LAFAYETTE — Josh Elerts is not a running back. Prior to Friday, he never played the position in his life. For Acalanes, he was, in essence, the emergency running back for the emergency running back.
By halftime against Miramonte, Acalanes’ coaching staff needed their emergency running back for their emergency running back. An injury decimated an already thin group; Elerts, despite having never taken a handoff in a real game, was elevated to first string. Given how Miramonte was playing, Acalanes needed Elerts to provide a ground presence.
Provide, Elerts did. In his lifetime debut at running back, Elerts totaled two rushing touchdowns and 81 rushing yards on 14 attempts — all in the second half — as Acalanes narrowly defeated Miramonte, 35-28. Not a bad showing in the slightest for someone who entered the day with a completely blank running back resumé.
“I gotta thank the line,” Elerts said. “If the line didn’t open up those giant gaps for me, I don’t think I would’ve been able to score those touchdowns.”
Opportunities for more touchdowns will likely be in store for Elerts next week against Clayton Valley Charter. When asked about Elerts’ potential role going forward, Acalanes head coach Floyd Burnsed said that Elerts will “probably be at tailback.”
It’s an unlikely promotion that Acalanes’ coaching staff couldn’t have pictured at the beginning of the season, but one that’s necessary given the status of their starters.
Senior Austin Wampler and junior Deonte Littlejohn, the Dons’ starting running back tandem, have each missed the last two games due to injury. Senior Tyler Kim began the game as the Dons’ starting running backs, rushing for 71 yards and a touchdown, but only played one full possession in the second half before succumbing to cramps.
If Elerts, indeed, needs to spend more time at running back, then this breakout performance provides him with a foundation upon which he can build.
“It definitely gives me a lot of confidence,” Elerts said of his performance. “I’m very much looking forward to upcoming games, especially these league games against Campolindo. I’m looking forward to seeing what they’ll bring.”
While Elerts is a novice at running back, Miramonte junior Carson Blair is plenty familiar with the quarterback position — and looked the part. Despite the losing effort, Blair showed off every part of his game.
Through the air, he went 19-of-37 passes for 350 yards, his lone passing touchdown being a 59-yard dime to senior wide receiver Jack Quinnild. On the ground, he gained 42 yards and scored two touchdowns, the first of which saw him lowering his shoulder and powering his way into the end zone.
“Carson’s our offensive MVP,” said Miramonte head coach Nick Safir. “He’s the engine that makes the thing run. We’ve got an incredible group of receivers for him to throw it to, but nothing rattles the kid. He just has such poise. We’re lucky we have him for one more year. He’s a hell of a football player.”
Added Burnsed: “He’s a really good quarterback. He’s smart. If you try to blitz him, he hits the hot receiver. He can scramble and get away. … Their quarterback and receiving core is very good.”
The stats are impressive on their own, but how Blair accumulated those numbers are equally noteworthy.
Of Blair’s 17 completions, seven went for at least 20 yards and three went for at least 40 yards. On multiple occasions, Blair escaped trouble when the pocket collapsed and found a receiver on the run, making passes when he was mere inches from the sideline. When Blair ran for his first touchdown of the day, a seven-yard scramble, he lowered his shoulder and powered his way into the end zone.
“I try to model my play after Baker Mayfield, especially when he was in college at Oklahoma,” Blair said. “He would scramble, he’d throw on the run, he’d put his head down and get those extra yards. He’d throw it deep. Also, Tom Brady, trying to have that mental aspect of watching film and studying — knowing what they’re going to do and how they’re going to react to what we’re going to do.”
