The prep football season had not yet begun when it appeared the promise of high expectations had already ended for East Hamilton.
As senior quarterback Lake Clark lay on the turf in the early stages of a preseason scrimmage at Cleveland with a torn ACL, the team's hype and hope could have crumbled. Clark threw for more than 1,900 yards last season and had multiple receivers with gamebreaking skills to help give the offense plenty of big-play potential.
But without an experienced backup, Hurricanes coach Grant Reynolds turned to the team's most dynamic weapon, moving senior running back Juan Bullard — who rushed for more than 3,000 yards over the past two seasons — behind center.
That decision has resulted in an ever-improving offense averaging 35 points in seven wins and a Region 3-4A championship that earned the team a first-round playoff rematch Friday against visiting DeKalb County, which eliminated the Hurricanes last year.
"Before I even left the field, I knew exactly what it was," Clark said. "I had heard people talk about the pop you hear when you tear your ACL, so I knew immediately and knew my season was over.
"I just had to stay positive and help Juan any way I could for the team. At first I think he felt like he had to take over and put the team on his shoulders. Now he's realized he can spread the ball around and that makes us an even better team. He's picked up the position pretty quick, and that's why we are where we are."
Going into the TSSAA postseason, the 6-foot-1, 210-pound Bullard is the Chattanooga-area's only player with more than 1,000 yards rushing and passing this year. He has run for 1,461 yards and 26 touchdowns — in 188 carries, he has yet to fumble — and he thrown for 1,220 yards and eight scores.
He is also one of five players in Class 4A to earn recognition as a Tennessee Titans Mr. Football semifinalist, with those award contenders announced Thursday.
"It definitely eased my mind to have an older player who was capable of stepping into that position," Reynolds said. "We knew what he could do running the ball, so we would be OK there, but he understands that being a quarterback isn't just about being a good athlete. He watches a lot of film and has worked on becoming a complete player at quarterback.
"I really hated it for Lake when he went down, but it says a lot about him as a leader that he helps Juan in practice and during games to see things through the eyes of a quarterback. Nobody was going to feel sorry for us, and the kids have done a great job of overcoming adversity, playing hard and rallying around each other to make sure we still have a great season."
In East Hamilton's showdown with Red Bank for the region championship two weeks ago, Bullard was also asked to play defense for the first time this season, helping his team shut out the Lions by patrolling the secondary.
"I've always said I would do whatever is best for the team," Bullard said. "I had played quarterback in middle school, so I was comfortable going back.
"When Lake went down, we were all hoping he would be able to bounce back, but then we found out how bad he was injured and we were pretty down because we had lost our leader. Our team is a family, so that hurt knowing we had lost a great player.
"I felt like there was more pressure on me after that, but as the season has gone I've learned to keep my head up and look for the open man downfield because we have other athletes who can make plays for us. We've come a long way already, and I think we're playing our best just at the right time now."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.
Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / East Hamilton quarterback Lake Clark gets rid of the ball under pressure from Red Bank's Kobe Smith on Oct. 22, 2021. Clark passed for nearly 2,000 yards as a junior, but his senior season ended before it could begin this summer when he sustained a torn ACL in a scrimmage at Cleveland.