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The Rice Raiders season has drawn to a close and they had one of the most productive offensive district seasons.
The Raiders had multiple underclassmen step up and make plays this season with one freshman and one sophomore being one of their top performers in their offense.
The Raiders have one of the youngest cores heading into next season and they already have their young players making plays. Not only are they making plays, but they are making plays when they matter most in their season.
The district season is like the playoffs before the playoffs because they are intense, and every game is a must-win for teams. With the Raiders being so young they got introduced to the varsity district schedule the hard way.
Despite struggling in district their underclassmen posted great stats to show that they are on their way to the top. Leading the way was freshman quarterback Kor ‘Dae Johnson who utilized his dual threat ability to constantly keep his teams in games.
Johnson completed 29 of his 69 pass attempts (42% completion) which does not look glamorous, but he threw for 560 yards and six touchdowns. He also added 42 yards on the ground and three touchdowns to cap off his first full varsity season as a starter.
Johnson had a very reliable receiver to help guide him through the season as a freshman, building a lot of chemistry with D’Neriyan Fuller. Fuller caught six passes from Johnson throughout the district season for 157 yards and a touchdown.
Fuller also showed his ability to line up in the back field and be an effective runner carrying the ball 13 times for 91 yards and three touchdowns. Fuller had limited opportunities in the backfield because the Raiders had a two headed monster that ran through opposing defenses.
Junior Dyren Johnson was the leader of the Raiders backfield carrying the ball 42 times for 334 yards throughout their district season. He was joined by Sophomore Braden James who proved to be a promising player in the Raiders’ backfield.
James carried the ball 20 times for the Raiders for 148 yards and one touchdown. The duo of Johnson and James coupled with a reliable receiver in Fuller and a quarterback hungry for more the Raiders are ready to run things back next season.
The Raiders season may be over, and they are not in the playoffs this season, but they proved throughout their district schedule that they have something special cooking out in Altair, TX.
