Bringing the Hurt
Michigan City defensive coordinator Roy Richards said having a guy like Hurt is a luxury.
“You can’t have a guy like him if your safeties, corners and linebackers aren’t (playing) man across the board,” Richards said. “Having said that, how many guys can roam the field and ignite a stadium like he does? He’s so explosive.
“Sometimes I ask him if we’re wasting him, and he’ll say, ‘Yeah, coach, you are.’ So then it’s like, ‘OK, let’s just let you freelance.’ He knows exactly what he’s gonna see out of each formation, and he jumps it. And he’s as good as it gets back there doing it. While we’re wrong sometimes, most of the time he’s right. I’ll take those odds anytime.”
Hurt said he idolizes guys like Derwin James, who has played a similar role in college and now the NFL.
“I love being there in the middle and flying to the ball,” Hurt said. “The position is me. It defines me. I can play run on any running back and can play any coverage because my coverage rate is high. Everything’s high.”
Junior Jonathon Flemings had 23 carries for 134 yards and a score for the Wolves, adding a 25-yard TD catch from Giovani Laurent. Nate Ware and Robert Jefferson each had three sacks.
“We had to bring (Ernest) Frierson over (to offense), and big Reg McKinney got his first start,” Michigan City coach Phil Mason said.
“We felt like we had to get more size on the line, and I think it helped.”
Ryan Klespies had a 1yard TD run for the Trojans.
CJ Peters is a freelancer.