Senior Zane Burr leads Stratford into battle of unbeatens with Farwell
It was early December last year and the Stratford Elks were three wins away from a state title. The Elks were facing off against the Wellington Skyrockets in an all-Panhandle Class 2A Div. II state quarterfinal whose winner would represent the region in the next round.
Stratford's star junior running back Zane Burr entered the pivotal game with 1,169 yards rushing and 18 touchdowns while serving as the second member of an impressive backfield alongside senior quarterback Cody Rinne.
During a play in the game against the physical Wellington squad, Burr was lined up at his linebacker spot on defense when he lowered his shoulder to brace for a hit he was about to deliver and knew something was wrong following the impact.
He had torn his shoulder labrum.
"I still went and made the tackle," he said.
The recovery time for such an injury is typically a four-to-six week process that could take longer depending on the severity of the tear. Burr did not have four-to-six weeks to rest and heal – he and his team had a championship to win.
"I knew I needed to be there for my team," Burr said. "I just sucked it up and played through the pain. It definitely paid off."
Burr went on to run hard for 31 yards and two scores in the state semifinal win over Albany before capping off his junior campaign with 56 yards and two touchdowns in the state championship game against Falls City. On the defensive side, he totaled 16 tackles and one sack in the season's final two games.
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The young athlete showed off great toughness and perseverance to push himself through the obstacle of a major injury while making a major impression on both his coaches and his teammates.
"First off, he's a great young man," Stratford coach Matt Lovorn said about Burr. "He's a real high-character young man and a great leader for us. He's played a lot of football games for us over the last several years and for him to be playing as well as he is right now is no surprise to me. That's a role that he takes on, that's a role that he expects and that he wants. We're fortunate to have a player and leader like that for our team."
Now, Burr is back as a senior and leading the Elks into a battle of unbeaten new district rivals as they are set to host the Farwell Steers (5-0) on Friday night at Sam Bass Stadium in Stratford.
The 6-foot bruiser has lined up at running back and linebacker once again this season and has continued to develop into an intimidating, and sometimes unstoppable, force on both sides of the ball.
He leads the Elks with 459 rushing yards and has scored six touchdowns through five non-district contests. The senior checks-in at second on the team total tackles leaderboard (48) behind sophomore linebacker/quarterback Bryce Braden.
His next test will be running on a defense that has allowed a total of 12 points in its last four games and limiting an offense that is averaging 32.2 points per game this season.
"The defensive guys are having fun and running around," Farwell coach Darren Kelley said. "Kind of like Stratford, we're pretty big up front, and so hopefully we can hold our own defensively. We've only given up 33 points through the whole year and so that's fun. We've had some big stops this year like in the New Deal game we held them on the goal line to seal the win. That's what we've built everything around and now we're at the point in the year where it doesn't matter the score, we just want to win."
The Steers have an explosive senior running back of their own in Corey Stancell, who currently has the ninth most rushing yards in the Texas Panhandle this season with 635 to go along with eight touchdowns. Stancell has formed a dynamic one-two punch on the ground with senior quarterback Alec Actkinson (514 yards, three touchdowns).
Stancell is also a threat on defense and has notched four interceptions so far this season.
This will be a game that is won in the trenches as both programs tout impressive size and physicality up front. Both coaches understand this and are preparing their teams for a four quarter battle against a tough opponent.
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"They've got a lot of size to them and they have one of the best running backs in the Panhandle," Lovorn said about Farwell. "Their quarterback does a good job on his reads and the backs do a good job of following their blockers up front. They've got a very strong defense led by their linebackers. They're impressive on both sides of the ball."
Stratford has now won 17 straight games dating back to last season and Farwell will be aiming to end that streak come Friday night. Whichever team wins this game will have a major boost of momentum into the rest of the District 1-2A Div. I schedule and could be viewed as the favorite to win the district.
The road to a district title begins Friday.
"We just have to go out and play football like we've been doing and hopefully it will work out," Kelley said.
FARWELL AT STRATFORD
District 1-2A Div. I Football
When: 7 p.m. Friday
Where: Sam Bass Stadium, Stratford
Records: Farwell 5-0; Stratford 5-0
Coverage: Follow @ShawnMoranNews on Twitter for live updates, plus post game video, stories and photos to appear on amarillo.com.
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Senior Zane Burr leads Stratford into battle of unbeatens with Farwell
