Best Jackson Ironmen Quarterbacks Past 20 Years

[Ironman92]

While everyone is being so patient with the hiring of a new football coach, let's give our thoughts on the best Jackson QB of the past 20 years.

1. Jared Humphreys.....2 time 1st team all-state, over 1,000 yards passing and rushing twice I believe.

2. Joey Boggs.....3 time all-league I believe and one of the most composed athletes Jackson has ever seen. Great throwing touch and uncanny running ability.

3. Michael Morgan.....2 time all-league and started 39 games as the JHS QB. The 4 year letterman could run and throw just like the top 2 and went on to play at D2 Ferris St which went to the final 4 and final 8 twice during his time as a backup.

Best of the rest: I'll go with Geoff Mathews, Ryan Tipton and Casey Chamberlain as very high ranking Ironmen QB


Thoughts of others?

[ironman02]

I think you pretty much nailed it.

Humphreys has to be one of the best all around athletes ever at Jackson. Including playoffs, he rushed for more than 1,500 yards in both his junior and senior seasons, while throwing for more than 1,000 as well. Jared could change a game at any moment.

Joey Boggs was definitely a great leader. He made the plays when they needed to be made and refused to let his team lose. Joey didn't get to showcase his running ability as much as Hump, but he was very dangerous as well.

I was really young when Mike Morgan played, but I remember him pretty well for obvious reasons. Definitely a great athlete who could beat you with his arm and his legs. Not sure, but I would say he started more games at QB for Jackson than anyone else in the school's history.

Ryan Tipton was very similar to Humphreys in that he was a gamebreaker type player. Very quick, great instincts, and he played with an attitude.

Matthews was like having a FB at QB. I believe he was about 6'2" 220 lbs. Played linebacker at Dayton, didn't he?

I've heard a lot of stories about Bob Exline who was the QB on some of Jackson's most successful teams ever in the 1950s. Those teams were coached by the legendary Gene Slaughter. I believe Bob went to Ohio State and played under Woody for a while. Obviously that's longer than 20 years ago though.

[Ironman92]

Matthews was a sensational LB and one of the hardest hitter we have had. I'm not sure whether he ever played at Dayton or not. He could run and throw as well.

Bobby Exline.......He gets the special mention on the best Jackson QB of th past 60 years.

[D Owens]

Chad Spradlin deserves a mention among the best qbs of the last 20 years at Jackson. He was a fine leader, a good kid, hard worker both in class and on the field, and he wanted to learn all that he could about the game. He was a pleasure to have in class and to coach.

[ocho stinko]

I agree with you 92. I might have Joe Boggs tied with humprheys. didn't boggs play his whole senior year with his acl totally torn. if so imagine him healthy that year..

[know your role]

If I am not mistaken, Boggs was a 1,000 yard rusher his sophomore year as a running back.

I don't think Spradlin should get a mention.

[ironman02]

Boggs did run for over 1,000 yards as a sophomore tailback. He was a great runner, but once he moved to QB as a junior and senior, he just got an occasional bootleg or scramble...maybe just a few designed runs per game. With backs like Shane Wolford, Johnny King, and Shannon Smith, it was hard to find carries for everyone. I would have liked to have seen Boggs play in an offense similar to the one Humphreys played in.

The thing I remember most about Joey was his ability to hide the ball. I loved it when Jackson got near the goal line because Joey would fake the handoff up the gut and walk in to the end zone off the edge without anyone ever knowing he had the ball. It was a thing of beauty.

[theassassin]

that what i was think 02... boggs had more weapons therefore had to share the carries.

very deceptive qb... i think officials were even fooled on a few occasions.

[ocho stinko]

02, I agree about the ball fakes they were amazing. another thing about Boggs is that he was like quarterback trapped inside a linebackers body, he would flat out hit you! I also thought he threw one of the best deep balls also. He was my favorite. I also liked how morgan took over as a freshman that was impressive, he looked more like a fullback.

[Ironman92]

Boggs was the toughest to tackle as well. Had around 1240 yards as a soph I believe. Had some carries as a frosh.

Morgan was always way stronger than everyone else even when he was in elementary school. He was benching over 300 lbs as a sophomore. Not many QB's before 1990 can say that.

Spradlin was fine, but I'd have him behind Tommy Hill as well. Zane Holzephal, Marcus Boggs, Michael Holdren, Josh Brown round out the list of starting QB


A pretty good run of players at QB.

[ironman02]

02, I agree about the ball fakes they were amazing. another thing about Boggs is that he was like quarterback trapped inside a linebackers body, he would flat out hit you! I also thought he threw one of the best deep balls also. He was my favorite. I also liked how morgan took over as a freshman that was impressive, he looked more like a fullback.

