Midview has open quarterback race

Nelson, Roman fill hole at running back

The sun was beating down on the Midview Middies football team as they opened their season with their first day of practice Aug. 1.

Middies head coach DJ Shaw is excited to be back on the field with his team as he begins his eighth season at the helm.

“It’s always exciting on the first day,” Shaw said. “Our guys have put in a lot of work in the off-season.”

Shaw isn’t the only one excited to be back on the field. Seniors Zac Gill and Nathan Bashak, also expressed their excitement.

“It feels great to be out here with my teammates,” Gill said. “I missed practicing with them and the grind of football.”

Bashak echoed Gill, adding: “We’re just working hard, trying to get back to the playoffs again and trying to get Midview back on top.”

Midview heads into the season with questions at quarterback as they look to replace departed starter Andrew Gooch.

“We kind of have a threeheaded race right now at quarterback with sophomore Ethan Surdock, senior Zac Gill and senior Nicolas Swirynsky,” Shaw said. “All three are very good quarterbacks and athletes so we will see how that shakes out.”

We kind of have a three-headed race right now at quarterback with sophomore Ethan Surdock, senior Zac Gill and senior Nicolas Swirynsky.” — Midview Head Coach DJ Shaw

Quarterback isn’t the only position where the Middies lost a key piece. The team also lost their starting running back from last season. Shaw is confident in the pair of runners who will be competing for carries this season.

“We have two guys at running back and we are looking for both to carry the ball for us, that’s Tyshawn Nelson and Domenic Roman.”

Midview finished 2-8 overall and 2-7 in the Southwestern Conference in 2018. Shaw wants the team to focus on finishing this season.

“Going 2-8 last year is definitely not a record that you set out to get before the season. However, we did have two overtime losses,” Shaw said. “Those are close games and we really need to focus on finishing this year and being able to win those close games.”

Shaw added that the Middies are working on being more physical this year.

“I think one thing that we have really emphasized with our team is toughness and physical play,” Shaw said. “We want to be a much more physical and tough team this year and we feel if we can do that, we will have a much better chance on both sides of the ball.”