By DAVID COOK
Last season, St. Johns running back Steven Linton showed plenty of big-play potential for the Redwings. This season, the senior speedster has taken his game to another level.
Through the first four games of the season, Linton has rushed for 696 yards (10.4 avg.) and seven touchdowns. He is showing his usual explosiveness and has a long touchdown run of 76 yards to his credit.
Linton’s improvement is largely due to his work in the offseason to get bigger and stronger.
“Steven has been a very explosive runner this year,” coach Dave Mariage said. “He has improved his strength and ability to change directions since last season, making him a more effective runner. Obviously, his main contribution is the ability to utilize his speed and ability to turn modest gains into explosive scoring plays. He has already had three runs of almost 80 yards for touchdowns.”
As a senior, Linton has also stepped into a leadership role for the Redwings. “Steven, by nature, is fairly quiet, and his leadership is more through effort during practice and in games,” Mariage said. “He believes that winning is the most important thing for this team and is happy to do his part.”
Linton, who won the state title in the 400-meter dash in track last spring, is part of a dynamic one-two running back punch with fellow senior Blake Stewart. Stewart has totaled 363 yards (6.6 avg.) and has scored four touchdowns, including one on an 80-yard run.
“We have another outstanding running back in Blake Stewart, and they share the carries in our offensive scheme,” Mariage said. “They believe that they are each more effective due to the fact that teams cannot focus on just one running back. Steven is more of our outside runner, and Blake is a between-the-tackles runner on our short traps and isolation game.”
Paving the way for the running backs are offensive linemen Noalyn Gove, Tyler Wilson, Jake Gnegy, and Michael Lambert. Jacob Butcher and Chase Swagart also rotate onto the line.
“It took us a few games to establish our running game, as our offensive line had very little experience to start the season,” Mariage said. “Steven will be the first to credit their improvement to his increased yardage.
“Steven holds three jobs in addition to being a good student and comes from a very generous family.”