By Justin Feil

Jack Moran limped off the turf with a leg cramp in the final minutes of the Hun School football team’s opening game this season as it played at Mount Carmel (Ill.).

But nothing was keeping him on the sidelines for the ending.

The senior had waited three years for his shot at being the main quarterback for the Raiders.

Moran returned one play later and moved Hun down the field before throwing a 31-yard touchdown pass to Bryce Kania with exactly one minute to play to give Hun a 42-38 win over Mount Carmel on August 29. Moran finished the day with 517 yards passing and five touchdowns.

“He’s shown the ability to step up in big games at the biggest moments,” said Hun head coach Todd Smith. “That whole game was a real coming out party for him on the national level to throw for over 500 yards against a really good team. There’s really no question marks about how good he is anymore.”

Moran’s career high lasted just one week. In his second start, he threw for 531 yards and six touchdowns in Hun’s 56-16 win over Wyoming Seminary. Last Saturday, in Hun’s third straight road game to open the year, he threw for 372 yards and four touchdowns in a 35-7 win at Avon Old Farms (Conn.).

“I’m super happy for the team starting off the season 3-0,” said Moran, who has lived in Hillsborough and Robbinsville. “Obviously I think the team has done a really good job facing adversity at times. That was kind of a question mark for us because of previous years with a bunch of dominant wins. So week one was definitely a hard-fought win for us, and every week we’ve had a couple of drives here and there where stuff may not go our way and we’ve been able to bounce back.”

Moran has produced video game numbers through three games. He’s completed 56 of 81 passes for 1,420 yards and 15 touchdowns. He’s been picked off four times. He’s just trying to make the most of his first year as the starter after sitting behind Marco Lainez Jr., now at Iowa, his first two years and then last year getting some reps behind current Texas A&M quarterback Myles O’Neill.

“My first couple of years with Marco, it was just kind of absorbing everything that he did to see what it took to be able to play at the level that Hun plays at, especially at the quarterback position,” said Moran. “So I definitely looked up to him. And then my junior year with Myles, it was kind of a tough situation because we were both obviously very good quarterbacks splitting reps. But we made the best out of that situation. We both had great seasons. I definitely got better playing with him last year. It was very competitive. Every single rep, even in practice, it was who could do it better? So that definitely built up the skills that we went into this year with.”

Moran has already eclipsed last year’s numbers. As a junior, he had a 144.5 quarterback rating after throwing for 1,034 yards on 57-of-84 passing. He had 10 touchdowns with just one interception.

“We wanted him to prepare last year like he was the starter and I think he did that week in and week out,” said Smith. “He is the guy now so he’s going out there and I think he takes charge of the huddle a little more, but overall there’s really not much of a difference between last year and this year, just other than the amount of attempts he has each game. And he’s responding. He’s got a great arm and he’s got a quick release. He’s not afraid to get rid of the ball and he can put it wherever he wants to throw it and we have the guys who can go catch it. So it could be a great season for him. He’s off to a great start.”

Hun has another big test this Saturday when it stays on the road and heads south to play at Rabun Gap-Nacoochee School (Ga.).

“They’re kind of built similar to us,” said Smith. “They’re a prep school. They bring in a lot of a lot of different types of kids. They do a great job coaching them up. They play a really hard schedule as well. Due to the fact that Lawrenceville continues not to play us, we were forced to go out and find some games and this is one of the opportunities, so this will be our second plane trip during the season. It’s not ideal. It’s not something we want to continue to do, but that’s a challenge, right? Getting kids on a plane, going someplace, playing, getting up, sleeping, all the travel. It’s our fourth away game in a row and this one really is away.”

Moran and the Raiders handled it well in the first game of the year, putting up more points than anyone had ever done against Mount Carmel. It was a big game and big change for Moran.

