With a district title on the line, the Whitehall football team will be venturing into some unfamiliar territory this Friday.

Their opponent in the 5A championship game is Southern Lehigh High School, a team they’ve never played before in football throughout the program’s history.

However, head coach Brian Gilbert, who spent 10 years as Palisades’ head coach, is familiar with the Colonial League denizens who finished the year at 8-2.

With the rollout of the new PIAA classifications in football, the Zephyrs are now playing schools of comparable size, and the Spartans are one of the biggest schools in the Colonial League, and this past winter the two teams met in the District XI 4A basketball playoffs.

One of the things that remains the same from Gilbert’s tenure as Palisades head coach is the man leading the Spartans. John Toman is now entering his 11th season and has compiled a 70-43 record over that span. While every year brings some new wrinkles, Gilbert said that the same philosophy still guides Toman’s Spartans.

They feature sophomore Logan Edmond at quarterback, a name that’s almost synonymous with that position at Southern Lehigh. Logan’s older brothers Ty and Travis also played quarterback at Southern Lehigh.

Gilbert said that Edmond may be young, but he has a lot of experience. He’s been groomed to play the position and has been tutored by some talented siblings.

Edmond has thrown for over 1,600 yards this season, including 17 TDs. Gilbert said that most of the time Edmond will line up in the shotgun. He also has a strong supporting cast, including running back Luke Strauss who went over the 1,000 yard mark in their win over Catasauqua on Oct. 21.

Along with Strauss, they have fullback Zach Mohr, along with receivers Tim Walter and Mike Moyer, with Moyer serving primarily as tight end.

They also have a stout defense, said Gilbert. They’ve allowed 129 points this season over 11 games, averaging just a shade under 12 points a game. That group is led by defensive linemen Gary Popowitz, Zach Rudolph and Brandon Derby, along with linebacker Mike Sisselberger.

The Spartans finished second in the Colonial League to Saucon Valley and will be looking to continue their postseason journey with a team that’s capable of striking pay dirt from anywhere on the field.

“They have good team speed,” said Gilbert. “They have good players and they’re well coached.”

Gilbert said that they’ll run a lot of misdirection. They’re also not shy about throwing the ball, posing a threat through the air as well. Gilbert said that it’s important to make sure they stay strong with their assignments.

“Our eyes have to be on our keys,” he said.

He also said that they love to mix in the play action, and they’ll have to be ready for that as well.

“They’re just a really solid team,” said Gilbert.

The Zephs feature the best passing combination in the Valley, as both Zach Gilbert and Dez Boykin became newly minted members in the Whitehall record book in their win over East Stroudsburg North last Friday.

Zach Gilbert now owns the single season touchdown mark (currently 23), while Boykin is the single season yardage leader (currently 960). Both those players should eclipse two more records when they meet at Bethlehem Area School District Stadium this Friday. Zach Gilbert is on the cusp of breaking the single season yardage mark, needing just 63 yards to set the record. That would put him over 2,163 yards, Chad Schwenk’s total in 1998. Boykin needs just two catches to pass Tyler Artim’s record of 65 set in 2010.

The Spartans will be forced to stop a host of talented skill players, including backs Tavion George (660 yards rushing, 8 TDs) and Braxton Marrero (475 yards, 5 TDs). They’ll also feature receivers Jackson Buskirk (4 TDs), Devin Castro (2 TDs), Kasai Harrison (3 TDs) and Ryan Klaugh (TD). In addition, tight ends Jacob Snyder (3 TDs) and Devin Martinez (TD) can also hit for big gains.

Zach Gilbert knows that Southern Lehigh is usually vying for a Colonial League championship ever year, so their work will be cut out for them.

“They’re going to be fired up to play us, this is going to be their Super Bowl, but again we haven’t won a district championship in 15 years, so it will be our Super Bowl, too,” said Zach Gilbert.

The last time the Zephs won a district championship was in 1997.

Gilbert said that they must make sure that they’re prepared to win the game, and not become intent on winning a championship.