Week 7 preview: He doesn't have the best eyesight. But Lakota RB finds path to end zone
Lakota football is on a vision quest.
Not only is the quarterback 5-foot-7, making it difficult to see over the offensive line. The running back has trouble seeing in general.
Sophomore Jalen Wagner tossed three touchdown passes Friday in a 36-7 victory over Willard in the Sandusky Bay Conference River Division. Senior Micah Williams saw to it that Willard couldn't stop him from getting where he wanted to go with an 18-yard touchdown.
Williams sprained his ankle at practice Wednesday. He played through the pain and continues to ice and take ibuprofen.
"We had good practice, physical and it showed on the field," he said. "[My ankle's] pretty painful. When it's hurting like that, you start playing with your heart more. With adrenaline it doesn't really hurt, but it does. Lots of rest. It shouldn't be a problem.
"It's feeling a lot better. I love football. It's 90 percent mental and 10 percent physical. At that moment, it felt like everything went away. No pain. I let my heart take over. If you focus in it takes the pain away. Any chance I get [to play], I'll take it all day."
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No matter Williams' focus, his left eye is 20/43 with no glasses and his right eye 20/76. That basically means that what is 20 feet away looks like 76 to Williams.
Of course, Williams wears contacts, but an astigmatism in each eye also distorts his sight and perception. He can't tell if it's the shampoo or conditioner until it's right in front of his face, and he must drive with contacts, or glasses during daytime.
Teachers often assist Williams with larger font and print. It's hard for him to read the board, particularly projections.
"It's not 20/20, I know that," he said of his vision with contacts. "I work on footspeed, the way I see things, it's a little different than other players have. When I run I tend to have my arms out and my free arm extended for contact.
"Every action has a reaction. I don't think about it, it just happens."
It's hard for Williams to gauge how much space he has, and he often uses contact to determine his next move, rather than anticipation based on his estimations of distance. More pinball than jump cut.
"I'm trying to be as calm as possible," he said of his carries. "I don't have the best eyesight. I try to feel my way around the field and feel where everybody is at."
Williams is sometimes discouraged by his eyes, but it never lingers.
"If I can't see things, I get frustrated," he said. "It is a challenge, I need to talk more."
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Williams broke a tackle and recognized another defender had a good angle on his touchdown run. He jabbed to force the opponent to slow and won the race.
"It was supposed to be power right," he said. "The defense overloaded. 'Check, check.' I look over and it's stretch left. 'OK. This is going to be a nice play.'"
Williams, who had 222 yards and two touchdowns on his first 40 carries this season, had a scoring run called back by a holding penalty as he managed to work his way in to one game as a freshman.
"I use my arms a lot more," he said. "I do core work, sit-ups and planks. Balance. I like to walk on my toes. I wore ankle weights, 10 pounds, for my footspeed, jumping and explosiveness. I wore them all summer. When I would run, play basketball in my driveway or walk the nature trail in Tiffin."
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Chase Dussel caught touchdowns covering 30 and 19 yards from Wagner for Lakota (3-3, 1-2). Avery Shilling caught a 52-yard scoring pass CJ Biddle (20 yards) added a touchdown on the ground.
"He deserved it," Williams said of Wagner. "Hopewell and Calvert, he threw some interceptions. Instead of keeping his head down he moved on, kept going and had a breakout game. Our linemen aren't the biggest, but they're pretty tall.
"He's accurate with most of his passes, not being the tallest. He's young. He's explosive when he runs and he can throw, he's a double threat."
Gabe Garlick plays an essential role in Lakota's production.
"He's a man," Williams said. "He's very physical and strong and he shows it in the weight room and on the field. Blocking and making holes, he knows everything about the defense and the offense. He creates large holes and he knows what steps to take for pass blocking.
"He's good with his hands and he stays lower. He's powerful. He's a key."
Willard snapped a two-game losing skid.
"We had the mentality to lock in," Williams said. "We had to focus. All of us knew it. It was homecoming. You don't want to lose. All of us worked well together. Like a unit."
Lakota already has more wins than it did last season when Williams was also a two-way starter. It lost its first game 27-7 to Monroeville.
"It was a great learning experience," he said. "We've been through it, losing, but also not giving up. The first game shows us what we can do and work on. The energy is different, a spark. We can win these last four games."
The Raiders finished 7-4 two years ago, including the first trip to the postseason that wasn't automatic. Williams was a backup both ways and played special teams as a sophomore.
