'We love each other': Destin football playing as a family en route to 4-0 start
DESTIN — As ACDC's "Thunderstruck" belted from the PA system amid an ominous sky that didn't seem to dampen the home crowd attendance Friday night, E.G. Green's second-year football program broke through a banner emblazoned with a great white shark to announce they've arrived.
All pomp. All circumstance. All deserved. Yes, y'all, Destin has arrived.
4-0.
A born leader flashing state championship, All-American, NFL pedigree at the helm.
Talent at every skill position.
Once a 1-8 afterthought "caught in the middle of a railroad track (thunder), they knew there was no turning back (thunder)."
And they haven't.
ACDC's anthem suits Destin all too perfectly, and Friday night at Destin Middle School came the literal thunder and lightning to delay the game for more than an hour. Only the fans didn't stray too far.
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Instead, the community waited out the storm and rallied around a 48-13 victory over Rocky Bayou that featured four touchdowns from Will Bruckner, a 354-yard effort from transfer QB Hugh Boudreaux, and a defense that delivered five sacks, two interceptions and a game-defining red zone stop to end the first half up 28-13.
By night's end a "4-and-Oh!" chant counted down the running clock, the first-ever for a program that continues to rewrite the record books weekly.
"We've been working hard the past two years," said running back Bruckner, who rushed for 110 yards and four touchdowns Friday night. "It started off slow. Now we're coming and making noise. We're blessed to have these coaches around us and honestly, it's a big family now. I think last year there was a bunch of things bringing us down. But now we're all coming together and working as a unit, and that's what we need to be doing."
This is not the same disjointed crew that last year lost 28-22 in double overtime to the Knights. Destin is a family, building that sense of camaraderie brick by brick each week.
"I think it's a building process," Green said. "It's a brick-by-brick process. That's the only way I know how to build it. ... It helps when you win."
Bruckner, in particular, was a bricklayer with touchdown runs of 4, 1, 30 and 22 yards. But when approached about his banner night, he deflected the praise not just to his coaches, but to the parting of the red sea in front him.
"I just want to thank my O-line. I couldn't do it without them," he said. "Last year we were working hard, but I'm not going to lie, it was a struggle. But now, this is awesome. We're all making moves together."
Boudreaux was all too happy to cede the six rushing touchdowns to his backfield (Nick Laston and Imaran Harris) scored as well), and that probably had a lot to do with his success in moving the chains for 254 passing yards and 100 rushing yards, including a 2-yard touchdown run.
His success is the team's success.
"We always work hard with each other. In film study we're always together," Boudreaux said. "I don't think we're ever not together. We're just building a bond. We love each other."
Defensively, Destin flew to the ball against a run-prone Knights offense. Several players stood out: Gabe Escalera and Tracen Trahan with INTs, Julian Fairrow with countless QB hurries and a sack, DeShawn Fored with three pass breakups and four tackles, etc. But at the center of it all was Christian Harnish with two sacks and big hit after big hit both defensively and on special teams.
"We're coming together as a family and we're working harder. We got each other's backs," Harnish said. "Last year we were just kind of individuals playing for ourselves. Now we're a family."
A family that's 4-0 and no ceiling in sight. Queue up "Thunderstruck."
This article originally appeared on Northwest Florida Daily News: Destin football is 4-0 after 48-13 win over Rocky Bayou
