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Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009

Record performance puts DeAnda in mix

Eric DeAnda smiles when he hears the question.

Is he the next great Merced running back?

DeAnda has heard all the names of the great running backs to come through Merced -- players like Freddy Bland, Wendell Mathis, Jhay Roland and Stephon Jackson just to name a few.

"It would mean so much to me to have my name mentioned with theirs," DeAnda said. "It's way too early, though."

DeAnda does have a point. The junior has made just two career starts.

However, you'd be hard-pressed to find another running back that has done more in his first two starts than DeAnda.

He carried the ball 20 times for 160 yards against Los Banos two weeks ago.

He then took down a Merced legend when he broke Mathis' single-game rushing mark with 307 yards and three touchdowns against Buhach Colony last Friday.

"It's a big name," DeAnda said. "I felt really good about beating his record. I mean it's Wendell Mathis. He's a Merced legend."

DeAnda's combination of power and speed have given Merced the big-play threat that it lacked during its 0-4 start this season.

DeAnda started the season spending most of his time at linebacker, while splitting carries with senior Andrew Mendoza.

The coaching staff eventually decided the team would be better off with Mendoza playing safety and using DeAnda as the primary running back.

"Outstanding performance," said Buhach Colony coach Kevin Swartwood, who had to watch DeAnda shred his defense last week.

"I have a lot of respect for that kid. I've always believed one back can't beat you. He's made me a believer now."

Is it too early to tell if DeAnda can make his way up the list of great Merced backs?

"The first thing is the game Eric had was only his second start," Merced coach Rob Scheidt said. "The second thing is almost our entire offensive line is going to be back next year. We only lose one of those guys and we feel we have some talented guys coming up through the program.

"You put all of those things together and he can have some very good career totals."

DeAnda is well aware of who is coming back on the line.

"If you watch the film, our guys were pushing the defensive line 10 yards back," he said.

"I can't take all the credit for what I accomplished. The offensive line is a big part of what I've done."