Indians off to quick start

By Jeff Johncox
The Norman Transcript

September 06, 2008 01:56 am

— LITTLE AXE — There just might be something special brewing in Little Axe.
It was only Santa Fe South visiting Friday night, a program that was winless last season, but the Indians did all they could to look like the real deal, particularly before the half.
In the end, it was Little Axe trouncing the Saints 38-0.
And it could have been, and perhaps should have been, more lopsided.
“It was a good win, a shutout,” Little Axe coach Tony Smith said. “I haven’t seen one here in years. I can’t remember the last time we shut someone out.”
The statistic of the night?
At halftime, the Indians had outgained the Saints 257 yards to 24. Santa Fe South had to punt five times, while Little Axe punted only once … in the game.
There were still some breakdowns. Three bad snaps and a bad kick led to four missed extra-point attempts, so the Indians took a 24-0 lead into the locker room.
It easily could have been 30-0, but first-year quarterback Daniel Leonard decided to try and run for the score as time ran out instead of looking for wide open receivers in the end zone.
“We’ve still got some phases we need to work on, obviously,” Smith said. “I think we’re real close to clicking on all cylinders, but there are a few areas to work on, which is something I like. We can be better.”
Defensively, Little Axe was consistently in the Santa Fe South backfield, getting in quarterback Emilio Torres’ face throughout the game; forcing bad throws and bringing down the Saints’ running backs before they could get going.
Santa Fe South finished with just 93 yards of total offense, 71 of them coming on quarterback keepers from Torres in the fourth quarter against what amounted to the Indians’ junior varsity.
“We have the talent and the athletes to play like this every game,” Smith said.
Leonard had a big night throwing the ball, completing 10-of-15 passes for 146 yards, and a couple of sophomores ran the Saints’ defense ragged.
Dustin Hawkins carried the ball 13 times for 138 yards, including a 54-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. Robby Dryden ran 15 times for 117 yards and four touchdowns. Three of Dryden’s scores were from 1 yard out and the last was a 51-yard bulldozer of a run up the middle that saw him break into the open field and leave defenders chasing.
“It feels great,” Dryden said. “It’s nice to get that first one out of the way and go out there and win.”
With Leonard, a junior, Dryden, Hawkins and fellow running back, junior Brandon Walker, who ran for another 43 yards, anchoring the offense, the Indians’ future may be bright even beyond this season.
But first, they want to compete for something that’s been too long in coming, a trip to the postseason.
“We expect to go out and play better,” Dryden said. “Our defense played really well tonight, but our offense can be better. We should be a playoff team.”
Anyway, the Indians are off to a good start.
Jeff Johncox
366-3535
jjohncox@normantranscript.com