Seminole football coach Greg Poyner wasn’t kidding when he took over the program in 2021.
“Coach Poyner, he’s a very big pass guy,” senior quarterback Blake Flowers said. “He told everyone ‘I’m going to throw it, a lot’.”
Poyner was true to his word and Flowers was the chief beneficiary of the transformation to the Air Raid scheme.
Flowers was entering his junior season when Poyner arrived on the scene, having taken over the starting role during his sophomore campaign with the Indians.
That season (2020) Flowers completed 103 of 195 passes for 1,306 yards and eight touchdowns, with seven interceptions.
By the end of Week 4 in 2021, those numbers were history as Flowers had stepped on the launching pad and rocketed into the discussion of not only the best quarterback in Seminole history, but of the Permian Basin and West Texas as well.
Flowers finished his junior season 285-of-469 passing for 3,255 yards and 22 touchdowns, with nine interceptions, leading the Indians to the postseason.
“I knew what we had in Blake when I saw him throw for the first time,” Poyner said.
That created huge expectations for the Seminole signal caller entering his final season behind center.
Flowers didn’t disappoint.
Firing spirals all over the field, from the pocket or on the run, he absolutely assaulted the Indians’ record book.
When the final buzzer sounded to end the regular season, Flowers was 245-of-345 passing for 3,626 yards and 43 touchdowns, with seven interceptions.
He also rushed 75 times for 562 yards and seven scores, while compiling a 45-yard average on 21 punts.
Those statistics and the way he orchestrated the Indians’ success this season led Flowers to be selected as Odessa American’s 2022 Offensive Player of the Year.
Even Poyner was a little stunned by Flowers’ output.
“I’ve never had any quarterback put up the numbers that Blake put up this year,” Poyner said. “They are eye-popping, for sure.
“He’s so smart and has such a good grasp of the offense. And he was a great leader for this team.”
Like top leaders, Flowers is quick to deflect the praise, instead talking about the culture Poyner has created the past two seasons, along with the rapid development of his top two wide receivers this season, Cuyler Cramer and Rylan McCormick.
The 2021 season ended with a bi-district loss to Snyder and that’s when Flowers and the Indians got a true look at Poyner’s methods.
They were all in.
“We knew, when Coach Poyner came to Seminole, we said that he is going to do something special,” Flowers said. “After the loss to Snyder, he took all the mistakes that we made and that’s what we worked on correcting.
“With all the talent that we had and the coaching, I think what we did this year was pretty expected. I’m sure that any quarterback could have those stats, I was just fortunate enough to be behind center.”
Poyner likely would argue that fact, especially having watched the way Flowers practices and his ability to make plays when things break down around him.
After all, he saw it every day for two years and the improbable became the norm for the Indians.
“Every Wednesday, we have a scramble drill in our practices,” Poyner said. “Blake loves that drill; after he makes the first player miss, he’s making a play because he always has his eyes downfield and goes through his reads so fast.
“A lot of quarterbacks, when they are on the run, they lose accuracy or arm strength. Not Blake; he can stop and throw it 50 yards in the other direction.”
Cuyler and McCormick typically were at the other end of those tosses, with the duo combining for 163 catches, 2,388 yards and 25 touchdowns.
Numbers that Flowers said are because of the hard work they put in from last season.
“They were struggling with finishing some of their catches,” he said. “But they worked hard in the offseason, got bigger, stronger and improved their hands and I knew that I could throw it to them anywhere on the field and they were going to make the catch.”
Flowers wants to play at the next level and his career numbers are staggering (694-of-1,109 passing, 8,932 yards, 82 touchdowns, 27 interceptions; 174 carries, 967 yards, 20 touchdowns).
He has several schools recruiting him, including Colorado Mesa, East Central Oklahoma, Eastern New Mexico and UTPB and expects to make his decision soon.
>> Follow Lee Scheide on Twitter at @OALeeScheide
2022 ALL-PERMIAN BASIN OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
BLAKE FLOWERS, QB
SEMINOLE, 6-2, 190, SR.
Key Stats: Was 245-of-345 passing for 3,626 yards and 43 touchdowns, with seven interceptions; rushed 75 times for 562 yards and seven touchdowns; Punted 21 times for a 45-yard average, with eight punts inside the 20.
Coach Greg Poyner says: “Great player and kid. We are very fortunate to have been around Blake – he made everyone around him better. Extremely hard worker and great leader for the Seminole Indians.”
