Red Bank quarterback Madox Wilkey (7) passes the ball to a teammate during the Red Bank High School vs. Loudon High School at Red Bank High School Friday, Oct. 27, 2017, in Red Bank, Tenn. With a healthy array of playmakers surrounding him and a young offensive line that has matured, Red Bank quarterback Madox Wilkey is now able to prove just how dangerous an offense he's leading.
The Lions were limited somewhat by injuries to key players - most notably all-state athlete Calvin Jackson - and an unproven group of linemen to start the season and struggled to score just three touchdowns in each of their first two games. But with the return of Jackson and the progression of four sophomore linemen, Wilkey has guided his team to an average of 49 points over the last six games.
Last Friday the 6-foot, 180-pound junior carved up Class 5A foe Lenoir City with surgical precision, completing 22 of 28 attempts for a career-high 341 yards and four touchdowns in a 35-point nonregion win.
That earned him this week's BMW Performance of the Week award.
"At the start of the season everybody knew Calvin was hurt and we were missing something on offense," Wilkey said. "There were times when we needed a big play, but we just weren't completely healthy yet. But now we are and I know we have guys who can even take short passes and turn them into big plays.
"As a sophomore last year I know how tough it is to prove yourself out there as a young guy. Those linemen have shown how good they can be, and I trust them to protect me and give me time to find the open receiver. If teams want to try to stop our running game, we should be able to find the holes to throw into and keep us rolling."
For the season Wilkey has thrown for 1,460 yards and 17 TDs in helping the third-ranked Lions defend their Region 3-3A title and earn home-field advantage in the playoffs.
"Madox has really good accuracy, and he's confident in the guys around him now to make us a complete offense," Lions coach Chris Brown said. "I think that playoff run from last year is showing up, because he's a really confident guy as a leader right now.
"It's a big deal to be comfortable in your linemen to protect you so you can just keep your eyes downfield, make your progressions and step up to make the throws. The good thing about when we were missing some of those playmakers is that it forced some younger guys to step up early, and what was a negative is now a positive because we've got that many more we feel confident about getting the ball to, and we know Madox will get it to them so they can make plays for us."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.