When Dayshawn Peterson first played a football game at 10 years old, he was enlightened.
The rush, the intensity, the furious flight from defenders. It was everything for a child who was just as electric with the ball in his hands then as he is now.
“Felt like lightning went through my body,” Peterson said.
It’s a lot how opposing defenses feel these days lining up against the 6-foot-2, 195-pound Alvin senior.
Peterson is redefining the fullback position. He is tall, fast, athletic and strong. The anchor of the Yellowjackets’ triple option offense, Peterson has rushed for 629 yards and seven touchdowns on 64 carries through four games, good for 9.8 yards per carry.
He is a fullback in name only. Peterson is not the stocky, 5-foot-8 plugger that fullbacks are thought to be.
How many fullbacks run a 4.6 40-yard dash?
“I tell all the college guys when they come through to not be scared because he’s labeled a flexbone fullback,” coach James Gage said. “He’s a running back playing fullback. He’s got vision, he’s got feet. He’s got speed. He just happens to put his hand in the ground instead of being a standup running back that you see all the time.”
Peterson remembers the first touchdown he scored playing for the Alvin Raiders in little league.
“Felt really good,” he said. “Seeing my team cheer me on and celebrating with me was the happiest moment of my life. It was extremely fun to play ball with the team I had. They felt like family to me.”
Since then, Peterson has always had a knack for the end zone. He has 19 touchdowns in his last 14 games.
“He understands how defenses work,” Gage said. “He understands the one cut he’s got to make for a big play. He understands when defenses are over pursuing, he can cut back behind them and break that arm tackle, which turns into a big play. He’s special.
“I watch film all the time after games and think, ‘Man, how did he make that cut?’ or, ‘Man, how did he make that guy miss?’ It’s all his pure talent.”
Peterson plays football because he loves it. He loves it because it makes his family proud.
His dad, Will Peterson, played for Alvin in the late ’90s. Gage said Will was a “big-time” player for the Yellowjackets.
Will and his five sons—Dayshawn is the oldest—make up for a competitive environment around the household, where each Peterson tries to one up the other when it comes to athletics.
“My dad was like me, playing physical and aggressive when it came to the football field,” Peterson said. “Having younger brothers looking up to me makes me happy. They can see what it means to be an Alvin Yellowjacket.”
Peterson certainly personifies it. He exemplifies the program’s mantra of “D.A.T.E,” an acronym for discipline, attention to detail, toughness and effort.
Gage said Peterson did not miss an offseason workout for the second straight summer. Peterson is respected for his workmanlike demeanor. He abhors attention and doesn’t talk much. But when he does, people listen.
Peterson was named a team captain for a second straight season.
“He just wants to show up and play football,” Gage said. “He doesn’t care about accolades or stats. He just wants to help his team win, and, in this day and age, that’s what makes him so special. He’s not about the hype.”
Peterson was not the starting fullback Week 1 last season. But once Gage realized Peterson was the best true fullback for the offense, he was promoted to the “1’s.”
Peterson rewarded Gage’s trust, rushing for 1,200 yards and 12 touchdowns and being named to the Class 6A all-state second team.
“He kind of came out of nowhere, had a phenomenal year,” Gage said. “When you have an all-state caliber year as a junior, you have very high expectations going into your senior year. He put on about 15 pounds in the offseason and ran track and is now down to the low-4.6 40s. Just a tremendous offseason for him perfecting his craft.”
During the offseason, Peterson worked on his stance so he was lower and faster off the ball. But where he has improved the most this season is without the ball in his hands.
“There are clips where he’s 20 yards downfield blocking a safety,” Gage said. “We’ve had big runs inside because of his kick-out block on the defensive end. The selflessness of him has really shown.
“Obviously, we try to get him the ball as much as we can. But a lot of the success of our offense is because of things he’s doing without the ball.”
Peterson loves everything that comes with playing fullback. The running, the touchdowns, the blocking, the violence. It’s a position of pride.
And if there’s anything Dayshawn Peterson boasts in spades, it’s pride.
“The position is the center of the team,” Peterson said. “My pride in the position is the power I can show everyone I have in football. I put a lot of effort into that power.”