After missing four games with a shoulder injury, Floyd Central quarterback Max Guenther returned to the Highlander lineup with something he didn’t have before.
Nerves.
Guenther suffered his injury in Week 3 and was forced to watch four games from the Highlander sidelines.
In Week 8, he returned on Floyd’s second offensive drive with a serious case of the butterflies.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been that nervous in a football game in my life. I don’t usually get nervous about football games,” the third-year senior signal-caller said.
On Guenther’s first pass attempt, the jitters showed as it went over the head of his intended target. On Guenther’s second heave, it landed in the arms of Aaron Sparks for a 25-yard touchdown.
“That got the jitters out and I was ready to go,” Guenther said.
Since that pass, Guenther has been making opposing coaches and defenses nervous.
Despite playing through shoulder and back pain, Guenther has put together a sensational playoff run that resulted in Floyd Central’s first sectional championship since 1998.
In sectional wins over Jennings County, New Albany and Castle, Guenther accounted for 11 touchdowns, six on the ground and five through the air. In the semifinal win over New Albany, Guenther threw for three first-half touchdowns. In the championship game, he ran for four.
“He has been outstanding,” Highlander coach Brian Glesing said of Guenther’s sectional run.
“He’s a great threat to have,” senior lineman Aaron Blair added. “He allows us to pass the ball, as well as run it.
“He’s a quarterback that can run the ball and throw the ball. He adds another threat to our offense and makes us more dangerous.”
As great of a multi-dimensional threat as he has been, Guenther’s coaches and teammates believe that his most admirable quality has nothing to do with his physical abilities.
“He’s a great leader to have because he’s experienced and he knows what he’s doing,” Blair said. “Having a guy out there who has been with you, a guy you can rely on, that makes him really important to us.”
“Max is a great leader for our team. He knows how to get everybody to do what they need to do,” Sparks said. “He knows our offense and what’s going on, and he understands our limitations, understands our strength and knows exactly what to do. He understands his role and what it takes to win a sectional and what it’s going to take to win a regional.”
Nothing showed Guenther’s leadership ability like the work ethic he put in during his rehabilitation.
“He’s put a lot of hard work in to get back and he’s helped us tremendously. I’m not sure we could have won (the sectional) without him,” Sparks said. “He’s played right through the pain and acts like nothing’s happened. He’s playing through the pain pretty well, I think.”
Floyd County Sports
Guenther making opponents nervous
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SWEET PAYBACK: Bulldogs avenge loss to Seymour with 52-44 win in 4A sectional semi
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GIRLS' HOOPS: Providence falls to Paoli, 55-39 GIRLS' HOOPS: Providence falls to Paoli in Class 2A Sectional
After falling behind early, the Providence Pioneers scrapped and clawed their way back. Unfortunately that was required on one occasion too many, and the Pioneers fell to Paoli 55-39 in the semifinals of the Class 2A Pekin Sectional.
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HIGH SCHOOL SWIMMING: Manger places in the top 16 at state
New Albany’s Hannah Manger will get one more chance to compete this season after making the top 16 in two events at the preliminary round of the IHSAA State Swimming Championship Meet.
- SPORTS IN BRIEF: Feb. 11, 2012
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CLARK-FLOYD CHAMPIONSHIPS: Parkview wins eighth-grade title game; Highland Hills takes seventh-grade crown
Highland Hills’ seventh-grade boys and Parkview’s eighth-graders each won Clark-Floyd Tournament championships Thursday at Silver Creek Middle School.
The Highland Hills’ seventh-graders outscored Parkview 12-3 in the final 2:42 for a 34-31 victory. Parkview’s eighth-graders also earned a come-from-behind triumph with a 21-5 fourth quarter to avenge their only loss of the season, 63-50 over Silver Creek. -
HIGH SCHOOL ROUNDUP: Jeff claims a share of HHC title at Jennings, 57-55
The Jeffersonville boys’ basketball team captured a piece of its first Hoosier Hills Conference championship since the 2005-06 season on Thursday night, winning at Jennings County 57-55.
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POOLSIDE: Local accomplishment the focus at state
The likelihood of a local girl bringing home a state championship at the IHSAA State Swimming Championship meet in Indianapolis this Friday and Saturday is incredibly slim.
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CLASS 4A SECTIONAL: Highlanders lose in double OT to Seymour; Jeff falls to BNL
It was a heartbreaking night for the Clark-Floyd area in the first round of the Class 4A Seymour Sectional.
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CLASS 2A SECTIONAL: Providence guts out win over Henryville, 40-31
The Providence girls’ basketball squad advanced to the Class 2A Eastern Sectional semifinal against Paoli with a gritty, 40-31 win over Henryville Tuesday.
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CLASS A SECTIONAL: Borden cruises through first round
Defending Class A Sectional champion Borden rode a fast start and stellar defense to a first-round, 47-21 sectional win over Christian Academy of Indiana Tuesday night.
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