Buckner no buddy to opposing offenses

Hun postgraduate aids dominant defense

By: Bob Nuse
   In his first four games with the Hun School football team, Buddy Buckner has proven to be a pretty tough guy to block. And the Raiders want to make sure it stays that way the rest of the season.
   "What we’ve found the first several weeks is that no one guy has been able to block him and in most cases two guys have not been able to block him," Hun coach Dave Dudeck said. "So we have moved him into different areas so that teams can’t scheme and say he’s going to be the right defensive end the whole day or he’s going to be over the center the whole game. We do different things with him."
   Buckner had nine tackles, including a pair of sacks, last Saturday as Hun topped Lawrenceville, 7-0. Buckner and the Hun defense will have to be at its best again this week when the Raiders host Blair 2:30 p.m. Saturday. At 2-2 (1-1 in the Mid-Atlantic Prep League), this is a game Hun needs to win to stay alive for a league championship. Blair is 1-2, having lost its only MAPL game to league-leader Mercersburg.
   "It was exciting to get a win last week," said Buckner, a post-graduate from Lorton, Va. "I haven’t been around the school long, but I found out pretty fast that this was a big rivalry game and a team we needed to beat. When I was in school in Virginia we had a huge rival and I remember what that was like. This was the same kind of game."
   When Buckner first arrived at Hun, the Raiders knew they had an impact player on defense. The key was to find the spot on the field where he could help the most. He seems to have found a home at defensive end, although that home is never permanent from one play to the next.
   "He has a knack of going when the ball just moves on the snap, he is so quick that he gets over the line fast," Dudeck said. "He’s played nicked up the whole year. He strained his hip flexor earlier this year and he’s been playing banged up. Last week he looked better than he had before and this week he looks a little better. He’s one of those kids that never complains, so you can never know just how hurt he is."
   In four games, the Hun defense has allowed just 13 points and has already posted a pair of shutouts. Unfortunately for the Raiders, the offense has scored just 23 points and has yet to score more than seven in any game.
   "I thought the defense as a whole has played well," Buckner said. "We’re fortunate to have a good group of guys that have been playing well. I know last year they had a real good offense, but it’s a different team this year. We’ve played a lot of low-scoring games that have definitely been defensive battles."
   Buckner is happy to be a part of those battles with Hun this year. After a solid career at Bishop Ireton in Alexandria, Va., he decided he wasn’t quite ready to make the move right to college.
   "When I came out of high school, I wasn’t real happy or enthusiastic about my college options for football or academics," Buckner said. "One of my coaches suggested I try a PG year, so I looked at a lot of schools and I really liked the coaches at Hun. I’m hoping I can get a better look at colleges both athletically and academically. So far it has gone real well.
   "It’s real nice that they are able to move me around to line me up. I love being in the middle of the action and so far I’ve been able to move around and be involved."
   He’s getting used to his new surroundings and discovering which are the more important games. He knows that Lawrenceville and Blair are both big rivals.
   "I hadn’t heard of any of the schools until I got up here," Buckner said. "But it didn’t take long for me to get to know the other teams. All the teams we play are pretty tough. Some are bigger rivals than others. We’re working hard and we just want to go out there every week and win."
   If the Raiders want to do more winning, they’ll need to be more productive on offense.
   "We want to put some points on the board," Dudeck said. "But we’ve been OK because of our defense. Last year our defense was very good and it has been very good this year. We want to keep doing that. But we also want to put the ball in the end zone. Last week we had the ball inside the 20-yard line eight times and we only scored seven points. So we’ve got to get better there."
   Buckner plays some receiver and tight end on offense for the Raiders, so he’ll try to help there. But for the most part, his biggest impact is going to come on defense, which is just fine with Dudeck.
   "He’s a great kid," the Hun coach said. "He’s close to 1500 on his SATs and he’s real smart. Then when he gets on the field he turns into a bit of a wild man."
   "The big question with him is where is he going to play when he gets to college. He’s 6-3, 215 and I think last year he was about 180 pounds. His body says linebacker or defensive end and when he first got here we wanted to play him at linebacker with his speed. He could play linebacker, but we had a real need at defensive end and he said to just put him wherever the team needed him. We put him at defensive end and he has filled the hole there."
   Buckner has proven to be a player that is willing to fill in wherever he’s needed for the Raiders. And the coaching staff is doing its best to make sure that he’s hard to find for opposing blockers.