By Kyle LoJacono
The Sunlake football team had a lot of question marks entering this season when it came to one of the program’s traditional strengths — its ground game.
The Seahawks (8-2) graduated their top four rushers and four starting offensive linemen from last year.
Sunlake shook off those losses and ran the ball like no other squad in the program’s six-year history. The Seahawks racked up 2,388 rushing yards, surpassing the old mark of 2,178 set in 2010, according to coach Bill Browning.
“We started the season thinking we were going to be a throwing team,” said senior quarterback Josh Zifer. “Then we started running the ball really well, and we took over on that side of things.”
Sunlake’s leading rusher this year was Eddie Burgos. The senior moved from wide receiver after not playing running back since eighth grade.
Burgos had 135 carries for 1,013 yards, 7.5 per attempt, with a team-high 15 touchdowns. He was also Zifer’s favorite receiving target, catching 17 passes for 152 yards and two scores while picking off four passes as a cornerback.
“I really didn’t think I could be a thousand-yard back,” Burgos said. “I just went there because our coach said we needed it, so wherever coach Browning put me I was going to give it my best.”
Zifer ran the ball 146 times for 1,002 yards and nine touchdowns while completing 51-of-85 passes for 491 yards and four scores.
Zifer also set the program record for rushing yards in a game with 210 against River Ridge in Week 8, breaking the mark of 207 set by Burgos in the season opener versus Hudson.
“It was fun going against each other,” Burgos said jokingly. “I set the record for a game and then Josh broke it later on. He kept telling me he was going to beat it. When he did I was kind of mad. I wanted to get it back because Josh always let me know he broke that record.”
The Seahawks went to a spread offense with four receivers and an empty backfield for the last few games to take defenders out of the middle of the field. That allowed Zifer to hit the open man with passes or run up the middle through the vacated box.
“The other team didn’t know what to do,” Zifer said.
Burgos said getting the rushing record at a program known for its running game means a lot.
“We do take a lot of pride in that,” Burgos said. “Coach Browning talks about playing smash-mouth football. Most teams don’t try to run like that anymore, so I take a lot of pride in what we did this year.”
Zifer and Burgos both gave a lot of credit to the offensive line for the rushing totals. The unit, which is made up of five seniors, only returned center Aaron Protch from last year’s starting lineup.
The four new starters include guards She’ron Wilkins and Zach Kweller and tackles Trevor Highnote and Nick Hoffman.
“People said I got 1,000 yards, but really it was our line who got that,” Burgos said. “My offensive line was so big for me and Josh getting 1,000 yards. We’ve all got those records together. … It wasn’t easy for them because they knew the expectations with the running game at Sunlake. Me and Zifer each got 1,000 yards, and that puts a smile on their face. They stuck to it and opened up the holes.”
Zifer said offensive line coach Matt Smith was also big in getting the line together.
“Coach Smith had them working hard and never let them slack in practice,” Zifer said. “They were battling for positions. It was fight for spots on the line or go home. They came out and did what they always do.”
Zifer also set the program record for touchdowns in a game, with five against Gulf in the season finale. The old record was held by running back Rashaud Daniels and quarterback Jacob Jackson, who both had four in a game during the 2010 season.
Senior kicker/punter Connor Gilboy hit a program-record eight extra points in Sunlake’s 58-6 win at Gulf. The old mark was seven in a game converted by Adrian Krupka in 2010.
Gilboy returned to the squad after taking last year off. He ended the season with seven field goals, converted 29 extra points and turned 53 kickoffs into 26 touchbacks. He also averaged 33 yards per punt and dropped six of his 23 inside the opponent’s 20-yard line.
—Follow Kyle LoJacono on Twitter: @Kyle_Laker
