Tim Flanders Racking Up Points
10/30/2011 7:15:00 AM | Football
Sam Houston standout running back Timothy Flanders didn't have a chance to break the school record for 100-yard rushing performances in a season Saturday against Lamar, but he keeps writing his name all over the school's record book.
By the end of his career as a Bearkat, Flanders is likely to be a staple in the Sam Houston football media guide, until a future Bearkat outdoes him. For now, the Kats are content with Flanders being one of the leading scorers in the Football Championship Subdivision with 96 points on the season.
Flanders tied Charles Harris' (1991-1994) Bearkat record for most career 100-yard games (11) on Oct. 22 when he ran for 162 yards against McNeese State. He may have broken the record Saturday if he had touched the ball in the second half when the Kats were on their way to a 66-0 beating of Lamar.
Flanders watched from the sideline after his team jumped out to a 42-0 halftime lead, while he accounted for 53 rushing yards on 13 carries and three of the Bearkats' six touchdowns in the first half.
But Sam Houston head coach Willie Fritz made the decision to rest his star running back, as he's done in previous blowout games this season, for more need-based situations.
"The season is a long season and we want him to be able to play each and every game," Fritz said of Flanders. "Last season we kind of rode him a little bit and he got banged up and he wasn't able to play really almost three games. We want to be able to play with him the whole season. We're trying to watch his reps a little bit if we can. ... He takes advantage of the reps that he gets."
In just 18 games after transferring from Kansas State in 2010 as a redshirt freshman, Flanders has become the center of what the Bearkats do offensively, just as the records suggest.
"It all starts with the play-calling," Flanders said. "Coaches are doing a good job in setting us up with some very good plays. Then with the offensive line to the quarterback handing me the ball, making good reads. The lineman are driving and all they have to do is give me a hole, push it about three yards and I'm going to make it through there."
With 16 trips to the end zone this season, Flanders is just four touchdowns away from joining Luther Turner (1987) as the Kats' single-season scoring leader, as well as the player with the most rushing touchdowns in a season.
Flanders is also 14 touchdowns away from being the all-time leading scorer in Sam Houston football history.
With a wide smile on his face, Flanders said he definitely thinks about implications of breaking so many Sam Houston records. In fact, he spends even more time trying not to think about it until the offseason.
"Before the season, I talked to some of the coaches about it (the records). They said I have a chance to do a lot of things," Flanders said.
"During the game it's hard not to think about it, but at the same time I have to keep my composure so I try not to think about it."
Flanders said he was motivated by last season, which he views as an underachieving effort due to injuries.
"From last spring to the offseason, I told myself I wanted to be a lot better than I was last year," Flanders said.
"I want to finish the whole season. Last year I had a couple of injuries. But at the same time, I've been working on my speed and my vision a lot more and that's made things a lot better for me this year, allowing me to be more patient in the holes and stuff like that."
Flanders also said even though he still has strong ties to Kansas State, he's glad his family helped convince him to leave and happy to be wearing a Bearkat uniform.
It turned out to be the best move for him as a football player.
"I thank my coaches here and my coaches from K-State for teaching me some things that will help me," he said.
"I thank all my teammates, offensive and defensive. It was hard (coming here) at first. I'm not going to lie, I kind of miss it (at K-State).
"I still talk to my old friends and teammates. But I'm really liking it here and I'm getting to do my thing."
