Earlier in the season, St. Thomas coach Glenn Caruso praised the way Amari Powell handled losing the starting quarterback job to transfer Andy Peters.
Saturday afternoon at O’Shaughnessy Stadium, that praise was extended to include Powell’s performance on the field in the Tommies’ 55-17 win over Valparaiso.
With Peters sidelined after taking a helmet-to-helmet hit during last week’s win at Davidson, Powell played the best game of his Tommies career. He completed 13 of 20 passes for 265 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for 42 yards and a touchdown before being replaced by Ryan Jackson in the third quarter.
“He played magnificently,” Caruso said.
Powell, a senior from Valencia, Calif., has had trouble throwing the ball with accuracy in the part. But not on Saturday. He said it’s simply the result of continuing to try to get better.
“The motto is ‘Chop wood, carry water,’” Powell said. “So you continue to stacks days, you continue to put your head down and work. When my time was called I was ready to go.
“This was just pitch and catch, the way we’ve been playing throughout fall camp and practices,” Powell added. “Going out there and trusting the guy — trusting the guys in front of me — and just getting the ball into their hands.”
With the win, St. Thomas improved to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the Pioneer Football League. Valparaiso (1-6, 0-3) came into the game having allowed an average of 47.7 points per game in its previous four losses. The Tommies, coming off a 57-13 win over Davidson, topped that number midway through the third quarter.
The Beacons scored a touchdown on the opening drive of the game, but the hosts responded with a touchdown of their own. They went on to dominate the rest of the first half, taking a 34-10 lead into the locker room at intermission.
Powell scored on a 20-yard run to give the St. Thomas a 24-7 lead midway through the second quarter. After a Valparaiso field goal, Powell connected on a 56-yard touchdown pass to JaShawn Todd.
Powell threw his third touchdown pass of the game early in the third quarter when he connected with Quentin Cobb-Butler in the end zone for a 41-10 St. Thomas lead.
It gave Cobb-Butler at least one touchdown catch in four consecutive games. He was impressed by Powell’s performance and happy to see him succeed.
“I was super proud of Amari,” Cobb-Butler said. “He’s a guy that shows up every day. Some guys, if they’re a (backup), they complain they’re not getting time. He just shows up every day and puts smiles on other guys’ faces, works his tail off.
“He is just quiet and just comes and plays like he just did, which was amazing.”
There’s a good chance that Peters will be ready to go next weekend when the Tommies travel to Stetson. Caruso said it was too soon to say whether Powell will get playing time should Peters start. But he expects Powell to contribute to the team regardless.
“The way he goes about his work is for everybody who’s attached to the program,” Caruso said. “It’s phenomenal to see a guy who can work that diligently and prepare himself event though he might not be in the roll that he dreamt about as a kid. But he is everything you could ever want. He’s a well-raised kid who understands his responsibility to others.”
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