Glad you mentioned Joey's ability to throw the deep ball. I remember about a 50 yard TD pass to Jason Brown against Warren in 1996. One of the best throws I've seen at the high school level. Brown was running a streak down the middle of the field, Joey effortlessly threw a ball 50 yards in the air with a defender in his face, over the hand of an out-stretched defender, and right into Brown's hands at the goal line. He could have done that all day if they would have let him. Didn't really need to though, because they could run right over everyone and run the clock at the same time.

[boilermaker]

Cris Ervin was a good Qb as well for the Ironmen.

[91blue14]

mike morgan could deliver in the clutch

[ocho stinko]

Thinking about the top qb's makes me think of Bruce Springsteen's song Glory Days. Morgan was clutch don't hear alot about him like people probably should talk about. He took over when the program was rock bottom and by the end of his tenure Ironmen football was back. Like Boggs and Morgan because they would just flat out hit you, and I guess you could just say mean (in a good sense).

[Ironman92]

Chris Ervin missed the timeline by a year or two and his teams had very poor records....but he was a very good all-around athlete.

Morgan also came about as Blackstone's weight program began to make a significant difference. It didn't help Morgan as much as the others as he was always crazy strong......but I recall a 155 lb Ryan Mapes benching 315 lbs along with all the lineman on both sides being very strong players even though they weren't great athletes. The weights also significantly helped Marty Exline into one of Jackson's toughest and most successful backs.

[Do-Your-Job]

How about taking this a step further and asking what are the best individual games by a QB at Jackson in the past 20 years?

Of course very recently you have Humphreys ruining Athens' season in 2003 with more than 200 yards rushing and some big passes. He went head to head with Grant Gregory and led a last-minute drive that ended in a field goal and gave the Bulldogs their first loss of the season. That was the last Athens football team that was a factor in the SEOAL.

And who could forget the playoff game vs. Withrow in 2004. Humphreys had a ton of passing yards, rushing yards, some receiving yards, and kick off yardage in helping Jackson pull off one of the biggest upsets in the history of the program. Sometimes Jared lined up under center, sometimes he was at tailback, sometimes he was split wide at receiver. Dante Love, I believe led a TD drive that gave Withrow the lead late. Then Jackson came back with a TD pass from Humphreys to Randy Fisher to win the game with not much time remaining. It would be interesting to see the stats again for Jared in those two games. What were some of his other classics?

What about Joey Boggs? He had a lot more options, as was stated, but what you do think his greatest game was, or Morgan and the others?

And who remembers maybe the best run of any QB in this time period - Ryan Tipton vs. Gallipolis in 2000? It was late in the first half and Ryan was sprinting toward the sideline on a rollout close to the old Jackson press box. As defenders were closing in, he stopped on a dime by the sideline, spun around as two or three Gallia defenders collided into each other then Tipton ran the rest of the 30 yards or so untouched into the end zone. I remember WSAZ Channel 3 was at the game and had a great shot of the play, and the announcer said it might've been the run of the season. I always thought if Tipton had a chance to be a 2 or 3-year starter like Humphreys and others did, we would be talking about him being just as good at QB. He was a heck of a receiver his junior year.

[Ironman92]

Tipton should've had the chance.

I can't recall individual statistics enough to say the best game.

[ocho stinko]

Only thing stopping Humphries from being heads above the others in my opinion is the losses to Gallia. Especially the fumble at the goal line to win. But he was great. I just like Morgan and Boggs because of their toughness and I thought they were more pure passers. Plus they both could throw the football. As they say in Napoleon Dynomite I bet they could throw the ball quarter mile. Great group of athletes we are talkling about. Good discussion for once especially for Jackson posts.

[Ironman92]

With Morgan he became so strong with the weightlifting that he could launch the ball forever....but had to move from 3rd base to 2nd in baseball for he could hardly throw the baseball far enough.....ugly to watch....at least for a kid who threw in the mid 60's before he was a teenager.

I never played football past 6th grade.....but I'll guess I caught more passes from Morgan than any receiver. We wore out Fleetwood Avenue......and dozens of Nerf balls. (You know, back when kids played outside)

I don't recall if he was the punter and I'm sure he wasn't the kicker but remember him being able to punt the ball almost out of sight high and he could bust the FG from way over 40 yards.

[Ironman92]

I also have a funny story about Boggs. He attended the University of Rio Grande for a time when I was finishing up. Two guys were in the lawn passing from a pretty good distance. He held up his hand as if to let him toss one. The guy asked him if he could throw it that far, but in a tone highly doubting that he could. Joey took the ball from 5 yards behind where the guy was throwing and sailed the ball over the other guy's head in an almost cartoon manner. He just looked at the initial guy and just walked away.....it was hilarious.