A player and program that need each other

Published 8:30 pm Thursday, October 29, 2015

As a receiver, defensive back and punter, senior Alex Youngquist fills many roles for the Murray County High School football team. Coach Chad Brewer acknowledged it would be hard on the team to fill all his responsibilities if Youngquist is taken away. But it was extra hard on Youngquist last year when the team got taken away from him.

“Last year I had some family trouble,” Youngquist said. “My mom got real sick so I had to go live with my dad. It was pretty hard stepping away from the team because I care about this team a lot. It took a lot out of me. I was paying attention on social media to the score every Friday night. It just hurt me I couldn’t be here, but I’m really glad I’m back.”

“He had some family issues that year and Alex had to move,” Brewer said. “He didn’t want to do that, but he had to do what’s best for his family. Everything got taken care of and he got to move back. I was very glad when he showed back up toward the end of the year. I was very excited to have him back.”

When the opportunity to return to Murray County was presented to Youngquist, he said there was no hesitation.

“When my mom said, ‘Are you ready to go back this weekend?’ I said, ‘I’m already packed,’” he said.

Youngquist has a prominent role in every aspect of the Indians’ games, being featured on offense, defense and special teams.

“Alex is a very versatile player for us first of all,” Brewer said. “He plays on the offensive side of the ball at receiver; he plays in the defensive secondary, starts at safety for us. He’s our punter, he’s on every special team that we have. He’s a very, very important part of our football team. He’s a guy we sometimes take for granted. If he gets hurt in a game, all of a sudden we go in panic mode. Alex is not in, we start looking around at each other, because he’s in on everything.”

It can be a challenge for one person to have to know virtually the entire playbook and to know so many assignments, but Youngquist said it’s something he’s grown accustomed to.

“It’s hard but through a long season you get used to it,” he said. “It’s hard but then again, I’ve done it for a while now. I’m used to it.”

“It is tough, but thankfully Alex is a very intelligent young man,” Brewer said. “He can remember all of the things he needs to remember.”

While it’s easy to see the offensive numbers he can put up, or the tackles he can make on defense, the effect he can have on the game as the team’s punter sometimes gets lost.

“Right now he’s around 34 yards a punt and had several 50-yard punts,” Brewer said. “Last game against Calhoun he had a 62-yard punt which really got us out of a hole. We were backed up and he punted out of the end zone all the way to about the 25-yard line. That helped us out tremendously. They may have scored on the drive anyway, but if you’re not playing Calhoun and you get a 62-yard punt and flip the field, it really helps you out.”

After winning just three games in the previous two years in the green and white, Youngquist and this year’s seniors have already tallied four wins for the school and, if things fall right the final two weeks, could end up getting the Indians into the playoffs.

“It feels great to get the most wins in such a long time, but we’re not done,” Youngquist said.