Leading up to Blair football’s final regular-season game against Northwest, head coach Sam Nosoff knew he would have a mess on his hands.

Not his team. The Blazers had rebounded from an 0-3 start and were playing their best football of the year with the postseason only a week away. Rather, Nosoff was concerned about a broken washing machine at Blair. That’s because, after the regular-season finale, the coach knew he would have a gigantic pile of dirty laundry to deal with.

Blair wore dark pants that week, when it lost 42-7. So, for the first round of the playoffs Nov. 6, Blair switched to its gray pants and white jerseys. The Blazers won 24-20 over Bethesda-Chevy Chase, and although Nosoff now had to take extra time to get the grass stains out of the light-colored attire, that uniform proved to be the winning combo for the superstitious group.

Blair stuck with it again last week and beat Wheaton 36-14. Now, as they prepare for the 4A state quarterfinals, the Blazers have no plans of switching. They’ll be sporting the gray pants and white jerseys as they travel to Churchill at 6:30 p.m. Friday.

“We’re stuck in it,” Nosoff said. “My philosophy is, if we keep winning, we’re going to keep wearing it.”

That 0-3 start wasn’t a huge surprise, Nosoff said. The team had to replace the majority of its defense and some of its offense, particularly on the offense live. The Blazers relied too much on the pass early in the season.

But, after pulling up sophomore center Rhys Hughes from the junior varsity, they adopted a more balanced approach.

That’s opened up the rushing game for Nate Watkins, who leads the team with 684 yards. Meanwhile, quarterback Malachi Rice has thrown for 1,212 yards and 10 touchdowns, while Jayden Parker, who Nosoff said is the best wide receiver he’s seen since he took over the team in 2018, has 703 receiving yards.

“He’s just instrumental in the program because he’s been around for three years,” Nosoff said. “He’s a leader. He’s a great character kid.”

Beating Churchill (10-1) will be a tough task for Blair. But the Blazers will be armed with their gray pants and white jerseys, cleaned by their coach himself.

“We’re going to have to take advantage of situations that present themselves,” Nosoff said, “and we can’t afford to give them any opportunity. We have to make them earn it.”

High school football: Quarterfinal matchups

Three other quarterfinals feature county teams.

Quince Orchard (11-0) is the reigning 4A state champions and will host Flowers (8-3) at 7 p.m. Friday. The Cougars easily won their first two playoff games, beating Gaithersburg 56-0 in the first round and Northwest 35-7 in the second.

Paint Branch (8-2) will host Broadneck (8-2) at 6:30 p.m. Friday. The Panthers won eight straight during the regular season before dropping their season finale against Churchill 20-18. Paint Branch had a first-round bye and defeated Blake 34-14 in the second round.

And Sherwood (9-1) welcomes North Point (4-7) at 6:30 p.m. Friday. North Point’s record is misleading — it had to forfeit its first seven games after a student was found ineligible, making this a much tougher matchup for Sherwood than a typical game between a No. 1 seed and a No. 8 seed.

High School girls basketball: Bullis gets rolling

Bullis, the No. 12 team in the nation, according to ESPN, tips off the season against Maret School at 4:15 p.m Tuesday. Ivanna Wilson-Manyacka, who is ranked No. 2 nationally for the class of 2027, leads Bullis. She was the 2024-25 Gatorade Maryland Player of the Year and is a member of the USA Basketball under-17 national team.

NFL: Saints vs. Falcons

Bryan Bresee, from Damascus, and Zaire Mitchell-Paden, from Rockville, will try to help the Saints to a much-needed win over Einstein graduate Arnold Ebiketie and the Falcons on Sunday at 4:25 p.m.

Bresee has 25 tackles this season and one forced fumble. Mitchell-Paden made his NFL debut this season for the Ravens and was claimed off waivers by the Saints on Oct. 24. He had one reception for 14 yards in his first game with them.

Ebiketie has 15 tackles and one sack.

Mountain biking: From adaptive to learn-to-ride programs

Roots-2-Rocks, a mountain biking program led by Montgomery Parks, is hosting multiple adaptive ride options from 1-3 p.m. Saturday at Black Hill Regional Park. The first is on a foot-pedaled recumbent bike for riders who can pedal but need the stability of a recumbent bike. The second is a Lasher recumbent handcycle for riders who need a low, seated position. Both groups will be accompanied by guides.

Have a game, athlete or story you think we should write about? Send me an email at danielle.allentuck@thebanner.com.