The ball smacked into the stomach of Osbourn defensive lineman Tyler Brown, then ricocheted off star quarterback Brandon Hogan.
That blocked extra point by that duo late in the fourth quarter last Thursday helped seal a 14-13 victory over Potomac. It also immediately begged the question: What was Hogan, who has put up super-sized numbers on the offense the last three season, doing on special teams?
“I’ll line up wherever if it helps us get a win,” said Hogan, who led the Eagles to the Division 6 Northwest Region championship game in 2005, a 35-27 loss to Hylton. “I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do.”
What Hogan has done is play several positions including free safety, where his electrifying quickness has shored up a relatively inexperienced secondary. The West Virginia recruit has helped the Eagles to a 3-0 start entering tonight’s game against visiting Freedom (0-3).
About the only question left for Hogan: Is too much of him a good thing? He appeared shaky at times against Potomac with negative yardage in the first quarter and three interceptions in the second half alone. He has thrown five interceptions in three games and fumbled six times.
“We need to do a better job of getting Brandon some relief,” said Osbourn coach Steve Schultze. “Because, while you like to have your best players on the field as much as possible, I think that much playing time is where some of the turnovers have come from.”
But even with those mistakes Hogan is providing ample highlights. He has 426 passing yards and 453 rushing yards and four touchdowns each in the air and on the ground.
“I just need to stay focused on my own game becausethere are plenty of guys stepping up for us,” Hogan said. “We can’t get sidetracked right now or take anyone lightly at all. I’ll make sure that we don’t.”
Taking flight
» Senior quarterback Brandon Hogan was the Northwest Region offensive player of the year in 2005 with 3,183 yards of total offense. He also accounted for 36 touchdowns.
» Older bother Eddie Hogan played football at Loudoun County, where current Osbourn head coach Steve Schultze was an assistant coach. Eddie Hogan twice surpassed 1,000 rushing yards for the Raiders.
» Brandon Hogan connected with freshman WR Jerell McFadden for a 30-yard TD in the second half of last week’s 14-13 win over Potomac. McFadden finished with four receptions for 55 yards.
