Defense set to lead against Marion

Last season, the old adage of ?defense wins championships? held true.

During the Washington football team?s stretch of winning seven of eight games, before falling to Pella in the state quarterfinals, the defense was a key part of the Demons? success.

Over that eight-game stretch, Washington?s defense held opponents to 19.8 points per game, while outscoring opponents by an average of 24.1 points per game.

After losing a number of key contributors from last season?s team, the mantle has fallen to a younger squad who feels they have the chance to help carry this team back into a deep postseason run.

?The defense is going to carry us a lot this year,? senior linebacker Ethan Hansen said. ?With a new quarterback, and going up against the state champs is no easy task, but we experienced it and I expect that even with losing (defensive tackle Josh Miranda), the defense is going to step up big.?

With Hansen being a senior on a younger Demons defense which only saw five seniors start in the season opener, he understands the role he and his fellow seniors have to play.

?Last year I started with (the defense), but got injured,? Hansen said. ?Being a senior out there, we have four out there, so we just needed to step up. We ended up losing Josh (Miranda), and that makes it more of a need for us to step up and be a leader in every single game this year.?

The Demons? defense got its first looks of the season on Week 1 when they took on No. 1 ranked Pella (the defending state champions), but despite giving up 42 points, they feel they learned a lot about themselves.

?We have to play more as a team,? sophomore linebacker Tanner Murphy said. ?Everyone needs to get to the ball if we want to accomplish our goals and get to state.?

Hansen (11 tackles, three tackles for a loss) and Murphy (7.5 tackles, one sack) helped lead the defense against Pella, and Murphy said that stepping into his first year as a starting linebacker hasn?t added any pressure to his game.

?I don?t feel that much pressure,? Murphy said. ?I?m 185 pounds, and have some speed, so I think I can fill pretty easily.?

In Week 1, the Demons started six juniors or seniors on the defensive side of the ball including Murphy and cornerback Jaivonn Willis as the two sophomores.

With youth stepping in to those roles, it wouldn?t surprise many people to see the defense take a step back, especially after graduating multiple talented seniors on defense.

However, Hansen believes having them on the field is only going to make them better.

?All the way back to June, I remember back to the seven-on-sevens and (Murphy) rocking a kid on Mt. Pleasant?s team,? Hansen said. ?He?s stepped up amazingly, and I?ve wanted him out there. We have quite a few young guys out there, and we have a great team all around.?

When it comes to filling the spots on the defense, second-year head coach Garrison Carter said the team responded well in camp, and it?s carrying over to the field this season.

?Coach (Dave) Hoffman talked about it at camp, when we?d say put the 1s in or put the 2s in, he?d say ?I didn?t have any 2s,?? Carter said. ?He has about 18 or 19 guys who are capable of starting for us. You can tell that competition has paid off, because they are ready to battle.?

With Marion coming into town on Friday night, the Demons are hoping to replicate the same success they had against the Indians a year ago.

Washington?s defense recovered three Marion fumbles in the game, and held the Indians to 42 yards rushing in the game, en route to a 35-25 victory. That win also marked the first win of the season for last season?s team, something both Washington and Marion are looking for in 2015.

?We just have to be confident in what we are doing and explode off the ball,? Carter said. ?These kids have put in the work. They?ve been here every day since they went to high school and the magic is in that work.?

The Demons will kick off against Marion at 7:30 p.m. on Friday at Case Field.