By Jeff Chaney
Sports Scene
There is a lot of patience in high school football teams in mid-Michigan this year.
Several teams should be led by top-notch running backs, players like Mount Pleasant’s Michael Tweh, Saginaw’s Keyon Addison, Nouvel’s Ryan Sullivan, Freeland’s Kyle Guster, New Lothrop’s Amari Coleman, and Portland’s Tanner Allison to name a few
And when talking to some of those running backs, they mostly agreed on what makes a good one.
“A lot of patience,” said Tweh, a three-year starter who played a big part in leading the Oilers to the Division 3 state final in 2011 as a sophomore. “You have to wait for the play to develop, because a lot of people just get the ball and take off. You need to wait for the hole to open.”
Addison agrees. “You need great vision and the ability to be patient. You have to trust your offensive linemen and wait for the hole to open up and then hit it.”
From there, athletic ability and toughness take over.
“I love the contact, that’s the best part of the position,” Tweh said. “And then being free to do what you want when you have the ball. Once you go through hole, I’m in control.”
Tweh and Addison were both tough and patient last year, as each rushed for over 1,000 yards. Tweh finished with just over 1,500 yards and scored 16 touchdowns, while Addison ended up with just over 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns. Unfortunately, those great performances didn’t result in wins on the field.
One year after going 13-1 and playing perennial power St. Mary’s Preparatory in the 2011 finals, Tweh’s Oilers fell to 2-7 last year, including two forfeits, one of which was to Addison’s Saginaw team.
As for Addison and Saginaw, they finished with a 4-5 mark in 2012.
Both hope to use their senior years to get more wins for their teams.
“This year, I hope to go far in the playoffs; get back to where we were,” said Tweh. “My goal personally, is to help us do that.”
Added Addison: “Hopefully we can make the playoffs and be a better team. I want us to be more disciplined and prove to people that we can play with the better teams out there.”
These two great running backs will square off October 4 in a Saginaw Valley-North Division showdown.
In that game, fans will be able to see who is better at being patient – and tough.