Farris A Jack-Of-All-Trades

JUNIOR PLAYS OFFENSE, DEFENSE, MORE

STAFF PHOTO ANDY SHUPE 
Bradley Farris, left, of West Fork reaches to tackle Elkins’ Triston Ice on Oct. 25 at West Fork.
STAFF PHOTO ANDY SHUPE Bradley Farris, left, of West Fork reaches to tackle Elkins’ Triston Ice on Oct. 25 at West Fork.

— Bradley Farris doesn’t spend much time on the sideline on Friday nights.

The West Fork junior plays a key role on offense, defense and special teams for the Tigers. He rarely leaves the field.

“Unless we pull out the mercy rule,” Farris said.

The Tigers (6-4) did that to a few teams this season, including an impressive 35-6 road win over rival Greenland last week. They hope there are several more big wins in store for the playoff s, beginning with Friday’s fi rst round home matchup against Atkins.

Farris will, as usual, play a big role, especially on defense, where he’s racked up around 100 tackles this season.

“We don’t have a replacement for him,” West Fork coach Brad Lindley said. “He does the little things well, like not letting the ball get outside of him and keeping contain. Getting to the fl ats on his pass coverage. He’ll take on a lead blocker, get off the block and make a tackle himself. He’s a solid team player on defense.”

The 5-foot-11, 165-pounder has been an impact player at outside linebacker despite being outsized by most of his opponents. But he got used to that while starting as a sophomore.

“I went against 260-pound, 300-pound linemen and knocked them on their butt,” Farris said. “And I only weighed 150 then. So that kind of gave me that confidence.”

On offense, Farris has rushed for 232 yards and two touchdowns while catching a team-high 21 passes for 172 yards and another score. But those stats don’t fully capture the impact he makes on that side of the ball.

“You’re not going to go ‘Wow’ about his stats, but he’s the lead blocker for Wyatt Montgomery,” Lindley said. “He makes plays.”

West Fork bowed out of the playoffs after a firstround loss to Paris last year, a game in which the Tigers’ only score came when Farris scooped a fumble and returned it for a touchdown. A deeper playoff run is in the plans this year. “I know that we defi nitely have a good chance,” Farris said. “If we have a focus like we did against Yellville or Melbourne or Greenland, we’re going to do really good.”

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