Dellinger Ready For Expanded Role

SPRINGDALE — Josh Dellinger sprinted 25 yards downfield and effortlessly hauled in a pass during Shiloh Christian’s spring football practice on Thursday.

It’s a routine the Saints coaches hope they see repeated over and over during the 2011 season.

Dressed in just helmets, shoulder pads and shorts, it was clear the chiseled Dellinger has added muscle to his 6-foot-3, 185-pound frame. The rising senior has the physique to be a force for the Saints in the fall, and he’s putting in the extra work to do just that.

“I’ve been working out twice a day at school and with a personal trainer,” Dellinger said. “Our workouts here at the school are killer, then I go over and work on speed drills after school.”

Dellinger said he’s added 30 pounds since last summer, bulking a once thin frame into a powerful package that could have colleges coming around to check out the two-way starter. His speed work, which he said includes pulling a weighted sled, has resulted in his 40-yard dash going from 4.7 to 4.5 seconds.

He said his goal was to run in the 4.4s by the time the fall.

Although Dellinger was on the field a lot for the Saints in 2010, his role was more of a secondary one behind the most decorated senior class in the school’s rich football history. A starter at safety, Dellinger was thrust into an offensive role when starting receiver Jon Hawes went down with a foot injury before the season even began.

He ended the season with 10 catches and a pair of touchdowns. The expanded playing time last season on offense “helped me a ton,” Dellinger said.

“No question being on the field with Zann Jones and Kiehl Frazier and those guys last year on offense helped prepare me for this season,” Dellinger said. “It’s going to make things a lot easier now that I’ve had a taste of playing on offense. I know the speed of the game and what to expect.”

His role will be significantly expanded in 2011 and his numbers should rise dramatically in Shiloh’s high-powered offense, Saints coach Josh Floyd said.

“We’re expecting a lot of big things from Josh,” Floyd said. “He’s always been a player on defense, and he ended up playing a lot on offense last year and he ended up having a great year.”

Dellinger said he’s welcoming the role of being a team leader, and he’s working to develop a good chemistry with quarterbacks Michael Sloan and Rand Emert.

“It’s a big responsibility, but I’m looking forward to it,” Dellinger said. “Me and the other seniors are trying to bust it as hard as we can every day and be an example for the younger guys because the guys ahead of us did it that way.”

The pressure of maintaining the program’s excellence — three straight state championships — is not lost on Dellinger and the senior class. And they are working hard to maintain that level, he said, adding, “It’s going to be fun.”

Dellinger will also see plenty of time on the defensive side of the ball. Asked which he preferred more, offense or defense, he gave the expected answer — both.

“I like running people over when I have the ball and I like to hit people when they have the ball,” he said.

Spoken like a true safety. Or receiver. Or both.