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Behind the line: Defensive front making the plays for Moguls
December 14, 2007 8:58 PM

By Zach Duncan

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

MUNDAY - There are a smorgasbord of statistics that can substantiate the worth of the Munday defensive line.

The senior-laden unit spearheads a defense allowing less than 60 rushing yards per game.

There are 42 sacks and 122 tackles for losses between the starting five of Anason Jones, Jonathan Key, Sammy Nunez, Toby Guerrero and Pate Stewart.

Against an impressive Roscoe squad two weeks ago, they held the Plowboys to minus-5 yards on the ground.

Against Windthorst last week, they notched seven sacks as the Trojans were only able to complete one pass.

But Moguls coach Patrick Corcoran points out the stat that takes the cake.

No linebacker - not even 2006 all-state selection Sammy Hernandez - has racked up 100 tackles to date this season.

"It's because they haven't had time to get to the football," Corcoran said. "That tells you something right there.

"They're a lot of fun to watch play. They don't slow down. They just get after it, and I love them to death."

Teams planning to move the football on the Moguls this season have dealt with mismatches across the board. It all starts with Jones, a pesky 220-pound nose guard who anchors the 5-3 defensive front.

While Corcoran said defenses "have been totally trying to take him out" with double teams, Jones still finds ways to cause a ruckus. Against Windthorst, he swapped places with tackle Toby Guerrero in certain situations and led the team with nine tackles, including five for losses.

The emergence of Guerrero, a 290-pound junior, has also been the biggest surprise.

"If you’'e a team that wants to run in between the guards, a center is not going to move (Guerrero) by himself," Corcoran said. "That was a spot we weren't too sure at the beginning of the year, but he's really stepped up and impressed a lot of people."

Key, Nunez and Stewart are no slouches, either. Nunez, the other tackle, leads the group with 73 tackles and is tied with Key for a team-high 11 sacks.

"Whenever we come off the ball, we just use our quickness and not let them touch us," Nunez said. "We do whatever it takes."

The defensive line is versatile in that it has lots of speed, strength, some decent size and an awareness and intelligence you’d expect from four seniors.

Ends Stewart and Key are so disciplined that Corcoran pointed out no team has tried to run a reverse on Munday this season because of their discipline on the outside.

"You trust them so much that you can get pretty technical in the schemes," Corcoran said. "Coach Ronny Lowrance does an excellent job of putting a game plan together, and the kids handle it from there."

In fact, it's tough to find any weaknesses in the Moguls' defense, which has surrendered only 97 points all year. Linebackers Rob Dillard (94 tackles) and Hernandez (93 tackles) make plenty of plays, while Steven Urbanczyk (seven interceptions) and Caleb Collier are leaders in the secondary.

But, as Corcoran pointed out, nine defensive starters returned from a year ago, and they all came out looking for one goal - to play for a state championship.

That's something that can be accomplished Saturday with a victory in the Class A semifinals over Sundown.

"We didn't have much success last season or the season before that, but we always wanted to go as far as we could," Key said. "We didn't get it done last season, but we're doing it this time."

Staff sports writer Zach Duncan can be reached weekdays after 4 p.m. by calling 720-3470 or 1-800-617-1646. Or e-mail him at duncanz(at)timesrecordnews.com.