WOODBURY — Entering this football season, there was a gap to fill after the most successful quarterback in Northwest United history graduated.
Quarterback Ben Roden, who led his team to the state playoffs twice and was an all-league quarterback since his junior year, has now passed the football to junior Brady Herman.
Now Herman will be stepping up to fill the role of quarterback, but can he do it?
“Absolutely, not a doubt in my mind,” Northwest United coach Jen Garzone confidently said.
Even with confidence from his coaches, Herman still has some mixed emotions about stepping into this position.
“There’s some big shoes to fill, so there’s definitely some pressure, but it shouldn’t be a big deal,” Herman said. “I think I can step up in some of the ways Ben was able to.”
Herman says that he’s also working on being a leader to help get his team to states.
“I’m going to be a leader,” Herman said. “A lot of days in practice, Coach tells me to be a leader, and it’s something I have to get better at, but overall I think being a positive leader is what’s going to help the most.”
Derek Chung, a junior wide receiver, believes that although Herman struggled as a freshman JV quarterback, he is ready to step up.
“I feel good, and I think he’s ready,” said Chung. “Freshman year he threw a lot of picks, and now he hasn’t thrown as many.”
Garzone trusts that Herman is putting in the work that’s needed to take on this position.
“Brady has devoted himself to getting better at his craft,” Garzone says. “He’s learned that being a quarterback isn’t just about throwing a football; you’re the commander-in-chief of the offense. You have to be able to read defense, and he’s put a lot of work in behind the scenes and in the offseason where it is starting to pay off.
“I’m hoping he’s able to adapt and adjust quickly,” Garzone continued. “It’s one thing when you’re doing reps in practice and it’s another when it’s officially live.”
The first half of those live reps Sept. 13 against Stratford started off on a rough note. Herman did throw a touchdown pass to Chung in that half, but he threw an interception that Stratford returned for a touchdown to put the Workhorses down, 20-7, at halftime.
“I thought there was no way to win the game,” Herman said. “I felt like if we were going to win, some luck would have had to happen.”
That mindset stopped as Herman stepped up when it mattered. He threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Reed Woerner in the fourth quarter. Then, he led Northwest United on the game-winning drive, throwing a 35-yard touchdown pass to Woerner with 1.5 seconds left. Woerner’s extra point gave the Workhorses a 21-20 win.
“I trust Brady to get me the ball,” Woerner said. “I told him before the game, ‘You got me every play.’ He hit me there, and I worked some magic and made it happen.”
This game-winning play gave Herman more confidence in his abilities.
“I felt starstruck; it didn’t feel real,” Herman said. “It showed me that maybe I’m more ready for this than I thought.”
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