McNairy Central center Steve Wilbanks returns for senior season after taking year off
MARTIN — McNairy Central quarterback Chase Wallace sent a long pass to receiver Grant McMahan during the UT Martin 7-on-7 passing camp on Saturday.
It was a nice play, but it would’ve been hard to pull off without an experienced center snapping the ball to Wallace to start the play.
That’s where Steve Wilbanks comes in.
Wilbanks took last year off from playing center for McNairy Central’s football team after deciding to not play for a year.
The coaching staff, led by head coach Brian Franks, talked him into coming back for his senior season.
Because of his years of experience snapping the ball, Wilbanks said he didn’t need that much work to get back in the routine of playing center.
“I’ve been doing it since pee wee football, so it’s pretty much muscle memory now,” Wilbanks said.
He did say, however, that snapping the football isn’t as easy as some who’ve never played the position might think.
“When I throw the ball normally, I flick my wrist when I throw it, like most people do playing quarterback or whatever,” Wilbanks said. “You can’t do that snapping the ball.
“If I flick my wrist snapping the ball, I could send it off in the wrong direction and ruin the snap and cause a fumble. So it’s just a matter of putting my hand on the ball, getting a firm grip on it and just almost push it back straight. I do more than push it, but it’s not a flick of the wrist.”
Cordova wins championship: Cordova outlasted Haywood in the championship. The semifinals and championship were played at UTM’s Hardy Graham Stadium.
Haywood played a total of 11 games — seven in pool play and four in tournament play.
Riverside’s Montgomery plays through dislocation: Mason Montgomery is a tough linebacker for Riverside, and he proved it on Saturday.
During the Panthers’ first game in tournament play, Montgomery dislocated his pinky finger at the middle joint, causing it to bend at a 90-degree angle.
He played the next snap.
“I just played one snap with it,” Montgomery said. “So I wasn’t out there that long with it.”
The coaches couldn’t put the finger back in its socket until they called his parents to get permission. They got it, and the finger went back in after that game with the pinkie taped to the ring finger for stability.
“It feels OK,” Montgomery said. “I’m good to go.”
Former Lions already working at UTM: UTM’s 7-on-7 requires plenty of help to officiate and keep score when there are six games going on from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. and that number decreasing until the championship at 4 p.m.
Haywood graduate Kadarren Bond will be a senior lineman at UTM this season, and he’s been a part of this camp ever since he became a Skyhawk.
A couple of UT Martin freshmen from Dresden, quarterback Dresser Winn and running back Dylan Yates, were already officiating in the camp as well.
“They’ve been putting me to work all summer,” Yates said. “But I love it. I love being out here in this.”
Reach Brandon Shields at bjshields@jacksonsun.com or at 425-9751. Follow him on Twitter @JSEditorBrandon or on Instagram at jacksonsunsports.