Editor’s note: This is a quarterback series highlighting of some of the top returning signal callers across the Texas Panhandle leading up to the kickoff of the regular season.
In his first full year taking the reins of the Randall Raiders offensively, Kaison Benton left his impression not only on teammates and opponents, but on the school record book.
As a junior quarterback last season, Benton set a single season school record for passing yards with 2,588, in addition to throwing 27 touchdowns and only four interceptions. That’s an impressive first full varsity season, but Benton doesn’t hesitate to recognize the help which was around him.
“We had a really strong team with Dylan (Ray) as our running back and we had Kaiden Miller at receiver who runs a 10.3 100 (meter dash) who can just fly down the field and throw to him whenever you want” Benton said. “That’s a big reason we started 7-0 and we had five senior offensive linemen. When you three or four seconds to throw the ball in the pocket, what more can you ask for.”
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None of the personnel mentioned by Benton will be back for the Raiders this season. Knowing that, it’s only logical to expect him to carry a heavier load in leading them offensively.
Randall coach Dan Sherwood believes Benton is well prepared to take on an increased role as an offensive leader this fall.
“He’s had a really good offseason and he’s chomping at the bit,” said Sherwood of Benton. “He’s a competitor which one of the biggest compliments I can give about him. He wants more and knows that there will be more asked of him, but he also knows there will be some good young talent coming up that we need to distribute the ball to and build a rapport with. He got voted a captain for a reason by his teammates.”
That’s not a surprise when you led an offense which was a key component of an 11-2 season which ended after the third round of the playoffs. It would seem that a good chunk of Randall’s offense will likely run through Benton.
For Benton, it’s as much about leadership as it is ability this year.
“We lost a lot of guys from last year so I felt bringing a bunch of the younger guys up with me and throwing to them would help our connection for this season,” Benton said. “Maybe I can connect with those longer balls I didn’t get to last season.”
Benton said he was more of a guy who set an example last year as opposed to being vocal. That might be something he learned from his father Grady Benton, who knew something about quarterback play.
Grady was the offensive coordinator at Randall at the same time Kaison was learning the game. The possibility of quarterback of the Raiders one day was ingrained in him from the start.
“I was always excited to come up here with (Grady) and couldn’t wait to play on Fridays,” Kaison said. “I didn’t get to practice up here that much but I would come up here in the summers when they had camps and throw with them then. As a little kid I would always ask what a play was. Whatever advice he gives me I take and it’s pretty helpful.”
Being a quarterback is literally in Kaison Benton’s blood.
Grady Benton was a quarterback at Arizona State and eventually transferred to West Texas A&M before getting into coaching. He was offensive coordinator at Randall for seven seasons then spent five seasons each as head coach at Slaton and Haskell before returning to Amarillo where he is now teaching at Randall.
Sherwood has seen Grady’s influence rub off on Kaison on the field.
“The most important thing is his football IQ,” Sherwood said of Kaison Benton. “He understands the game as well as any kid I’ve coached. He takes care of the football extremely well with very few turnovers.”
Sherwood said he’d like to throw the ball down the field more consistently this season, especially since the Raiders don’t have a proven running back like Ray. Benton is ready to provide that and more.
“I hope I can get more vertical on the deep ball, but I hope I can get my feet more involved and hopefully go for 1,000 yards (rushing),” said Benton, who ran for 404 yards and eight touchdowns last season. “You got Dylan Ray who rushed for 1,700 yards and I just let him tote the rock.”
Benton has hit the weight room in preparation for more contact when he runs the ball in order to add another dimension to his game. That might be necessary for Randall early in the season.
With Benton’s pedigree as a coach’s son, Sherwood thinks that makes him well-equipped for whatever the coaching staff asks him to do.
“He definitely grasps concepts and more and more he’s bringing ideas to the table,” Sherwood said. “He has a good rapport with the coaching staff and what can work with the personnel groupings we have. They have really good discussions on that.”
If the Raiders are going to live up to their potential with the football, it will start with Benton. He’s not thinking specifics other than what they can tally in the win column.
“I hope we can win a lot of football games and make everybody’s dreams come true,” Benton said. “We want to win a state championship. I don’t have a lot of individual goals, but I’d like to break my record here. I didn’t even know about it until a week after the season was over.”
Now, everybody knows.