LINCOLN - Senior Harrison Swayne has several factors in his favor during his third season as Lincoln's starting quarterback and they all came together beautifully in Friday's 51-24 win at Mansfield.
So far, on the season, Swayne has accounted for 581 yards of total offense of Lincoln 1,006 yards. He has completed 23 of 56 passes for 359 yards and 4 touchdowns with 2 interceptions; and rushed 24 times for 222 yards and 3 touchdowns. Swayne (6-2, 210) hit the weight-room during the off-season, beefing up 30 pounds after playing at 180 pounds last year. In the preseason, Lincoln head coach Don Harrison noted Swayne has ran about four different offenses during his tenure as starter.
"He ran Coach (Brad) Harris' offense as a freshman," Harrison said. "He ran a version of Coach Harris' offense as a sophomore before they switched to the Wing-T in mid-season. Then he ran the Wing-T, and he's ran my offense the last two seasons."
According to Harrison, the senior signal-caller is settling in.
"He seems really comfortable this year," Harrison said. "He's getting to make a lot of calls and run some audibles. He's a dual threat, he can throw and he can run it. He did a great job of coming along last year. We put a lot on him."
Mansfield came away wishing the Wolves wouldn't have. Swayne was all over the highlight reel. Swayne brushed off Tiger middle linebacker Spencer Davis' lunge for his knees at the one as a second Tiger tackler fell away. He hit the left pylon for a touchdown. On another carry, Swayne came face-to-face with Tiger Trace Homes for an instant before dodging the tackle on a run across the goal line. Swayne runs a 4.7 in the 40-yard dash and Harrison said he carries the ball well.
"He does a good job in traffic," Harrison said. "He carried the ball a lot for us last year and only had one fumble. He can carry the ball on the perimeter. He will carry the ball inside. He doesn't shy away from contact which is always a big plus."
When Swayne isn't running or throwing the ball, he is handing off, mostly to sophomore runningback Caleb Lloyd (51 rushes, 194 yards, 2 touchdowns through 3 games). Lloyd ran behind a Pace Maddox block, who sealed off Mansfield junior Bryar Hattabaugh on a touchdown run. Later on, Lloyd got loose running down the right sideline. He was hit crossing the five, but his momentum carried him into the end zone. Lloyd also caught 6 passes for 91 yards.
Graduation took a toll on the Wolves' receiving corps and there was some question how quickly this year's group would develop.
"The biggest hit we took on offense with losing the guys we lost, Garrett Blankenship, Dalton Barnum and Noah Swayne combined, we lost 62 receptions out of three wide receivers," Harrison said. "That was big. This is our biggest spot where we're going to have to be ready."
Stepping in to take their places in the annuls of Lincoln football are: junior Braden Umberson (6-1, 185), sophomore Caleb Hale (6-3, 180), junior Jason Swain (5-11, 155), senior Brent Crews (5-6, 150) and sophomore Sterling Morphis (5-9, 150).
"We feel like we have good young guys, who have worked really hard," Harrison said. "They have a good chemistry with (quarterback) Harrison (Swayne)."
The Wolves made several big plays. For the year, Umberson has 11 catches for 74 yards and a touchdown. On the scoring catch, he made a move at the Mansfield 10 to get away from two would-be tacklers, Hattabaugh and Zach Woolbright, who crashed into each other as Umberson eluded them on his way into the end zone. The coaches weren't surprised, they came into the season expecting Umberson and Hale to contribute. Umberson started all 11 games last season as a free safety, including Lincoln's playoff contest at Dardanelle, and had an interception off a deflection versus Cedarville. This year he moved into the starting lineup on offense as a wide receiver.
"He was Blank's and Barnum's backup last year," Harrison said. "As a junior he's not going to get upset about getting to play on Friday night, it's not going to bother him."
Hale didn't play last year, but stands better than 6-2 giving the Wolves a pair of tall targets.
"They have come in and worked hard, learned the system," Harrison said. "They have good hands and run good routes."
The Wolves also witnessed prime-time plays from senior tight end Dalton Lee (6-1, 195), who enjoyed a very productive junior season with 22 catches for 341 yards and 5 touchdowns. He led the team in scoring receptions in 2015. This year, Lee has caught 7 catches for 119 yards and 2 touchdowns. He beat two defenders on a spectacular scoring catch against Mansfield.
"We can move him around all over the place, and we like to move him around," Harrison said, who noted Lee and Swayne have good chemistry from having played together a lot.
"There's a good rapport between the two of them," Harrison said.
Senior Brent Crews (5-6, 150) comes in as a backup quarterback. He has completing 8 of 12 passes for 67 yards and an interception in mop-up duty this season.
Sports on 09/21/2016