The Sewanhaka Indians relied heavily on its offense in the first two victories and head coach George Kasimatis relies on one player to set the tone for his group; senior, running back Brenton Mighty.
Mighty is versatile as a running back, as he possesses the ability to run hard between the tackles, lower his shoulder and run into the defender, or run to the outside and break one deep. He also has good hands and is utilized by quarterback Elijah Tracey, as a receiver out of the backfield.
“He makes such a difference in the run game,” said Kasimatis. “Teams have to respect that and it opens up the pass and the possibility for a lot of play action passes.”
Mighty describes himself as a running back that can utilize his speed and power, but is quick to point out that he has weaknesses, such as not making the right reads. But he says he works hard to improve these weaknesses.
Working hard is nothing new to Mighty. Mighty began playing football in second grade, originally starting as a quarterback and wide receiver, before making the transition to running back in seventh grade.
He wanted to better his game, and earned the starting job this season.
He also works hard to be a good teammate, and Kasimatis said a lot of the younger players look up to Mighty and even try to emulate him when they run.
“I just try to be the best teammate possible,” Mighty said. “I try to help the younger guys and get everyone to work hard.”
He is hoping that all this hard work will payoff for himself and his team this season, and has big goals.
“For myself I just want to have the best possible season I can have,” he said. “For the team, I hope to make the playoffs and go to the championship.”
While Kasimatis certainly thinks Mighty has the ability to play in college, he believes he’ll let go of his football aspirations to play lacrosse in college.
Mighty plays midfield in lacrosse, and has done so since sixth grade.
Mighty said he has considered playing football in college, but has received interest to play lacrosse from many schools.
“Alderson Broaddus in West Virginia wants me to play both sports,” Mighty said. “I’m still considering it, but I think I am going to play lacrosse.”
Kasimatis has no doubts that he could play football, but thinks playing both would be hard, since academics are vital to Mighty and his family.
“He isn’t just going to go to college to be an athlete,” he said. “Academics are a very important to his family and he’d have to get good grades, but he is certainly talented enough to play both.”
