Maryvale has Impressive Pair of Backs

Photos by Renea Lauck

Any football program who wants to base its offense around the running game would love to have a stud at running back.

You can count the Maryvale Flyers as one of those programs. They’re fortunate to have two very good backs in junior Brayden Tryon and sophomore Isaiah Hill and while they’re different types of backs and personalities, coach Nick Todaro said he is lucky to have them.

“Brayden doesn't say much and is very focused on the task at hand,” Todaro said. “When he talks, everybody listens. He's kind of a quiet, more reserved kid. Meanwhile Isaiah never, ever stops talking. He's the opposite of that, so he's a bit immature, but in a good way.

“He's just always loose. Always talking, always having fun. We’ve got to reel him in a little bit, but he’s a great kid. As football players, they've been the perfect complement to each other. They're both extremely talented and these two guys have brought something to us that I just haven't had since I've been the coach at Maryvale.

According to Todaro, the ability for the both of them to make explosive plays with their speed and vision is special and they’re both great at it. But while Hill is 6’2” and 210 pounds and Tryon is 5’7” and 160 pounds, they both play to the opposite of their physical makeup.

“Brayden likes running the ball between the tackles as much as anybody and they're both special once they get the ball out on the edge,” Todaro said. “Once they get into space, they become extremely difficult to tackle.

“Brayden likes to run downhill more than Isaiah does. He’s really physical and a weight room dynamo. He's in there all the time, getting himself bigger, faster and stronger. Isaiah will do that too, but he gets on the perimeter, uses his speed and can coast on the edge with the best of them.”

Not only are Tryon and Hill excellent running backs, but they’re also solid linebackers for the Flyers.

“Isaiah plays on the inside and Brayden plays a combination of inside and outside for us,” Todaro said. “Isaiah is among our top tacklers and Brayden makes a lot of explosive plays. He’s a great blitzer – both are excellent linebackers and they really key off each other.”

Having both backs for the foreseeable future is almost a luxury for the Maryvale program, and Todaro can’t wait to watch them grow as people and athletes.

“When I think about both of those guys being back for another year and Isaiah for two more, it makes you very excited about the future,” Todaro said. “The best thing about these two guys is the way they block for each other. It's really easy nowadays for kids to be selfish, worried about their stats and worried about how they look on social media and all that kind of crap. But these dudes, when the other guy is carrying the ball, the other one’s out front trying to try to pancake somebody and then lead the way, so it's awesome seeing them care for one another as teammates.

“With their personalities and what they do for us both on and off the field, we're very lucky to have those guys in the program moving forward. When I took the job at Maryvale, both of those guys were playing modified football at the time and I knew they were coming, and I could see the talent then but now to see it come to fruition with all their hard work has been really cool to watch.”