Published: November 03, 2009 06:33 pm      

From Back-Up to Superstar

Somerset — Heading into the 2009 football season, expectations were at an all-time high for the Pulaski County Maroons.

In fact, some observers within the media had dubbed the ‘09 Maroons as possibly, the best football team in PC’s 26-year gridiron history.

However after only two weeks into the season, those lofty expectations had gone by the board for Johnny Hines and crew.

The Maroons found themselves at an unbelievable, 0-2 at the start of the season, thanks to opening losses on the road at North Laurel and Somerset.

Making matters worse than the very disappointing start out of the gate, was the cruel fact Pulaski County had lost All-State quarterback Chris Muse for the year due to a torn ACL in his knee.

Yes, things looked bleak for the maroon and white early on, and the season, once so very promising before it began, surely hung in the balance.

Pulaski County found itself at a crossroads of sorts. Enter Zach Eastham.

Eastham, a junior, had been starting for the Maroons in those first two games as both a receiver and a defensive back.

And, despite the fact he filled in for Muse in 2008 for a game-and-a-half at quarterback, all of a sudden, the Maroons playoff hopes rested with a very skilled athlete, but one that was unproven in a pressure situation under center.

“When we realized we were losing Chris for the year, just about everybody on our team had their heads down,” recalled Eastham.

“I felt like I had done a pretty good job in the Somerset game when Chris went down, and all of my teammates the next week kept complimenting me and trying to keep me up,” Eastham pointed out.

Well, the rest as they say is history.

Fast forward just over two months after the devastating loss of Muse, and not only is this Pulaski County team Eastham’s club, but the junior QB has quite honestly picked right up where Chris Muse left off.

You want to talk about pressure and adversity, Eastham met it head on in his first start at quarterback in week three this season, as Pulaski County trailed East Jessamine inside the last minute of the inaugural Don Marshall Bowl, and were 80 yards away from the end zone and a much-needed victory.

Staring an 0-3 record squarely in the face, Eastham methodically drove Pulaski County downfield inside that final minute, throwing strike after strike to receivers, in helping lead PC to a thrilling, 35-30 victory over the Jaguars.

Now while that 80-yard drive to bring PC win number one on the year, with Eastham making throw after throw and play after play, maybe surprised a lot of folks that were in attendance that night at PC Field, but the one’s that were not shocked by what they witnessed was Hines, his coaching staff, and the Maroon players.

“I said before the season ever began that I felt like our quarterback position was every bit as good as it was in ‘03, when we had Cole Draughn, Brett Faulkner, and a kid named Ross Deaton on our team,” remarked the PC head coach.

“The only thing that Zach didn’t have until this year was the experience of being in pressure situations,” Hines added. “We have all the confidence in the world that Zach can lead us to a victory, regardless of the opponent, because we’ve seen it in practice every day all year long.”

Two weeks after that last-second win over East Jessamine, PC found itself at Rockcastle County on the ropes once again.

The Maroons trailed The Rock by 16 points, 41-25, midway through the fourth quarter, and a third loss on the year seemed to be a sure thing.

Eastham however once again led ‘The Cardiac Kids’ back from the dead, and with his 40-yard touchdown pass to Alex Abner with only :10 remaining, PC had miraculously roared back for an improbable, 47-41 victory over the Rockets — a team that just doesn’t lose at home.

Immediately following that win over The Rock, Hines himself had a hard time in coming up with the words in describing his junior quarterback, although the one thing he was sure of, was the fact that PC always has a chance to win a football game as long as Zach Eastham’s on the field.

“The situation in the fourth quarter tonight was not as bleak as many might believe, because when you have the skilled players that we have, with speed on the outside that we have, and a gunslinger like Zach Eastham at quarterback, I’m telling you we’re never out of the game,” stated the Maroon head coach after that win.

In PC’s first district contest a few weeks later, the Maroons trailed home-standing South Laurel 14-13 at the half, but thanks to five rushing touchdowns by Eastham after the intermission, the Maroons rolled home with an impressive, 45-20 win — a win that catapulted Pulaski County to a perfect, 4-0 district record and a first-ever district championship.

“I felt like I could do a good job at quarterback, and everybody on our team seemed to have a lot of confidence in me, which made it even easier,” said Eastham.

What has seemingly been easy so far this season has been the numbers that Eastham and the Pulaski County offense has racked up against their opponents.

Eastham finished the regular season with 644 yards rushing on only 77 carries — good enough for 8.3 yards per attempt, to go along with 8 touchdowns.

Through the air, Eastham proved he could beat teams with his arm as well, throwing for 1,239 yards this season and 16 touchdowns.

Not a bad job for a kid that had to fill the shoes of a Chris Muse who accounted for 7,605 yards, both on the ground and through the air, as well as 75 touchdowns headed into the 2009 season.

So, from here on out, regardless of the final outcome of the ‘09 season, Eastham has not only proven he can get the job done under center, but he’s already staked a claim as one of the top returning quarterbacks next year in this part of the state.

As for this year, Eastham says there’s still work to be done in the PC camp, and despite all of the success he’s enjoyed individually this year, he’s far from being satisfied.

“I have a lot of confidence in our team and I truly believe we can go all the way,” said Eastham.

“I have a lot of faith in my offensive line and my offensive line has a lot of faith in me,” added the PC quarterback. “I talk to them before every single game to get them up. On the field, I don’t even look at our numbers. I’m throwing the ball to anybody that has on the same colored jersey as I do.”

With Zach Eastham at quarterback, you can color the Pulaski County Maroons of ‘09 as winners.