“This is all I’ve wanted ever since I got to Hun was to be the starting quarterback,” said Moran. “So the excitement was unmatched. I couldn’t wait to lead the guys out the first series we had in Chicago. But there was definitely some nerves too, though. Obviously not having as many reps as most kids would get, there were still some question marks, can I do this? Can I play four quarters? I’d never done it, but as of right now, I think I’m definitely making the best out of it.”

His first game starting came down to the wire, and Moran was up to the moment. The game-winning toss came as he was getting hit, but he hung in there to complete a perfectly thrown ball to the back of the end zone.

“I felt the pressure for sure,” said Moran. “We all did. Seeing the scoreboard, under three minutes, we had to score on that drive. I was just trying to keep the huddle as cool, calm, collected as possible to be able to just keep driving the ball downfield. But at the end of the day, we made the plays we needed to make. That last play, Bryce Kania ran that route perfect, so I just put it up there. That’s what I do most of the time — just put it up there for those guys and let them go make the play. So I’ll give all credit to him on that last one. And obviously the O’ line protected me so I could get that ball off.”

Kania finished the day with three touchdown catches. Against Wyoming in the second game, Kania was one of three players with over 100 yards receiving. Chase Enlow had 143 yards receiving and a pair of scores and Drae Tyme had 128 yards on a team-high five catches and a score. Kania scored twice while hauling in 101 yards through the air. Liam Thorpe had 202 yards receiving and a pair of scores in the win over Avon Old Farms, while Kania continued his strong play with four catches for 97 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

“We have a lot of new faces, a lot of old faces so we’ve been blending them together,” said Smith. “I don’t think we’ve played our best football yet, so there’s always room for improvement, but it seems like each game we’ve had a different guy kind of get highlighted and step up and make great plays and really come through for us.”

Hun’s defense has played better since a very challenging first game. The Raiders even picked up a defensive touchdown on Saturday with Seth Clarke tipping a pass that linebacker John Insigna returned for a touchdown.

“The last two weeks, I think our kids did a good job of taking care of business, going out against the quality of opponents they are and executing and being efficient,” said Smith. “The defense has gotten better week in and week out. I think we have seven interceptions already in three weeks and a handful of forced fumbles and recoveries. Defense scored its first touchdown yesterday. So that’s exciting too just to see how we get better week in and week out.”

The injury bug has bit Hun hard in the backfield with Enlow and Kamar Archie both getting hurt. That’s forced the Raiders into a running back by committee approach in their third game, and allowed the passing game to take more importance than ever.

“We’ve definitely been a run heavy team in the past,” said Moran. “We’ve always been pretty balanced. We’re definitely not afraid to line up in the I and run the ball if we have to, but we have so many weapons. Any kid who’s on the field at any times, I know I could trust them to make a play. So I’m not afraid to put the ball up there for them, make tough throws and just let them go get it.”

Moran is working on going through his progressions and limiting his turnovers. He is working to prepare for the next level with every practice and game. He committed to play college ball at Charlotte next year after building a strong relationship with the program’s quarterbacks coach Mike Miller and seeing a similar approach to offense that Hun has.

“Actually, when I was down there visiting I was watching film with coach Miller and most of the language for their plays was the same, which is pretty rare,” said Moran. “I took a lot of visits and the playbook, it’s a whole different world, but I felt like I fit into that system very well and the depth of the quarterback room, they only take three scholarship kids that they expect to make an impact, so I’m honored to be chosen by them as one of them. After we finish our business this year, I’m ready to get down there and start it back up again.”

Moran is confident he can make an impact at the college level, just as he’s showing his ability at Hun. He is making the most of his first season as a starter for the Raiders. He has been able to shine through the first three games after steadily developing and patiently waiting for his moment.

“I have to give it all to our quarterback coach, coach (Anthony) Racioppi and obviously coach Smith, just developing me, having the trust in me to give me the keys to the offense and they give me a lot of freedom to make throws, make plays,” said Moran. “That development aspect, I couldn’t ask for anything more and I think going to college, it won’t be as big of a jump because of how well they’ve prepared me.”