Bates airing it out in senior campaign
Archer City quarterback Ty Bates is among the best returning Class 2A quarterbacks in the state this season after accounting for 36 touchdowns and 2,824 yards of total offense last season.
This season, Bates is putting in the work it takes to be great and hopefully achieve his goal of a state championship.
“I haven’t really considered a lot of personal goals. I know where I want to get as a team and that’s a state championship. I want to go as far as I know we can go. I know what we’re capable of but I don’t want to get too big of a head. Anyone can step on the field and whip your butt at any time. I’m looking forward to going out there and seeing what we’re made of.”
Wildcats’ head coach Shad Hanna knows the benefits of having an experienced senior quarterback lead the team.
“Anytime you have an experienced guy at quarterback leading your offense and running things makes it much easier to install your offense,” Hanna said. “We do a lot of pre-snap read stuff and RPO (run/ pass option) stuff and not having to teach that to him all over again is a blessing. It takes you time to put your offense in. The offense goes in so much smoother when you have an experienced quarterback. He’s able to communicate to those guys around him as well and get everyone lined up. It always pays off when you have an experienced senior quarterback.”
An experienced receiving corps around him should give Bates confidence knowing he’s throwing to familiar faces.
“Those receivers do some great things for him whenever he gets them the ball,” Hanna added. “A quarterback’s success is judged on how well his receivers catch the football. They go hand-in-hand. He needs those guys to catch the football and do great things so it helps him.”
“We have a lot of athletes (at receiver),” Bates said. “We can give the ball to anybody at any given time and they can get it done from anywhere.”
A well-orchestrated offseason program helped Bates get bigger, faster and stronger over the summer but it’s not just the physical tools the senior needed to grow going into his final season.
“Going from my freshman to senior year, I’ve learned the game more; learned the system,” Bates said. “I know how to read stuff before the play even starts.”
His head coach raved on the progress he made in the weight room this summer.
“I’ve definitely noticed his strength and size. He’s gotten so much stronger and so much bigger. Being stronger allows him to put more zip on the football. He’s going to be a lot bigger threat running the ball and he’s more accurate this year than he was last year.”
It’s not very often your quarterback is the most aggressive person on the team but Bates is a special two-way talent. When he’s not picking apart the defense in the passing game, he’s terrorizing opposing quarterbacks from his outside linebacker position. Last year he racked up 108 tackles including 16 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks.
“I’ve always liked to hit people, ever since peewee. The first time I made the pee-wee all-star game, they asked me if I wanted to play offense or defense and I picked defense without even talking to my dad about it.”
Whether its running down quarterbacks or running over linebackers, expect the Wildcats to go as far as he can carry them.
