There are great individual efforts. Then there's what
Ryan Robards put together Friday night for
Elk Grove (Calif.) against host and state power
Grant (Sacramento, Calif.).
Ryan Robards, Elk Grove
File photo by Jerry Sigua
The senior two-way star, proving he is the Sac-Joaquin Section's move versatile player, scored six touchdowns four different ways, leading his team to a resounding 42-7 win over Northern California's third-ranked team.
According to this report by
Joe Davidson of the Sacramento Bee, the 5-foot-11, 190-pound senior returned an interception 70 yards for a score, picked up a fumble and returned it 10 yards for another touchdown and also fielded a punt and sprinted 75 yards into the end zone.
On top of that, he rushed for scores of 62, 4 and 1 yards and finished with 176 yards rushing.
It all came against a team that entered ranked 15th in the state according to the MaxPreps Computer Rankings presented by the Army National Guard. Elk Grove improved to 5-0 and Grant dropped to 4-1.
"Robards is a player," Grant linebacker
Elijah Orr told Davidson. "He's got our respect."
Just ask Grant's legendary coach Mike Alberghini: "He does everything. He kicks, he plays strong safety, he's their punter, their running back, and he does it all very, very well. He's their ironman."
Said Elk Grove coach Chris Nixon: "You talk about the long Elk Grove history is, and he did it all. He's special. The amazing thing to me is he isn't being recruited. I haven't received one call. He's elusive, deceptively fast."
And he did everything on Friday with an upset stomach, due to anxiety. He vomited before the game.
Davidson wrote: "Robards cleaned himself up – wiping his chin, wiping his pants clear of debris – and then cleaned the collective clocks of the Grant Pacers."
Of his own effort, Robards told Davidson: "I did what I could. I was throwing up beforehand, all over my pants here, so maybe I need to do it before every game. We had to come out fast and physical, and we did."
