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Saturday, December 1, 2007
The Next Crop
Fort Worth, TX
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The North Texas area is seldom at a lack of talent at quarterback, and these four local juniors have proven this season that they will be among those to keep an eye on next year.
Of all the positions on a football team, quarterback has the potential to be the biggest double-edged sword.
Throw a go-ahead touchdown pass in the waning seconds of close game and you are the hero. Throw an interception on the same play and you are the goat. Dustin Stenta, Phillip Gonzales, Christian Matthews and Jason Dillon have all accepted the role and everything it entails, and to the delight of their coaches and teammates, all four will return to play another season in 2008.
In his first season as the starting quarterback for Keller Central, Stenta was among the top passers in the highly competitive District 5-5A, which includes the likes of Southlake Carroll, Grapevine and Colleyville Heritage.
“He's a good athlete,” Central coach Bart Helsley said. “He's got a good arm, and he's pretty accurate. He has the ability to move around in the pocket and also make some things happen on the run as well.”
Helsley said it is good to know that “a kid with his skills and talent level,” is going to be back next year and said he has been extremely satisfied with Stenta's efforts.
“His completion percentage is up around 60 percent,” Helsley said before the season finale against Justin Northwest. “I think he has 28 touchdowns to nine interceptions, so I think that shows that he's making some pretty good decisions and trying to take care of the football.”
Stenta said he tries to bring strong leadership to his team, but added that he feels he still does have a lot to learn.
“This is my first year on varsity,” Stenta said. “There are a couple of experienced guys on there, so I just try to listen to them, and they always show me the way. I try to never put my head down and show everybody that we are not out of a game.”
Stenta realized last spring that he would likely become the starter when his main competition for the role transferred to Boswell. The Keller Central junior said he was still not without reservations.
“Going into the season, I was hoping that I would not be one of the downfalls of the team,” Stenta said. “I was worried about that, so I was like, 'That's not going to happen to me. I have to prepare for everything possible.'”
Stenta said he is excited about next season because the Chargers will return at least seven players on offense and six or seven on defense.
Central’s district rival, Richland, also has an outstanding junior quarterback that has proven to be a threat through the air and on the ground this season.
Gonzales helped lead the Rebels to the brink of a playoff berth this season, and Richland coach Gene Wier said it is comforting to have such a versatile player at the helm.
“Last year, he played receiver, and was the 5-5A Sophomore of the Year on offense,” Wier said. “That's pretty tough to do in our district. He has very good speed, and he's added the dimension of a run game that I thought we badly needed. We realized pretty early on that he was going to be a good player. Talent doesn't hide.”
Gonzales combined for over 1,500 all-purpose yards along with 16 touchdowns. Wier said getting the Richland junior back for another season is going to be quite a luxury.
“We can accelerate what we're doing on offense next year,” Wier said. “Everything goes much faster, because you are not stopping to teach.”
Gonzales said he mainly tries to remain positive because “that's what the whole entire team feeds off of.” He added that it is his ability to run that “gets him places.”
“I just do what the coach says, really, but I actually prefer to pass, because we have some amazing receivers,” Gonzales said. “I've got pretty good speed, so if running the ball works for us, that's what I am going to do.”
Matthews is the only player in the group that has been the starting varsity quarterback for the past two seasons, and with over 20 touchdown passes on the year, the Arlington Bowie junior has led the Volunteers to an Arlington city title for the second consecutive season.
Bowie has also achieved a top 10 ranking in the state, according to the AP State football poll, and coach Kenneth Perry said he could not ask for more from his quarterback.
“He's one of those kids where you say 'he's got it,'” Perry said. “From the way he carries himself, he's got so much athletic ability; he's a tall quarterback, he can throw, he can run—he's just got the whole package as a quarterback.”
Perry said he and the coaching staff like to joke that they are going to have Matthews for “two senior years” since he started as a sophomore, and Matthews said while he is always prepared for the games, he tries to remember that it is supposed to be fun.
“I try not to be too serious, but to be focused at the same time,” Matthews said. “I want to still have the mentality to have fun.”
Matthews was originally the starting quarterback on the junior varsity squad heading into his sophomore season, but after the starting and backup quarterbacks didn’t make it through the entire first scrimmage, Matthews went in and has never looked back.
“When they got hurt, all I could think was 'I'll just try to help the team,'” Matthews said. “I just tried to do what I know how to do.”
Dillon is the only 4A player in the bunch and is actually a two-sport athlete, playing point guard on the FW Southwest basketball team as well.
The Raiders quarterback has combined for well over 2,000 yards of total offense this season and led Southwest to a district championship in the 7-4A West Zone.
“He's just a tremendous play maker,” coach Paul Phillips said. “The average guy can't do the things he does. It's something you can't coach, and it just makes a real difference on a team when you have a guy like that who can get you things, at times, that you don't really earn.”
Southwest, like the other three quarterbacks’ teams, runs a spread offense, and Phillips said Dillon's scrambling ability really comes in handy.
“With the spread, you're a lot better off if you've got a mobile quarterback,” Phillips said. “Jason brings that to the table.”
Dillon counts Tony Romo among the athletes he most admires and said he tries to emulate what he feels are the Dallas Cowboys quarterback's best qualities.
“He brings everything to the table,” Dillon said. “He's a team player, he's not real cocky. You have to go out and give everything you have and play every game like it's your last game.”
Dillon remains humble about the success he has had and is quick to acknowledge his teammates part in what he has been able to accomplish.
“I don't give myself as much credit as I give my offensive line and receivers,” Dillon said. “We all are a team, and we do it together...every time we go out there, I just try to do something better and improve.”
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