Andre Givens

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Hubbard HS running back

By John Kovach

Hubbard back credits friends

The Eagles are 3-1 heading into Friday’s big showdown with Lakeview.

1In fact, the junior running back simply loves his offensive line, which he says is the reason he is running the ball so well and the team has a winning record (3-1, 1-0 All-American Conference White) entering Friday night’s game at Lakeview (3-1, 0-0).

“We believe in each other. I believe in the line and they believe in me. They said that If I follow them, they will take me to the promised land,” said Givens (5-foot-10, 180 pounds), who has rushed for 675 yards in 84 carries and eight touchdowns.

He also has caught five passes for 43 yards and returned eight kickoffs for a 26-yard average.

“I follow the big line. The line likes me and I like the line. The line is my best friend.”

Givens’ “best friends” on the offensive line are guards Zack Lord and Matt Minotti, tackles Dom Dionisio, Cody Kilar and Rob Lias, and center Ian Pass. All are seniors except Dionisio, a junior.

Givens said the line has delivered for him and the team.

“The line blocking has been great. The line is a big factor. Without the line, I can’t get [the yards]. It’s all about the team. I can’t get what I am doing now without the team,” said Givens, who scored three touchdowns and rushed for 131 yards in Hubbard’s 43-12 win over Salem last week.

He said the team, coached by Brian Hoffman in his second season, is “playing as one. Right now, we are coming together as a team, as one.”

But Givens also deserves his share of the credit picking up the yards, thanks to a year of experience under his belt.

Last season, he rang up 1,100 yards combined for rushing and receiving.

“I started last year, but I have a lot more confidence [now] than last year,” said Givens, noting that last year he wasn’t comfortable and confident “going against the bigger guys.

“Now I am used to it and seeing [the holes] better and hitting the line hard and I feel good behind my line.”

“My biggest improvement is that I am hitting the holes way harder than last year.”

Hoffman said he believes that Givens “is more of a complete back” this season.

“This year, he is more durable. He has proven that he not only can make the big play but carry the ball 30 times a game,” Hoffman said. “He’s definitely improved as an overall performer.”

Givens credits running track and working out with weights for giving him both elusive speed (4.4 seconds for the 40-yard dash) and power hitting the line.

“Track is a big difference,” said Givens, who has been a track sprinter for two years, competing in the 100 and 200 sprints and 4x100 and 4x200 relays.

“It builds up the speed in the offseason, and then after that you work out with weights and get stronger, so I just don’t become some big muscles-only guy. Track is a big factor.”

He said the track team also has had success.

“We went to the state for the 4x100 and 4 x200 relays but we had some problems with the handoffs. We had the speed and quickness, but we had bad handoffs,” said Givens.

He also agreed that, “most of the [football players] are not running track, so that is an advantage.”

But if he can’t avoid the defenders, he will try to plow over them.

“I have the speed and the jukes to make a defender miss,” Givens said. “But when it comes down to running into a defensive player, you have to lower your shoulder to get the first down.”

Givens also is doing well in the classroom.

“My grades are good. I am a straight-A student this semester,” said Givens, who went by the last name of Taylor last year.

“I changed my name back to my father’s name because I am his only son and I wanted to have his name,” said Givens, who lives with his father, Jeffrey Givens, in Hubbard. Jeffrey formerly lived in Youngstown.

He said his mother, Latonya Taylor, lives in Youngstown.

There also is an NFL connection to the Givens family.

“My cousin, David Givens, played for the New England Patriots and won two Super Bowl rings, and then he was traded to the Tennessee Titans but now is a free agent,” said Andre, noting that David’s father is Jesse Givens, who also formerly was from Youngstown.

Andre said that David’s family left Youngstown for Texas when David was a child, and that David went on to play football for Notre Dame.

kovach@vindy.com