Pressure makes palms sweaty.
Like a vise, it can squeeze an otherwise swaggering person into a nervous pulp.
But even when the heat is cranked to broil, Mark Iddins never seems fazed. In fact, he looks forward to it.
“When the game’s on the line,” the Kamiak High School quarterback said, “that’s when I thrive the most. It’s my favorite time of the game. I love being there.”
The 6-foot-3, 190-pound senior was there several times this season and more often than not he led the Knights to victory. Along the way Iddins completed 64 percent of his passes, tossed 16 touchdown passes and threw for a school-record 2,261 yards to become The Herald’s All-Area Football Offensive Player of the Year.
Iddins was a first-year starter, forced to wait his turn on a Kamiak team that produces talented QBs year after year. He looked like a seasoned veteran when his chance finally came. In a season-opening game against Wesco South rival Meadowdale, Iddins completed 26 of 35 passes for 270 yards, including the game-winning TD pass in the final minute.
“It wasn’t a surprise to me,” Kamiak coach Dan Mack said, “because I’d seen how much hard work he’d put into learning how to play the position. He’s a young man with a tremendous amount of poise.
“Couple poise with work ethic and leadership ability, (and) you have a winner on your hands.”
The Knights won 10 of their 12 games on the field, although the use of an academically ineligible player (they self-reported the violation) forced them to forfeit two league victories. Still, even after a 34-7 loss against Edmonds-Woodway, Kamiak managed to make a strong playoff run. After a preliminary-round victory against Shelton and a first-round win over Meadowdale, Iddins and the Knights traveled to Skyline for a Class 4A state quarterfinal.
Despite allowing a touchdown on Skyline’s opening kickoff return, Kamiak fought back. Iddins guided the Knights inside the Skyline 10-yard line with less than three minutes to play, but they were stopped on fourth-and-3 and went on to lose 28-21.
Iddins never wilted, completing several pressure-packed throws during the final drive. “We never feel like we’re out of a game,” Mack said, “and Mark never feels like he’s out of a game.”
“He just has a real confidence and poise about him,” Mack continued. “It’s something you want to see all your athletes demonstrate.”
The Kamiak coaches tell their players that confidence shared is better than confidence only in yourself. Iddins embodied the philosophy. “He had that ability to make people around him better,” Mack said.
Iddins, who has received interest from Washington, Idaho, UTEP, Montana State and University of San Diego, said he has never had to deal with so much adversity in one season. As he chases his dream of playing in the NFL someday, he can look back with pride on his senior season at Kamiak.
“Every time someone wanted us to fail, but we just overcame a ton this year. It shows a lot about the team and how we were able to overcome and stick together.”
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