ACCS rotating several different faces at QB this season

Published 12:01 am Tuesday, September 17, 2013

From left, Carlos Woods, Trey Fleming and Tyler Stockstill are all seeing time at quarterback for Adams County Christian School this season. Woods, a dual-threat quarterback, and Stockstill, a pocket passer, are getting the bulk of the snaps under center. Fleming will line up at quarterback in the wildcat formation on occasion. (Ben Hillyer \ The Natchez Democrat)

From left, Carlos Woods, Trey Fleming and Tyler Stockstill are all seeing time at quarterback for Adams County Christian School this season. Woods, a dual-threat quarterback, and Stockstill, a pocket passer, are getting the bulk of the snaps under center. Fleming will line up at quarterback in the wildcat formation on occasion. (Ben Hillyer \ The Natchez Democrat)

NATCHEZ — Depending on the offensive series — or even a specific situation — Adams County Christian School will put one of three people under center.

Sophomore Carlos Woods and juniors Trey Fleming and Tyler Stockstill have all seen time at the quarterback position, with the majority of the snaps being split between Fleming and Stockstill. Fleming, who played quarterback some last season, lines up mostly in the wildcat formation.

“All three of them bring pretty good qualities to the table,” ACCS head coach David King said. “They’re all good to have in case one gets injured or if a team can stop a certain style of play.”

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Woods is the dual-threat passer and runner, and Stockstill said he’s not opposed to running, but sitting in the pocket and scanning the field is more his style.

“I’m more comfortable sitting back and trying to read a defense,” Stockstill said. “I’m somewhat out of my element to scramble, but I’m not afraid to scramble.”

Woods says he tries to model his game after Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, who’s both a strong runner and passer.

“I try to work toward being him; it’s like a motivational thing,” Woods said. “I like his speed and his footwork, and he’s a great athlete.”

Some quarterbacks might want to get the majority of the snaps, but both Woods and Stockstill said they don’t mind sharing signal-calling duties with each other.

“It’s a good thing,” Woods said. “I show him things, and he shows me things. I ask him questions, and he asks me questions. He has a good personality, too.”

Stockstill also said he likes having Woods on the team, not just for his abilities, but for his personality as well.

“He’s full of energy,” Stockstill said. “He’s funny — always a clown. He kind of lightens the team’s mood.”

While some quarterbacks might have trouble getting into a rhythm splitting duties, Stockstill said that’s never been a problem for him.

“Most of the time, we have momentum going, and momentum is key to getting hot,” Stockstill said. “On the sidelines, you can watch the defense, and you may see something the quarterback doesn’t see. Then you can go over it together and pick apart the defense.”

Woods also said there have been times he’s been pulled from quarterback after making a mistake — such as a fumble against Centreville Academy two weeks ago — but he just has to learn to fight through it.

“Mistakes happen,” Woods said. “I came back and took the ball and got a few yards. There are times you get mad, but it’s what you do afterward that counts.”

Fleming said he was happy to move to being primarily a wide receiver this season after seeing action at quarterback in 2012.

“We’ve got Stockstill and Woods throwing to me, so I’m good,” Fleming said. “I really like wide receiver more than quarterback.”

But when the Rebels go to a wildcat look, Fleming said he’s fine taking a direct snap if it helps the team win. And King said he’s more than happy to make Fleming a versatile player.

“Trey’s so good in space that we want to get him the football,” King said. “It puts more pressure on the defense, because they have the dual responsibility of him throwing the ball and running.”

At first, Fleming would almost exclusively run out of the wildcat. But after defenses started noticing that, Fleming said the plan changed a little bit.

“We’ve done it so much, so Coach is having me throw it more,” Fleming said.

Stockstil said having two players that run the football well from the quarterback position helps take pressure off of him.

“They’re better at some things I’m not as good at,” Stockstill said. “It opens up the offense more. Just because I can’t do something doesn’t mean we can’t run it.”

ACCS versus Cenla Christian Academy

The Rebels will host Cenla Friday night for Military Appreciation Night, and King joked he might call on the assistance of the armed forces.

“I’ve been watching film on them, and they have athletes at every position,” King said. “It’s a good thing we’re honoring the armed forces, because we might need the National Guard to stop these athletes. They’ve scored more points against Trinity (Episcopal Day School) than anyone has (34 points).”

Fresh off last week’s 41-0 win against Central Private School, King said he likes the direction in which his team is headed.

“We saw some good things last week,” King said. “Six different players scored, and there was a lot of unselfishness in the game. That’s the first step to being a good team.”

Kickoff will be at 7 p.m. Friday at ACCS.