The Saluda Tigers were up 20-0 on Crescent in Week 0 when quarterback Drew Arant went down with a shoulder injury. Josh Uhlar took over to finish out the game, but head coach Stewart Young knew that was just a bandaid.
So he turned to the same guy that Arant turned to in the offensive backfield: Brayden Williams.
Williams started the game under center in Week 1 against Ridge-Spring Monetta and appeared to already be well adjusted to his new position. He went 7-for-11 passing for 123 yards and two touchdowns. One of the touchdowns was on a broken play where he scrambled out of the pocket, directed Uhlar toward open grass, and fired a strike for a 20-yard touchdown.
“He’s definitely got the talent,” Young said of the junior. “Having to make this change to quarterback has forced him to mature as a player and as a leader for our team. We still have some work to do, but we like our chances with him back there.”
Williams echoed Young’s sentiment about stepping in to lead the Tigers after Arant went down.
“When I saw him down there on the ground, I knew I needed to step up for my team,” Williams said. “I thought there was a pretty good chance they would move me to quarterback and I just told myself I had to step up to the challenge.”
The Tigers have a bye this week, which will allow Williams some more practices to settle in to his new role. Young said the offense was being adjusted to fit Williams’ skill set and give him the best chance to be successful. Saluda will need Williams to settle in quickly with third-ranked Chester coming to town on Sep.13.
While Williams is not the polished passer that Arant is, he brings something else to the position: speed. Williams is blazing fast and Young said that is something the Tigers want to take full advantage of with Williams at quarterback.
“Speed is something you can’t coach, and Brayden (Williams) has plenty of it,” Young said. “We’re going to find ways to use that speed to our advantage. It gives the defense something else to prepare for.”
While playing quarterback is a big change for Williams, it is not something that he is uncomfortable with.
“It’s just like anything else. It’s all mental,” Williams said. “If you go into something thinking you can’t do it then you can’t. But if you think you can then the sky is the limit.”
Arant is expected to miss significant time with the shoulder injury, likely extending into the middle of the Tigers’ region slate. That means Williams will be orchestrating Saluda’s offensive attack for the next several weeks. That also means some other pieces have to move around. Sophomore Tristan Daniels will see significantly more snaps at running back on top of the snaps he gets at linebacker on defense. Zeb Penny will also see increased snaps alongside Daniels.
“We obviously hate Drew (Arant) got hurt, but we think Brayden (Williams) can be really good at quarterback,” Young said. “It’s our job as coaches to get him ready and put him in a position to be successful.”
