Jordan HammThe Marcos de Niza football scored early in 2014, and they scored often.
The Padres averaged 35 points per game in 2014 with then-sophomore quarterback Naz Greer at the helm. Greer fit right in instantly, throwing for 38 touchdowns and rushing for an additional six. Some of his targets may have moved on, but that won’t hinder expectations.
“We had a lot of seniors who graduated, but we have a a few guys coming back that spent a lot of time with him last year, and we have a couple young guys coming up from JV that look really good,” Marcos de Niza head football coach Sean Morin said. “We’re just hoping to put a real competitive out there and let Naz do his thing.”
Greer’s favorite target, Anthony Trujillo, returns as a senior and led the team with nine touchdowns in 2014. The duo’s connection stems from way before they were donning the brown and gold.
“I’ve been playing with him since probably about third grade,” Greer said. “He’s always been my top receiver…he ended up being my top receiver last year. He’s looking good again this year, so he might be up there again.”
Morin is knee-deep in future rushing yards, and he doesn’t hide it. When asked about his options on the ground, he said, “We’re going to run a lot next year” through a grin as if he was visualizing his ground game dismantling defenses when the fall rolls around.
In addition to Greer, who ran track this past spring, senior running backs Avery Sanders and Shaun Richards create a versatile backfield. Richards, who is also a track star, is a burner that can stretch the field. Pair that with Sanders, who is a self-proclaimed “heavy runner”, and the Padres have three rushers who will attack defenses early and often in 2015.
“They’re interchangeable. Obviously, they both have their strengths. I feel very confident in having either one of them in the game or hopefully having both of them in the game at the same time,” Morin said.
“We have a lot of weapons,” Richards said. “I don’t feel like we fell off at all. We have a lot of offensive weapons this year, and we are just as much (explosive) if not better.”
More explosive than 2014 is a scary thought for the Padres’ opponents.
