It was a season of firsts for the Iron Horses football team

All 45 players on football roster eligible to return in 2019

Every coach likes to win. Every coach wants to win. But there are limitations. Just ask Philip Simmons High School football coach Eric Bendig, who recently guided the Iron Horses through their first ever varsity season.

The only thing more difficult than that is to have a team with no seniors. That was the situation Bendig and the Iron Horses were in and was the reason -- not the talent, desire or pride -- that limited the Iron Horses to only two victories in their inaugural season.

“As coaches, we got so caught up in winning,” Bendig said. “We wanted to win, and we wanted to win every week. You always try to win. But looking back, you also have to build your kids up, build the kids’ confidence. But you also want them to be rewarded for all that hard work.”

The Iron Horses were 2-8 overall and 1-4 in Region 6-AA play. The team had approximately 45 players on roster for the 2018 season and all of them will be eligible to return. This was a season of firsts for the Iron Horses, but so will next year. The Iron Horses will have their first senior class.

The team will be older, stronger, faster and more experienced.

“I didn’t like the record, but I loved the effort,” said Bendig, who watched his team average 14.8 points on offense while allowing 34.9 on defense. “Looking back on it, not having a senior class is something that’s tough to overcome. It’s something you can’t really coach: experience and maturity.”

The team had a great season in 2017 when the Iron Horses competed at the junior varsity level. The players who shone on that team struggled at times in the just-completed season. But they also showed potential.

On offense, the team’s primary mode of attack was the rushing game, and the Iron Horses averaged nearly 150 yards per game.

Javi Smith provided the breakaway threat with 59 carries for 531 yards. He averaged 9.0 yards per carry and led the team with seven TDs. Solly Bess was the workhorse with 137 carries for 510 yards and five TDs.

Quarterback Omaro Asby also was over the 500-yard mark in total offense, including 491 yards and three TDs passing. R.J. Watson and David Ramey led the team with 14 and 13 receptions, respectively.

On defense, Tyler Harper led the Iron Horses with 99 ½ tackles, including 75 solo stops. Nate Newman, arguably the Iron Horse with the greatest potential, tallied 76 ½ tackles, including four for a loss.

The good news is they will be back and better.

“Timberland and Oceanside Collegiate had a lot of juniors and younger players too,” Bendig said of the top two teams in the region. “But the thing about us was our lack of varsity experience. We had a lot of guys get a lot of reps, but we had a lot of guys who most likely would have played at the junior varsity level at other schools. Here, we had to grow up fast.”

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