The Lynn Tech football team has given its fans plenty to smile about this season. A year after being bounced out of the state tournament in the quarterfinals by Brighton, the Tigers have rumbled to a 9-0 start in 2017.
Undoubtedly, Tech’s bus to its undefeated start has been driven by the running back duo of Steffan Gravely and Keoni Gaskin. The two seniors have teamed up to power the Tigers’ offense and represent a huge challenge for opposing defenses. But Tech also carries a rising star in its signal caller, one that perhaps doesn’t get enough credit for the team’s success this season.
Junior David Barrios, a two-way starter who plays quarterback and free safety, has found a key role on the team this fall. In nine games, Barrios has tallied 730 passing yards, 337 rushing yards, eight touchdowns passes and two scores on the ground.
“David’s number one skill is his decision making,” Tech coach James Runner said. “He makes a point to not throw any interceptions. He makes a point not to throw any in practice. He has a great arm and we don’t expose that as much. When we need to, he throws the ball 40-50 yards downfield with no problem. We give him three choices with every play and he always makes the right decision.”
Runner also values the impact Barrios makes on the team defensively. From his free safety position, Barrios has totalled 39 tackles, six interceptions and three forced fumbles.
“David changed the Marian game,” Runner said, referring to Tech’s playoff-opening win in the Division 8 North Quarterfinals over Marian/Keefe Tech. “We were losing 8-0 and David knocked their receiver and forced a fumble. He has six interceptions on defense. He sits there like a hawk in the sky waiting for the ball. He sits back and mans the field and that’s huge for us.”
Coming into his junior year, Barrios was focused on contributing to the team in any way he could. Barrios began his journey as Tech’s signal caller during the latter part of last season, and undertook the role full-time this year.
“I just wanted to do my job each game and make as few mistakes as possible,” Barrios said. “My goal has always been to help us win. We win as a team and as a group.”
Playing multiple positions isn’t always the norm for quarterbacks, but Barrios appreciates the opportunity to make contributions on both sides of the game. Learning the ins and outs of defense as a free safety has helped make him a better decision-maker at quarterback.
“As a quarterback you know how to read the defense and as a free safety you know how to read an opposing offense,” Barrios said. “I think both positions help each other out. It’s really good to be able to have that knowledge.”
Although Tech’s run-heavy offense doesn’t allow Barrios the opportunity to throw the ball as often as other quarterbacks might, he doesn’t look at that negatively. Barrios feels as though Tech’s ground game has led the team to where it is now, meaning there’s no reason to diverge from it.
“It’s always about winning as a group,” Barrios said. “Our running game’s working and we have no reason to change that. We’re always at practice running the same plays to make sure everyone knows their job and who their assignments are.
“Everyone works very hard,” Barrios added. “As individuals, we don’t care about who gets the shine. We all have a role and we know it. We work very hard at that. It’s all about everyone executing his job.”
To Barrios and the rest of his teammates, Tech’s success this season comes as no surprise. Barrios credited the team’s undefeated start to the dedication the players showed with one another throughout the offseason.
“I think we expected this,” Barrios said. “We worked really hard during the offseason. We’ve been conditioning and lifting weights since January. We’ve had team workouts at 5 in the morning to get back to school by 7. We showed a lot of dedication. Our offseason work ethic was great.”
The junior quarterback also acknowledged the Tigers’ camaraderie as one of the keys to their success this fall. Having each player know and understand his role, Barrios said, has allowed the Tigers to be on the same page week in and week out.
“Every single week we try to keep the mentality of one game at a time,” Barrios said. “Everyone’s on the same page and that’s what’s been working for us. Everyone’s working together. Our team camaraderie is at an all-time high and that’s been key for us this year.”
This week, Tech’s focus will be dedicated to Saturday night’s Division 8 North final against Cathedral. The No. 1 Tigers cemented their bid in the final with wins over Marian/Keefe Tech (43-8) and New Mission (35-0). Cathedral, the No. 2 seed, defeated Excel in the quarterfinals (52-0) and Tech Boston in the semifinals (28-14).
“We know Cathedral has very good individual players,” Barrios said. “They have a very strong team. We have to work hard every day in practice to make sure our mental and physical game are both right. We just have to keep going at it.”
