The Emmaus football team started the second half of its season with an important Eastern Pennsylvania Conference win over Freedom to remain unbeaten at 6-0 overall. It is one of the best starts the program has had in years, but head coach Harold Fairclough knows the importance of keeping his team focused.

“We’ve had a good start to the season, but I always tell the kids that it’s not over,” Fairclough said. “I don’t want them to listen to all of the talk from outside of the program. We want to stay focused and work hard each and every day and keep getting better.”

The Green Hornets so far this season have followed the message.

This weekend, Emmaus will see a team that has struggled at times, but still has some key wins on its resume.

Nazareth (3-3 overall) opened up 0-2, but has won three of its last four games, including a victory at Whitehall. In their victory against Northampton last Friday night, the Blue Eagles opened up a 21-0 lead at halftime, and were up 35-0 before the Konkrete Kids even got on the board.

The Nazareth offense runs through the arms and the legs of senior two-way player Travis Stefanik. The quarterback threw for 112 yards and two touchdowns, and ran one into the endzone.

“Nazareth is a deceptively good team,” said Fairclough. “They’ve won some good games, and are hot right now. We have to be ready to play against them. [Travis] Stefanik is a really good athlete that can do a lot. He can beat you through the air or on the ground. We will have to make sure we contain him on defense.”

While the Emmaus offense has been equally as impressive throwing and running the ball, the win over Freedom was more about the rushing attack on a rainy evening. Sophomore Lubens Myers ran for 130 yards on 30 carries and scored a pair of touchdowns. The Green Hornets gained 261 yards rushing overall as the conditions dictated they move in that direction offensively. They ran the ball 52 times on 69 snaps, but don’t expect that to be the same recipe Friday night.

“Coming into the season we were focused on having more of a well-balanced offense,” Fairclough added. “We have a lot of talented guys, including [running backs] Lubens and Sone Ntoh, but Derek [Sheaffer] has done a good job of running the offense the way we want it to go.”

Emmaus looks to keep its perfect mark going another week in front of the home crowd.