SIMON SAYS: Hun School quarterback Simon Vadas lets a pass fly last Thursday against the Germantown Academy (Pa.). Junior transfer Vadas hit 13-of-18 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns in the contest to help Hun roll to a 42-21 win over the Patriots. The Raiders, now 2-1, host Blair Academy on October 11. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

It didn’t take long for Simon Vadas to develop a comfort level as he joined the Hun School football team this season.

“It has been very smooth, the people here are wonderful,” said quarterback Vadas, a junior transfer from Hunting Valley, Ohio.

“Coming out here for preseason made it really easy because you meet a lot of the guys. Everybody has welcomed me with open arms so it has been very easy. We hit some bumps in preseason but we bulldozed right through those. You can tell on the field that we are all friends. There is nobody that doesn’t jell.”

Vadas has jelled quickly with his receivers and backs. “It is awesome; I have been at different high schools and this is by far the most talent I have had on a team,” said Vadas. “It is just nice to have anybody to go to on the field.”

Last Thursday, Vadas and the Raiders put their talent on display as they rolled to a 42-21 win over Germantown Academy (Pa.) and improved to 2-1. Vadas hit on 13-of-18 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns. Senior running back Chris Sharp rushed for 122 yards and four touchdowns while Donavon Harris and Julian Williams each hauled in touchdown receptions.

While Hun got off to a sluggish start as the game was knotted at 0-0 after the first quarter, the Raiders got into a rhythm, turning the contest into a rout.

“We knew we weren’t playing to our full potential so to pull away it was like we were reaching our full potential,” said the 6’2, 175-pound Vadas. “Everybody was fired up when we started to pull away.”

In the wake of a tough 34-7 loss to Poly Prep on September 27, the Raiders were fired up to get back into the win column.

“Coming back from last week was tough, only having two days of practice,” said Vadas. “We really had to get to it in those two days so I think we came out here a little bit slow but we picked it up.”

Vadas has already picked up a lot from Hun head coach Todd Smith. “I knew what I was getting myself into; I knew his personality because we sat down and talked this summer,” said Vadas.

“He is surprising me on a day to day basis with how much he knows about the game and how good he is with the team. He is a team coach; he is a good guy.”

Hun head coach Todd Smith liked the way his team closed the deal against Germantown.

“At halftime, if they had come out scared that would have been a totally different game,” said Smith, whose squad led 28-14 at half and then stretched its advantage to 42-14 by late in the third quarter. “We put two on them in the third quarter, which gave us some breathing room.”

Despite the rout, Smith sees plenty of room for improvement. “It was just like with Poly, it wasn’t the other team stopping us, it was ourselves stopping us,” said Smith.

“Whether it was a penalty or a mental error, we need to clean that up. I think once we play our first complete football game, it could be a pretty great experience for these kids but we are not there yet.”

In Smith’s view, Vadas cleaned up against Germantown. “Simon bounced back great from the Poly game, he took charge of it,” said Smith.

“He is starting to get it, you are seeing things click inside his head. I am real happy with the way he played.”

As Hun starts its Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) campaign by hosting Blair Academy on October 11, Smith is hoping his team can click on all cylinders.

“Our goal is to win the MAPL championship,” said Smith. “It starts this week with a pretty good Blair team that is going to come back and try to bounce back from their loss to Germantown. It is our alumni weekend so we are excited.”

Vadas, for his part, is excited to take on Blair. “We have to prepare for them, because they are a good football team,” said Vadas. “We are coming in steamrolling.”