Washington County Enterprise-Leader
Ramsey Gets All Over The Field
LINCOLN — Coaches projected Audie Ramsey would play a role on both sides of the ball this year at Lincoln, but the 6-0, 200-pound junior has gotten more playing time than expected so far.
Circumstances caused him to play extensively on defense in week one’s 56-7 thrashing of Westville, Okla. in the State Line Standoff. Teammate Marcus Sturgill acknowledges Ramsey’s versatility increases overall depth.
“We’ve got a lot of great players, a lot of great second string. He can play multiple positions. He plays defensive end, he plays middle linebacker, we can put him on the line but he can also be a receiver,” Sturgill said. “I mean he’s like a Swiss Army Knife, he’s got so many different talents and well he came in and he did his job like he’s supposed to and what else can you say? There’s probably going to be a starting spot for him on defense one day.”
Lincoln defensive coordinator Beau Collins said Ramsey was in the gameplan to work in and rotate so the Wolves can stay fresh as part of their linebacker rotation.
“It turned out, we just had to look at him and say, ‘Hey, you got to play the whole game now at linebacker.’ He stepped up. He had 13 tackles. He had 4 tackles for losses and recovered 2 fumbles and was named Player of the Week,” Collins said. “I was extremely proud of the effort that he gave. Not just him, I think he benefited a lot from his teammates. The defensive line really helped that the (Westville offensive) line didn’t get much of a push up front which helps him a lot to scrape and make tackles.”
Ramsey didn’t want to under-estimate the opponent or allow first-game jitters to keep him from excelling.
“They’ve never been a great team, but we were all nervous first game of the season. It’s always fun, kind of got that anxiety first game and kind of excited and nervous at the same time. Just a really good feeling to officially start the season off and that first kickoff is always exciting for you,” Ramsey said.
Lincoln head coach Don Harrison also praised Ramsey for making a lot of plays.
“That’s a guy who worked really hard in the offseason. We’re really proud of him. He comes to work every day. He gets better and better,” Harrison said. “He does an awesome job on the offensive line. He plays right tackle and he knows left guard and he rotates at both. That’s one of those guys we’re really happy to have. He’s exactly what we need all the time. You can put him at linebacker, he plays linebacker. If we want to put him at defensive end, he plays defensive end. He does everything we ask him and it’s all attitude and effort with Audie Ramsey.
Sturgill was also involved defensively as the Wolves limited Westville to one touchdown. He had a fumble recovery that was negated by a penalty but refused to dwell on things he can’t control.
“We had a lot of fumble recoveries. Well, you see the ball you just dive on it and you get really excited and the refs decided to overturn it, but what are you going to do? We always respect the refs and their choices and we decide to move on with the game — forget about the last play,” Sturgill said. “Forget about last week, move onto the next one.”
Sturgill expected the Wolves to rise to the occasion in week two, which they did while bending but not breaking. Keys’ first two possessions ended in Lincoln territory with no points.
“The defense is looking really good this year. We had to make a few adjustments but we’re looking real good. We’re real confident going into week two especially the home game,” Ramsey said.
Collins stayed patient during those early drives believing pregame preparation would yield results.
“The boys they took a little bit to kind of settle in and get going, but they worked hard all week. They knew what to expect. They knew what we had to stop and they knew what their assignments were,” Collins said. “Once they got settled in they defended fairly well except for a couple of busted plays we had. I’m extremely proud of the way they worked to learn their job this week and the way they executed it tonight, tackling especially.”
“He does an
awesome job on the offensive line. He plays right tackle and he knows left guard and he rotates at both. That’s one of those guys we’re really happy to have. He’s exactly what we need all the time.”
Don Harrison
Lincoln Head Coach