Wilde Lake QB Leads Rushing Attack

Danny March does not look like your typical lead blocker. He stands 5 feet 8 and weighs 150 pounds, smiling as if to say even those numbers might be a tad embellished. March also has an unusual view of each play developing as he often bursts through the line of scrimmage, seeking an opponent to block. After all, he is the Wilde Lake starting quarterback.

But as the Wildecats run their double-wing offense -- in which all 11 players line up within 10 yards of each other -- it is March entrusted with making sure the ball ends up where it should, and many times leading the way through the hole for his teammates.

Passing is an afterthought for Wilde Lake, but that doesn't diminish March's role. He rushed for 45 yards and one touchdown last night, directing an offense that rushed for 340 yards as the Wildecats defeated visiting Atholton, 28-10, in a meeting of Howard County teams with postseason aspirations.

"He's the leader," said Wilde Lake Coach Doug DuVall, whose team is seeking to end a four-year playoff drought, its longest since 1985.

Vaughn Stamper rushed for 104 yards, and Ashton Hayes rushed for 100 yards and two touchdowns for Wilde Lake (2-0). A third running back, Jerrel Epps, gained 92 yards and scored once.

Then there was March, who this time last year was lining up in practice as a reserve running back. Then midway through the season, the coaching staff decided it was time for a change.

"At practice we were throwing the ball around one day," March said. "And they were like, 'Danny, come here. Do you want to play quarterback?' "

In four starts last season and two this season, March has yet to throw a touchdown pass. His only pass last night was a third-quarter incompletion on third and long, though DuVall said he was hesitant to throw the ball in a steady rain.

Instead, March is used to handing the ball off to his fullback, Stamper, or pitching to halfbacks Epps and Hayes, who often go in motion to get a running start. As soon as March pitches the ball, he usually peels around, looking for someone to block and often succeeding in his objective.

"You never know who is going to be out there," March said. "I'm supposed to hit the corner. But as an athlete, you've got to hit whoever is there."

Wilde Lake 28, Atholton 10 Tough Running: Atholton's Kelechi Odocha rushed for 164 yards on 17 carries, but the Raiders managed just one field goal on their four drives inside Wilde Lake's 25-yard line. In Remembrance: Wilde Lake's players wore a sticker with the initials "BE" on the helmets in memory of former Dunbar (Balt.) coach Ben Eaton. A friend of Wildecats Coach Doug DuVall, Eaton died Aug. 27.