Griffith’s Colton Strezo says the worst part about playing quarterback last season was he didn’t get to hit enough.
That explains why the 6-foot-2, 180-pound senior doesn’t have any complaints about becoming a two-way starter at wide receiver and safety this season.
“When I was the QB, they took me off of defense, and defense was the best part,” Strezo said. “I couldn’t tackle anybody. I couldn’t ever hit. I’ve always loved defense more than I’ve loved offense.”
It didn’t take long for Strezo to get back in the groove during Griffith’s season-opening 56-0 against Highland on Friday.
“I was on the kickoff, and I got double-teamed,” he said. “I was like, ‘Oh, yeah, I haven’t done this in a minute.’”
Strezo may not be handling the ball on every offensive snap, but his performance against Highland suggests he can still make an impact. He made an interception in the second quarter and caught a 49-yard touchdown pass on the next play.
Griffith sophomore wide receiver Sebastian Kutscher said the interception perfectly displayed Strezo’s mental grasp of the game, which has allowed him to adapt to different positions.
“He read it like a book,” Kutscher said. “He studies film, so he knew that play was coming, and he just jumped the route. He’s a really smart player who knows the game well, inside and out.”
Griffith coach Phil Mason said Strezo is already making a difference on defense.
“He’s a hitter, man,” Mason said. “He plays downhill, and he’s making our football team much better. It’s a good situation for everybody, and it’s a credit to the type of kid that Colton is that he’ll do whatever he needs to do for the success of the team.”
Strezo did that last season, too, when he became Griffith’s quarterback. He had been a wide receiver and a linebacker as a sophomore. Strezo’s move allowed freshman quarterback Ryan Bullion to spend the season with the junior varsity team.
“Colton’s a really good athlete, so putting him at QB was the right thing for us to do at that point,” Mason said. “We didn’t want to throw a freshman into the mix early, and we wanted to keep those young kids together for them to have success and develop.”
As the offseason unfolded, Bullion proved worthy of a starting role — he threw for 229 yards and three TDs against Highland — so shifting Strezo again tripled Griffith’s fortunes, according to Mason’s math.
“As we got into our winter and spring practices, we started seeing a different side of Ryan, and we realized that moving Ryan into that position meant Colton can play safety and receiver for us,” Mason said. “So, in essence, we’re gaining three players.”
Strezo said any reluctance he may have felt about yielding the limelight at QB evaporated once he realized he’d be involved in much more of the game’s physicality.
“It’s fun to be back on defense,” Strezo said with a wide smile.
Strezo also smiled as he recounted the buzz he felt around the team as it avenged a 27-23 loss to Highland in the season opener last year.
“We were ready for that first game,” he said. “Our energy was up in the locker room and on the sidelines the whole time.”
But Strezo stressed that the Panthers, who went 3-7 last season, do not intend to rest on their laurels after one victory.
“We can’t practice any less now because we had a big win,” he said. “You still have to take everything seriously because every team is different.”
Dave Melton is a freelance reporter.