"With coach [Mike] Lento's program and the way he set things up and has done things, I love our coaching staff," he said. "Everybody has their ups and downs. He's the best coach to be at Lakota. As a team, from 2020 to now, he's brought everyone together.
"Gabe always says it's a family. [Lento] comes up with new ideas to become a better coach. The first day that was mandatory, he's locking the doors and he makes sure his team is his team."
Just the way Williams wants to see it.
Week 7 games
Fremont Ross (1-4, 0-1) at Oregon Clay (3-3, 1-0)
Clay came with Ross to the Northern Lakes League from the Three Rivers Athletic Conference this season. Zalen Harris and JD Moncrief each rushed for a score in Ross' 41-21 setback to Napoleon last week. Jadrian Brown caught a touchdown pass from Karson Kayden. Clay beat Bowling Green 56-28 last week to snap a three-game losing skid. Clay beat Sandusky 33-32 in Week 1. Ross won 64-31 last season.
Clyde (4-2, 0-1) at Tiffin Columbian (5-1, 1-0)
Chancy Miracle scored from 3 yards out in Clyde's 31-7 setback to Division IV fourth-ranked Perkins last week. Columbian, ranked 10th in Division III, scored at least 35 points in each of its wins and lost only to Division III fourth-ranked Bishop Watterson. Columbian topped Sandusky 42-35 last week. Clyde lost 35-7 last season.
Port Clinton (2-4, 0-1) at Vermilion (3-3)
Kii Pinkelton rushed for a 13-yard touchdown in Port Clinton's 38-7 setback to Huron last week. Port Clinton shut Vermilion out 41-0 last season.
Otsego (2-4, 2-1) at Oak Harbor (6-0)
Oak Harbor is ranked fifth in Division V. Dalton Witter rushed for three touchdowns in Oak Harbor's 56-0 shutout of Fostoria last week. Ethan Stokes caught a touchdown from Mike LaLonde, Jaqui Hayward ran in from 73 yards and Blake Nickel added a score on the ground. This is a new matchup on the schedule with Oak Harbor's arrival in the Northern Buckeye Conference.
Huron (4-2, 1-0) at Bellevue (3-3, 0-1)
Freshman Ike Brown scored a fourth-quarter touchdown in Bellevue's 41-7 setback to Division V eighth-ranked Edison last week. Bellevue lost its last two to Perkins and Edison. Another new matchup as Bellevue shifted to the Sandusky Bay Conference Bay Division this season.
Gibsonburg (2-4, 1-2) at Lakota (3-3, 1-2)
Freshman Reece Walby rushed for three scores in Gibsonburg's 30-10 victory over Woodmore last week. Antonio Salazar added a touchdown on the ground. Jalen Wagner tossed three touchdown passes, including two to Chase Dussel in Lakota's 36-7 victory over Willard last week. Avery Shilling caught a 52-yard scoring pass and Micah Williams and CJ Biddle each scored once on the ground. Gibsonburg won 44-7 last season.
Woodmore (1-5, 0-3) at St. Joseph Central Catholic (0-5)
Jack Caldwell rushed for a score for Woodmore last week. Calvert's visit to Fremont was canceled last week because illness led to a lack of players for SJCC. Caldwell rushed for an overtime touchdown as Woodmore won 7-0 last season, before Woodmore shifted to the SBC River Division.
Maumee (3-3, 1-2) at Genoa (5-1, 3-0)
Denver Stewart caught three touchdown passes from Aiden Brunkhorst in Genoa's 48-19 victory over Otsego last week. Aidan Antry and Alex Spencer added two scores apiece on the ground. Maumee scored 20 points in a loss to Eastwood and is the only team to score a touchdown on Oak Harbor's starters. The teams didn't meet as Maumee joins the NBC this season.
Margaretta (3-3, 2-1) at Tiffin Calvert (5-0, 2-0)
Julian Washington caught two touchdown passes from Jake Bouy in Margaretta's 26-14 setback to Division VII fifth-ranked Hopewell-Loudon last week. The Polar Bears likely must win to remain in consideration for an SBC River Division crown. Calvert, ranked 10th in Division VII, scored at least 35 points in four games, but allowed at least 25 in three. Margaretta shut Calvert out 30-0 last season.
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This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Oak Harbor football works to stay unbeaten; Ross-Clay matchup Week 7
