Oh for another year.
The thought passes through the minds of Brainerd football coach Stanley Jackson and Tyrus Ward, his offensive coordinator, at every practice, game and, most likely, video session and strategy meeting.
They shake their heads in disgust, disbelief and disappointment that quarterback William Hughes never got on the field before this, his senior season.
Hughes might have a similar mindset, but if it’s there he has it buried.
“I feel good about [this year],” he said this week. “It was my first year, but most everybody on the team was going into his first year [to start]. It’s a learning experience, but I would definitely have liked to have another year or two.”
Hughes has tried to remain positive since learning in the spring he was likely the Panthers’ starting quarterback through those sweltering August afternoons and then the sometimes disappointing autumn Friday nights. Yet not once during a short interview did he mention the disappointment of three seasons of bench-riding and dues-paying with little reward. He might not have understood why he had never gotten in the Panthers’ backfield, but he stayed within his definition of a team player’s guidelines.
“Frustration? No, not really. I have always tried to put the team first,” he said. “Now there have been times like the Howard game this year when I have gotten frustrated, at least with my own performance. In that game I was coming back [from a concussion] and I stunk it up (three interceptions).”
Jackson, though, snatched the blame for that one and a couple of other losses the Panthers have absorbed this year.
“At times I probably set expectations a little too high,” the first-year head coach said. “I tend to forget this is the first time for him to start at any position on the high school level, and it’s him starting at quarterback. You stop and think – this kid had been here three years and he’d never been anything more than a special-teams player. When you consider that, he has filled his role exceptionally well.”
Even though the 5-foot-11, 180-pounder has passed for 960 yards and rushed for 674 – a seven-game total-offense amount of 1,634 yards – Hughes believes he could do much better.
“With more coaching, I believe the sky’s the limit,” he said. “When I first went to quarterback I think I was awful. I believe I have made major improvement because of the coaching from Coach Jackson and Coach Ward.”
Jackson believes Hughes was willing to listen and learn and that he evolved into a steady force for the Panthers.
“The few games that we have won we probably wouldn’t have won without him,” the coach said. “If he’d had a year’s experience or if we had another year I think we’d probably be contending for the district [championship]. He brings a lot to the table, including the mentality you want in a quarterback and in a leader.”
Although his preseason notoriety was nonexistent, Hughes hopes to continue football long after high school graduation next May. If he doesn’t, he plans to start out with a nursing degree, get himself established financially and then tackle medical school.
“I want to ride this out as long as I can,” he said. “The coaches have sent out some tapes, and I have talked so far with coaches from Tennessee State and Carson-Newman.”