Correction appended.
With starting quarterback Treyce Albin still dealing with concussion symptoms, Athens’ offense will be handed over to senior Brendan Sano on Friday against Watkins Memorial High School.
Sano will be playing both quarterback and defensive end Friday night, which could be treacherous with third-string quarterback Clay Davis also injured. But coach Ryan Adams didn’t seem to be worried about Sano’s ability to handle playing on both sides of the ball.
“This kid’s been working his body for a long time in the weight room,” Adams said. "There’s plenty of quarterbacks all over Southeast Ohio that have to play both roles.”
Since Sano will have so much responsibility this week, Adams said Sano might work with a slightly simplified game plan. But he has plenty of faith that his new/former starting quarterback will be able to handle anything he has to deal with.
“My dad’s a strength and conditioning coach so he’s not gonna let me get out of shape,” Sano said. “I’ll be fine.”
In Sano’s limited action against Canal Winchester after Albin got hurt, he was 2-7 for 9 yards. He sailed a couple of throws over open receivers, but Sano feels more comfortable now that he has had time to prepare.
“It definitely helps getting reps during practice,” Sano said. “Just getting the feel for the game, getting more familiar and more comfortable with the timing of everything during practice definitely helps when we get to the game.”
When Sano ran some 11-on-11 drills with the first team offense on Tuesday, the ball rarely hit the ground. He ended practice with a beautiful deep ball down the right sideline. It was only practice, but he looked infinitely more comfortable and each of his throws were precisely where they needed to be.
Sano also showed promise running the read option against Canal Winchester. He ran the ball three times for 27 yards, which left anyone who tackled him with a black and blue trophy to remember him by.
As a whole, Sano said the offense needs to cut down on unforced errors this week. Athens’ wide receivers dropped six passes last week, with four coming in the first half. The team also committed penalties in bad situations that changed the momentum of the game.
Adams attributed a lot of the sloppiness last week to the players being unsure of themselves against a Division II opponent. Watkins Memorial is also Division II, but Adams thinks his team will be ready this time.
“We don’t dwell on the past,” he said.
Whatever the scoreboard reads on Friday night, it will have plenty to do with Sano.
Correction: The photo caption that runs with this story has been updated to use the correct spelling of Brendan Sano.
