Varsity 541

PREP FOOTBALL

Righting the Ship

With a little help from his friends, senior quarterback Chris Kammel has steered the Phoenix Pirates to the top of the Skyline Conference standings

PHOENIX — More than anything, Chris Kammel wants to make it clear that this isn't something he's done by himself, that the football resurgence at Phoenix High stems from a unified effort.

Still, it's hard to believe the Pirates would be in the position they're in were it not for Kammel's growth at arguably the most prominent position on the football field.

A starter at quarterback since his sophomore year, the 6-foot-3, 180-pound senior now has a steady grip on the position and has steered his team to a spot few believed the Pirates could reach this season.

After struggling through 2-7 seasons the past two years, Phoenix will take a 5-2 overall record into Friday night's Skyline Conference showdown against Henley (5-4). Both teams boast 3-0 league records and have already secured the Skyline's lone state playoff berths, but the rights to the conference title will be on the line in the regular season finale at Jack Woodward Stadium.

"It's definitely a blessing and you really have to thank your lucky stars we're in this position," says Kammel. "We stuck with it and put in the time and now it's finally paying off."

The time element has especially helped in Kammel's case. He spends roughly an hour per day going over game film with offensive coordinator Doug Elam, discussing topics from learning his reads to simply learning what it takes to be a leader at his position.

"He has some great football smarts that not a lot of high school football quarterbacks have," says Phoenix head coach Toby Walker. "He's able to read a defense, able to make checks on the field and able to make a play out of nothing if he has to."

"He's got a great arm," adds the first-year coach, "but one thing we also have is good receivers who can catch the ball at 10 yards and turn it into a 60-yard gain."

Kammel has completed 118 of 220 passes for 1,747 yards and 10 touchdowns thus far and is a key component in Phoenix owning the most prolific offense in the conference at nearly 34 points per game. He passed for 1,300 yards and eight scores in earning first-team all-conference acclaim a year ago, but Kammel believes the time spent with Elam has completely elevated his game this season.

"I'm definitely a lot more patient and I see things a lot better," he says. "The main difference is probably the classroom time. Coach Elam ... he's a wizard and I'm his disciple pretty much. He pretty much sets the offense up for success."

Along with his 250 yards per game through the air, Kammel also averages a team-best 72 yards per outing on the ground. His 505 yards rushing tops the squad, and his nine touchdowns are equaled only by running back Matt Lapat (378 yards on 75 carries).

Kammel prefers to defer credit for his numbers to his offensive line and the bevy of offensive weapons Phoenix is able to utilize. It also bears noting that Kammel is a National Honor Society member with a 3.5 cumulative grade-point average — meaning he knows how his bread is buttered.

"I've taken my fair share of hits the past few years," jokes Kammel, "that's why I appreciate my offensive line so much this year."

With linemen Luke Richey, Kameron Kaufman, Bret Carder, Dalton Richardson and Albert Reynoso, Kammel says his best interests are in great hands. He's also quick to point out the playmaking skills of receivers Skyler Reagan (40 catches for 597 yards), Justin Bohn (22 for 290), Austin Toney (17 for 408), Chad Daniels (10 for 117) and Kyle Treadway (nine for 113).

"The difference-maker this year is really the offensive line," he says. "They're the best offensive line in the Skyline Conference. They're undersized and on paper supposedly going to be beaten but they're all just pit bulls and fire off the ball and get the job done. We're running a lot more than we thought we'd be able to because of them."

The quarterback also says a lot of credit also has to go to Walker, who has made a huge impact on the team's spirit despite taking over coaching duties one day before heading off to team camp in July.

"When you have a coach come in during the summer, some of the seniors and players lose faith," says Kammel, "but coach Walker came up and took us under his wings and got the seniors to believe faster than I think any other coach has. From Day 1 we believed coach Walker was going to be able to take us further than anyone could take us before, and as of now he's proved that."

Phoenix was tabbed to finish fourth in a preseason vote by the Skyline coaches, but played a back-and-forth game before falling 49-41 at Douglas, currently ranked third in Class 4A, in its season opener. The Pirates then scored consecutive wins over Ashland and Brookings-Harbor before falling hard to North Bend in what Walker says was his team's worst showing of the season.

After that, Phoenix had a game canceled due to a sweeping flu epidemic before opening on the road against typical Skyline heavyweight Hidden Valley. The Pirates won that league opener 13-6 and haven't looked back in dominating Illinois Valley (61-14) and North Valley (56-20).

"Getting a win against Hidden Valley when we haven't beaten them in a long time, that built some confidence in the kids and it's just gone from there," says Walker. "When I got the job, all I guaranteed was these kids would compete and the wins and losses would speak for the effort and the way they were prepared. I'm very proud of the strides these kids have made."

That's not to say that all the work is over. The Hornets provide a huge challenge on Friday, and Kammel says the team isn't allowed to mention the "P-word."

"This week is the most important week for us right now," says Walker. "We haven't looked at playoffs and who we'd play or where we'd go, we've just tried to focus on this week because taking care of business (Friday) will send us on the path we want to go. It's important that we end on a good note."

For Kammel and the senior class, however, they've already secured their first winning season since they were in fourth grade.

"We've always had the potential, we just haven't had the spirit and camaraderie we've had this year," adds Kammel.

Reach reporter Kris Henry at 776-4488, or e-mail khenry@mailtribune.com