Successful season for St. Andrew’s, Detmer,
St. Andrew’s students and teachers erupted at morning chapel Monday when the football team arrived with the Episcopal Cup.
“It was electric inside,” said the school’s principal, Todd Stephenson.
Those gathered were reacting to the 28-14 victory over St. Stephen’s on Friday. For a team that will not be part of the state playoffs this season, the victory was a highlight in an 8-1 season.
This has been a breakthrough campaign for St. Andrew’s coach Ty Detmer, the 1990 Heisman Trophy winner who appears to be thriving in his sixth year at this small private school in Southwest Austin. He said he’s been offered head coaching positions at several large public schools in the state — and a few major colleges have approached him about being an assistant — but Detmer reports he’s happy at St. Andrew’s and optimistic about the Crusaders’ future.
“I enjoy the lifestyle in Austin and at St. Andrew’s,” he said. “If I went the college route, I’d probably have to move three times in five or six years to move up the ladder.”
Detmer played for six teams as part of a 14-year NFL career, but his traveling days appear to be finished. He and his wife, Kim, and their four daughters — Kaili, Aubri, Mayci and Rylli — have grown deep roots in Central Texas.
St. Andrew’s is led by a 5-foot-7-inch, 170-pound running back and middle linebacker who has drawn interest from a handful of NCAA Division III teams. Cole Baker, who scored 2,290 on the SAT — out of a possible 2,400 — most likely will attend MIT.
Baker has rushed for 1,519 yards and ranks second among Central Texas running backs this season with 24 rushing touchdowns.
“Sometimes we’ll pull him out of a game just to give him a breather,” Detmer said. “If we didn’t, he’d want to be involved in every play.”
Led by Baker and quarterback Evan Marshman, the Crusaders have been an offensive force since losing to Fort Worth Country Day 24-12 Sept. 4. They have averaged 47 points during their seven-game winning streak while allowing an average of 10 points on defense.
The Crusaders, though, are not eligible for the Southwest Preparatory Conference playoffs because they became an SPC independent in 2014. Previously grouped with schools from Houston and Dallas — some with rosters twice as large as the Crusaders’ — St. Andrew’s often was overwhelmed in SPC play.
St. Andrew’s plans to rejoin the SPC as a playoff-eligible team next season.
While Detmer, Baker and Marshman have gathered most of the headlines, the most versatile Crusader might be Ethan Rogers. The junior lineman is the lead actor in the school’s fall musical, “Les Misérables,” which opens Thursday.
The play will not be shown Friday because Rogers will be on the football field for the season-ending game against TMI-Episcopal.
Stephenson said Rogers’ versatility showed before a September home game.
“The tape for the national anthem wasn’t working,” Stephenson recalled. “Ethan ran up the steps to the press box and sang it by himself.”
Reviews for Rogers’ singing — and the Crusaders’ play on the football field this season — have been positive.