By Joe Sager

New Castle News

 

You won’t find Eli Owens backpedaling or dancing around on the football field.

He likes to run straight at — and over — most obstacles in his way.

The Neshannock High junior rushed for 267 yards and a pair of touchdowns last week in a 34-12 win over Laurel in a key WPIAL Class A Big Seven Conference battle.

The performance earned him Lawrence County Co-Athlete of the Week honors, an award sponsored by Washington Centre Physical Therapy and selected by the New Castle News sports staff.

Owens helped spark the Lancers (2-0 conference, 2-0 overall) in the first half. Down 6-0, his long run set up Neshannock’s first touchdown. He added a 23-yard TD jaunt later in the quarter to give the hosts a 14-6 edge. All told, he rushed for 165 yards on 14 carries in the first half alone.

“Eli is a dynamic back,” Neshannock coach Fred Mozzocio said. “He can run the football inside the tackles and take it to the outside when we ask him to do that. He is also a great receiver out of the backfield. He does those three things very well for us. He’s a very good blocker on pass protection, too. He’s a fierce competitor.”

Owens credits his offensive linemen — Zach Barnes, Steve Senko, Nate Nativio, Adam Wawrzynski and Ralph Dovidio and tight end Steven Jefferies — for giving him space to operate. All of those players returned from last season.

“(The offensive linemen) work real hard,” Owens said. “They are some of the hardest-working athletes on the field. They block very well for me and open up the holes. After that, I just do what I do. It’s beautiful. There are wide-open holes. You could fit four or five of me through them. I love it. You just pick and choose where you need to go and just take off. It’s so much easier. I just take the ball where the line opens the holes.”

Once Owens gets the ball, his philosophy is simple.

“I try to get as many yards as possible,” he said. “When I get through the line, I just try to go forward even if there’s a person there. I never try to go backwards. I am always trying to make positive yardage. I actually like running right down the middle. When you run around the ends, you have a decent amount of room to work with, but you’re cutting back toward the flow, which I don’t really like as much. Either one works, really.”

While Owens prefers to charge ahead, he does have some elusiveness. Through two weeks, Owens leads Lawrence County in rushing with 338 yards on 37 carries, which averages to 9.1 yards every time he touches the ball.

“He is a natural football player,” Mozzocio said. “He has natural instincts. He is always around the ball on defense. Offensively, he just has that little wiggle to him. He has those ‘Texas Twister’ hips and he’s always making a couple guys miss ... trying to get the extra yards for us. He does a great job.”

Owens, a cornerback, is a factor on defense, too, for the Lancers.

“He makes a lot of big plays out at corner,” Mozzocio said. “He is a big hitter for us in the secondary. He will come up and lay the wood to you. I think he really enjoys it.”

Neshannock faces its toughest test to date tomorrow when it travels to Sto-Rox in another key conference clash.

“It’ll be a different atmosphere; it’ll be a tough game,” Owens said. “There will be a lot of cracking heads. I can’t wait.”

THE ELI OWENS FILE ...

 POSITION: Running back/defensive back

 GRADE: 11

 KNOWN FOR: Owens rushed for 267 yards on 30 carries, including a pair of touchdowns, in Neshannock’s 34-12 WPIAL Class A Big Seven Conference win over rival Laurel on Friday.

 PARENTS: Stephen and Shannon Owens

 FAVORITE PRO PLAYER AND WHY: “This year, I was thinking about my grandpa, Ron Horn. He played in the NBA (in the 1960s). He just worked hard at everything he did. He was unbelievable. When he made it to the NBA, he was astonished. My grandma talks about him all the time. I never really got to meet him. I am sure he was great.”

 FAVORITE PRO TEAM AND WHY: Pittsburgh Steelers. “They are not that good this year, but you just have to stay with them. I like them because my whole family loves them.”

 FUTURE PLANS: “I’d like to get some scholarships and go to college and play football. I am looking forward to it.”