He’s double trouble

Everywhere one looks in North Idaho there’s a quality high school quarterback. None stands taller in the pocket, however, than Lake City senior Ben Widmyer.

If he stays in the pocket long enough, that is. Widmyer is a double threat, and it’s difficult to determine which is the lesser of his two athletic evils – passing or running.

A two-year starter in the Timberwolves’ wingback offense, Widmyer began his assault on LC’s records for passing last year as the beneficiary of throwing to two (current) NCAA Division I athletes, Matt Troxel and Alex Hamill, and the speedy Josh Mylan.

So when the trio graduated, many thought Widmyer’s passing effectiveness – and accuracy – would depart as well. Here’s some bad news for opposing defenses: Not only has Widmyer picked up where he left off, he’s completing passes at a higher percentage.

Widmyer set the season record for completion accuracy last year at a hair less than 64 percent. Through four games, he’s throwing at a 69 percent clip. That percentage would be a mind-boggling 86 percent if not for at least a dozen dropped passes.

“He’s the object of every defense – he has to be,” LC coach Van Troxel said. “Russel Hill of Timberlake is considered the No. 1 college prospect in the state because he’s 2 to 3 inches taller than Ben. But he’s not a better quarterback.”

Widmyer set the school regular-season record for most yards (1,800) and total offense (2,159) last season. Counting the state playoffs, he finished with 2,117 passing and 2,672 total.

Before this season, Troxel thought it was possible for Widmyer to pass for 2,000 and rush for 1,000. While he may reach a total of 3,000 in total offense, it’s not likely Widmyer will rush for 1,000. Especially considering that Troxel believes Widmyer will be the primary focus of opponents as LC reaches the meat of its schedule.

“Teams may plan to stop him on the option, but you can’t stop him when he starts to scramble,” Troxel said. “If teams spy him, that’s going to leave a receiver open because you can’t spy him and cover all the receivers.”

So LC has spent last week and will emphasize again this week polishing areas of its attack that will provide other options should teams try to make athletes other than Widmyer beat them.

“We are already getting better throwing the ball,” Troxel said. “We might not have a Division I athlete among our receivers right now, but they’re getting better every week. And we think we have more of them than we did last year.”

That brings a smile to Widmyer’s sleepy face.

To look at Widmyer, one might think his personality reflects an athlete who is indifferent or lazy. Put him on the field and try to tackle him and it’s a different story. Just when it appears Widmyer will be tackled, he slips through traffic.

“He’s elusive,” Troxel said. “He could have been a great tailback in another offense.”

“He’s an exceptional athlete,” Coeur d’Alene coach Shawn Amos said. “He can run around and make you nervous.”

At 5-foot-11, Widmyer knows colleges who like traditional drop-back, pro-style quarterbacks aren’t going to recruit him. So Widmyer has been seeking out schools that fit his ability – option-style attacks. Rice, Navy and Northern Arizona are schools with such offenses that have shown an interest, Widmyer said.

“I definitely want to find a place to play in college,” he said.

A few years ago, football wasn’t Widmyer’s passion. It took a backseat to basketball, the sport he envisioned would be his ticket to a college education. But sometime between his sophomore and junior year “I started loving football more. I always loved football, too, but it didn’t become serious until high school.”

He’s become what Troxel calls “a student of the game.”

“After (sons) Chad and Matt, Ben’s the most coachable player I’ve had,” Troxel said. “He’s learned to handle criticism well.”

So which does Widmyer like to do best – throw or run the football?

“Either,” he said. “I just like making plays.”

The Timberwolves came within a minute of advancing to the 5A state title game last year. Widmyer expects to be knocking on the door again next month.

“We can be as good or better than last year,” he said. “We still have a lot of players who can make plays. Matt, Alex and Josh made me look really good at times last year. But we’ve still got players who can make plays. I’m just as confident with these guys as I was with the others last year.

“We’ve played OK, but we can play a lot better. We haven’t played our best football yet. At times we’ve been close. We have to accomplish things this week that we need to beat Sandpoint, Lewiston and Coeur d’Alene.”