Incredibly, there was more than one 10 TD running back in Oregon on Friday night
On Saturday, Oregon recruit Thomas Tyner made national headlines when he set a state record after his astonishing 10-rushing-touchdown and 600-plus-yard birthday performance. While his achievements were incredible enough on their own, there was something even more remarkable about Friday night in Oregon: Tyner wasn't even the only running back to score 10 touchdowns in a single game that evening.
As noted by the Yamhill Valley News Register and a handful of other publications, Perrydale (Ore.) High running back Josh Hiebenthal also scored 10 touchdowns on Friday night, leading his Pirates squad to a one-sided 82-42 victory against Triangle Lake (Ore.) High.
On any other weekend, Hiebenthal's accomplishment would have been national news. Yet on Friday, because of the stratospheric numbers being put up nearby, Hiebenthal's evening was more of a footnote: He ran for 339 yards on 25 carries including his 10 scoring touches.
Admittedly, that 339-yard total is a far cry from Tyner's remarkable 634-yard output, but it's still one heck of a game. Yet Hiebenthal's numbers were also dismissed to a degree because Perrydale competes in 8-man football as opposed to the more traditional variety.
All of those points are valid, yet they do little to diminish just how astounding the Perrydale star's night was. By game's end, Hiebenthal had scored on more than one out of every three carries. Of more concern for Perrydale's future foes may be the larger trend of which Hiebenthal's 10-TD night was a part: Just a week earlier, the running back scored five times on just five carries, notching 92 yards in the process.
Put the two performances together, and the back has scored 15 times in his past 30 carries, an even every-other-touch scorer. If that isn't frightening for a ball carrier, Prep Rally doesn't know what is.
Clearly, Hiebenthal is one elusive runner with a nose for the end zone. Whether he can keep up his scoring remains to be seen, but he deserves more than a scattershot nod for his accomplishments so far in September, regardless of how they stack up when compared to Tyner.
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