Patrick and running back Bo Sheptock. Patrick has thrown for 2,476 yards and 27 touchdowns to just five interceptions, and has also ran for 382 yards and four rushing scores. Sheptock is near the 2,000-yard rushing mark, as he’s rushed for 1,935 yards and 34 touchdowns, and has also been a good target out of the backfield for Patrick, hauling in 19 balls for 391 yards and nine touchdowns.

Danville has two wide receivers that the Tigers’ defense will need to focus on in Cole Duffy (934 receiving yards, nine TDs) and Carter Raup (558 receiving yards, six TDs).

The Northwestern defense was once again dominant last week, shutting out Scranton Prep, holding the Cavaliers to just 66 yards of total offense. On the season, the Tigers are giving up just 134.5 total yards per game.

“They have a host of guys that can make plays for them,” said Snyder. “It starts with their quarterback. He’s very poised back there. He has a quick release, and he has a nice group of receivers to work with. What he’s really good at is extending plays. He will scramble not as much to run, as he will to look to pass it down field. And his receivers do a good job of running the scramble drill and getting open for him. He is a difficult matchup for any team.

“And then they have a really nice running back in Sheptock. He can bust a big play at any time. They run a spread offense, but they’re really balanced with their attack.”

Against a strong and physical Scranton Prep defense, Northwestern was able to put together a solid performance offensively, compiling 348 total yards, which included 237 yards on the ground. Zimmerman rushed for 149 yards, giving him a total of 2,221 rushing yards for the season. He needs 165 more rushing yards to break the Northwestern single-season rushing yards record held by Brett Snyder.

On the season, the Tigers’ offense is averaging 284.7 rushing yards per game.

“Defensively, they’re a 4-4 base defense, and they will show a 50 front as well,” said Snyder. “They’re a very aggressive defense, and they like to blitz. They like to get in the gaps and disrupt things, and they come up with a lot of negative plays. Our goal is to try and stay on and ahead of schedule, especially on first down. We also have to try and take advantage of their aggressiveness.”