While defense is a source of confidence for Mingus Union High School heading into its opener Friday, Aug. 21, at home against Cactus Shadows High School, the offensive line needs to step up, head coach Bob Young said.
Senior quarterback Jordan Upham has been executing a strong running attack but didn’t receive enough protection from his line to have time to pass, Young said.
“That’s the big thing right now — mainly, giving the quarterback time to throw,” he said. “Our offensive line did a nice job run blocking, but pass pro[tection], we had some breakdowns.”
Junior Stephen McClanahan accepted his share of responsibility in not giving Upham at least three seconds to throw.
“I was one of those guys,” he said. “I need to work on my pass protection, definitely.”
Senior line mate Nathan Jones believes success there is a simple matter of mechanics.
“We’ve just been working really hard on pass-block technique,” he said. “We work really well together as a line, have really good unity.”
The Marauders’ defense gave up no touchdowns Wednesday, Aug. 12, in 60 scrimmage plays against Alhambra, Copper Canyon and Sandra Day O’Connor high schools.
“Our first and second defense looked sharp,” Young said. “That was encouraging.”
He was also heartened by what senior slotback Tristan Clark and junior tight end Trevor Galloway showed they were capable of doing on pass plays.
“If [defenses] are crowding the box with eight or nine guys, we’ve got to be able to throw the ball a little bit,” he said. “Our offense is dictated on taking what defenses give us.”
After watching film on the Falcons, who, along with MUHS, were reclassified by the Arizona Interscholastic Association from Division II to III, Young knows his team will need to respond to a size disadvantage.
“They’re going to be bigger than us on the line of scrimmage,” he said. “They’ve got a lot of guys coming back — seven on offense and, I think, seven on defense.”
Photos of the Mingus Union High School varsity football team in preparation for its home opener Friday, Aug. 21, against Cactus Shadows High School were not available to the Cottonwood Journal Extra. Photographer Zack Garcia could not take pictures of practice Monday, Aug. 17, as he had been ejected from campus earlier by Athletic Director Allen Mitchell in violation of First Amendment protections of the media and the public’s right to know.
