Statistics never tell the entire story.
Sure, Snohomish High School fullback Derek Jones leads the Western Conference North Division with 1,576 rushing yards. But would Jones, who is also No. 1 in the Wesco North with 19 rushing touchdowns, pile up such impressive totals without a great offensive line? No way.
Learn more about Snohomish’s dominant offensive line tomorrow in The Herald. The Panthers’ burly, bright O-linemen have helped the program reach the playoffs for the first time since 2003.
Left guard Mike Surdyk is grateful to be contributing for Snohomish (8-1 overall), which travels to play Kentwood (6-3) tomorrow night at French Field in Kent. Surdyk missed the entire 2006 season after dislocating his left knee and cracking his left kneecap.
Surdyk said doctors suggested he should give up football, but Surdyk refused. He didn’t want to miss what he correctly figured would be a special senior season.
“They said, ‘Save your knee if you want to walk when you’re older,’” Surdyk recalled of what doctors told him after the injury. “I mean, what can you do? I just want to play. I don’t know what else I enjoy more than being on the line with these guys.”
One of Surdyk’s O-line pals is senior Donald Gaddy, a 6-foot-4, 330-pound center. Gaddy transferred last spring to Snohomish from Mount Tahoma High. Gaddy said he knows all about Demitrius Bronson, the star running back for Kentwood, Snohomish’s opponent in tomorrow’s quad-district playoff contest.
“I played with (Bronson) at a University of Washington camp a few years ago. I blocked for him. You can tell when someone’s gonna be good, and I could tell about him,” Gaddy said of Bronson, who verbally committed to play football for Washington next year.
Despite missing 2.5 games due to an injury, Bronson leads Kentwood with 1,346 rushing yards and 11 TDs.
Gaddy said he and his Snohomish teammates will do their best to control the line of scrimmage tomorrow: “We just gotta execute and do what we do. We’re the wrecking crew.”
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