HUDSON, Fla. — The Fivay High School football team has forged a clear identity.
“The first couple of weeks we had to feel it out and find our guy,” Fivay’s first-year head coach Tony Egan said.
The Falcons pound the rock and wear down defenses.
“He runs the ball hard,” Egan said. “We got a good line that works downhill.”
Senior running back Je’barri Brown runs with purpose.
“It feels amazing,” Brown said. “Every time I make a big play, I come back to my huddle and congratulate them for blocking really good. I let my coach know that was a good play call.”
He’s been doing that a lot lately.
Through the first five games of the season, going into their bye week, Brown was leading the state with 1,014 rushing yards, averaging nearly 203 yards per game, and had scored 12 touchdowns.
“His vision is great,” offensive lineman Jaydin Miller said. “I see him make some plays where he should be tackled in the backfield, to where he’s 30 yards downfield. His vision is excellent. You've got to give him credit.”
Brown credits the big boys on the offensive line, while they just enjoy the show after clearing a path.
“It’s great when I get to see him run 50 yards into the end zone. We go celebrate. I love it," Miller added.
Last season was Brown’s first to ever play varsity football. He only played defense and set a school record with 12 sacks.
Egan knew he had something special in Brown and switched him to offense for his senior year.
“I just saw the athleticism, and really, in the spring, we had him at wildcat quarterback,” Egan said. "We call it broken Falcon formation.”
“I just give credit to my teammates for helping me throughout every game and my coach for giving me a chance to play offense this year,” Brown said.
The school record for rushing yards in a single game is 383. This team expects Brown to shatter that record.
“He’s had two games where he’s 347 and 356,” Egan said. “I didn’t know the record was 383 until I asked the athletic director. Man, we pulled him out with 16 minutes left in the game. One more carry and he would've got it.”
Fivay will play West Port High School on Friday night.
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