Top 5 biggest games of the season for Gig Harbor, Peninsula football: No. 2

With football season approaching shortly for both Gig Harbor and Peninsula high schools, it’s a good time to look over the upcoming schedules for both the Tides and Seahawks, which are both looking to contend for the Class 3A South Sound Conference title this fall. Each week, starting on July 4, we’ll take a look at the five biggest games of the season for the local squads, counting down to the biggest game on the schedule.

This week, we continue with No. 2.

Fish Bowl: Peninsula at Gig Harbor, Oct. 25 at Roy Anderson Field

In the eyes of many, this is the biggest game of the season. And why not? The crosstown rivalry game packs thousands of fans into the seats and into standing-room only sections all the way around the track. Even if both teams were somehow winless entering the game, the bragging rights that come with winning the Fish Bowl are enough to get any player to get up for the big game.

Peninsula won last year’s meeting, 21-10, and has now won the past three in the series, with last year’s win officially knocking the Tides out of postseason contention.

This season’s outlook: Gig Harbor High School coach George Fairhart is still searching for his first win against Peninsula coach Ross Filkins.

Gig Harbor had a legitimate shot last year, leading at half and taking the game down to the wire until late in the fourth quarter. But as was the case with many of Gig Harbor’s games last year, the Tides simply weren’t able to find a way to finish down the stretch.

For the first season in a while, Gig Harbor could have the upper-hand with quarterback experience, as Peninsula three-year starting QB Burke Griffin graduated in the spring, leaving the Seahawks inexperienced at the positon. But Cade Dessert, who started a handful of games for the Tides last season, is expected to be the Gig Harbor starter this season and already has some meaningful game experience under his belt, showing flashes of being a quality signal caller in the Class 3A South Sound Conference.

But football, of course, is a team game, and there are few coaches in the state who have their teams as well-prepared week in and out as Filkins does. Expect Peninsula to be plenty prepared for this game and the “11 as 1” brand of football to make things tough for Gig Harbor. No matter who graduates for Peninsula any given year, the Seahawks have a way of reloading and getting each new crop of players to buy into the established culture of Seahawk football.

Why this game matters: For starters, no player on either side wants to lose the Fish Bowl. The players and coaches will say before the game that it’s the same as any other game. That sort of coach-speak plays well in the papers and doesn’t provide the opposing locker room with any bulletin board material, but in the players’ hearts, it’s not just any other game, and that much is understood.

More practically, though, a game this late in the season is likely to have playoff implications for both teams. Whether it’s a shot at a league title or simply securing a spot in the postseason, this contest will more than likely have some sort of tangible significance for the Tides and Seahawks. Add that to the emotion the rivalry game already carries, and fans are in for another treat this season.