Derius Stone had a rough idea how many yards he was racking up Friday night because his St. Mary teammates were keeping a running total.
Problem was, he was trying to ignore them.
“I kept telling them, ‘The game isn’t over yet. We can talk about it after,’ ” the senior tailback said. “I just wanted to stay focused and keep playing.”
The Record Male Athlete of the Week finished with 577 yards and seven touchdowns on 17 carries as St. Mary beat Emerson, 62-20.
Stone opened the scoring with a 93-yard touchdown run. He added TD runs of 70, 55, 85, 73, 65 and 77 yards, often leaving a trail of broken tackles in his wake.
“I’ve never had anyone attack the tacklers the way he does,” said Gaels coach Mike Sheridan, who added that Stone’s numbers could have been even more staggering, but he held him out a little before halftime, then rested him about halfway through the fourth quarter.
Sheridan said Stone’s toughness and talent have earned him the respect of his teammates. He leads by example, like the time he ran the Wildcat offense when the Gaels were hit by some early-season injuries.
Although his school-record-breaking performance has brought him a lot of attention, Stone would rather turn the conversation toward how the scout team did a great job preparing him for the game, or how the team’s success is still paramount.
“With me, it wasn’t about the yards,” Stone said. “I just want to keep on winning. I’m trying to get to the championship. I’m trying to win it all and people think I’m trying to be too modest. No, that’s just been my goal since I came to high school — to win the championship.”
