Clearview junior Anthony Hitchens was among the Week 2 nominees for the Army Iron Man Award, which honors Ohio's best two-way high school football players.
Hitchens had 197 yards and two rushing touchdowns on 18 carries in Clearview's 34-12 win over Vermilion. He also returned an interception 54 yards for a touchdown from his linebacking spot.
The performance was an eye-opening one.
Everyone already knew about Hitchens' ability as a running back. His play as a linebacker has gotten less notoriety (I plead guilty on that one), but after his play last week, I'm ready to argue he's as good, if not better, as a linebacker. Numerous times, Clearview coach Mike Collier gave Hitchens the green light to blitz, and Hitchens was in the Vermilion backfield causing havoc all game long. It didn't matter if Vermilion had dropback passer Tim Clark or the more mobile Mike Virgin taking snaps. Hitchens was in both of their faces.
As for the interception, he was in the right place at the right time. Hitchens sat in zone coverage when he pulled in the interception, but he weaved and dodged would-be tacklers on his way back to the end zone.
On offense, he already knows he's getting the ball. But, on the interception, he had to react quickly. It showed just how good he is and, maybe more importantly, how much he's improved since his freshman year.