CHARLESTON — Ryan McDonald's coaches don't mind the fact that he made them look a little foolish last season.
He more than made up for it.
McDonald's first carry of the 2008 season didn't come until Week 5 of the season, when the then-sophomore ran 62 yards for a touchdown against Mountainburg.
There was no looking back after that, for McDonald or the Tigers' offense.
"Ryan was a big surprise," Coach Doug Loughridge said. "He really showed how smart we were. He gave us another dimension."
Despite getting a late start, the 5-11, 170-pound running back ended up rushing for 936 yards and 11 touchdowns, earning allconference honors along the way. That included 146 yards and a touchdown in the Class 3A state championship game against Fountain Lake as the Tigers captured their secondtitle in four years.
McDonald's emergence on offense allowed Charleston to move Jordan Akers full time to linebacker, where he led the team with 134 tackles and anchored a dominating unit that allowed fewer than 15 points per game.
Still, McDonald said the time he spent behind Akers on offense allowed him to pick up some of the finer points of beinga running back in Charleston's system.
"I learned so much," McDonald said. "He was really good about seeing holes. He taught me about my stance, how to take off faster. I hadn't memorized all the plays, but he helped me out before school and after practice getting me ready."
Maybe it shouldn't have been such a surprise that McDonald made an impact once he was given the chance. He was born and raised in Booneville, another small town with a rich football tradition, and his father, Rusty, was an all-state running back for the Bearcats.
McDonald's family moved to Charleston just in time for Ryan to witness Charleston capture the 2005 Class AA championship.
Being new to the town, Mc-Donald said he didn't fully appreciate just how much the title meant to the people of Charleston.
Now that he's been a part of a championship team, he gets it.
"It was real exciting," Mc-Donald said of last year's state championship game. "I don't know what made it different, but hearing all the people yelling, way more people than we have in our stadium, having all the people pat me on the back, it felt great."
McDonald rushed for more than 1,300 yards as a ninth-grader, but the plan was for him to be eased into high school football. He played sparingly in theseason opener, but started at middle linebacker in Week 2 because of an injury to another player.
McDonald was then moved to strong safety, where he remained as a starter.
A month later, he was Charleston's go-to running back and its kickoff return man, returning a kick 91 yards for a touchdown in a victory over eventual Class 3A semifinalist Lavaca.
"He's got a great work ethic," Loughridge said. "He's not shied away from anything we've asked him to do. He's really stepped up to the plate and came to fall camp with the right attitude."
Charleston is expecting even more out of McDonald this year, especially now that veteran quarterback Jordan Shelby has graduated. McDonald will starton both sides of the football and will continue to return kicks. Loughridge said he expects to give McDonald at least 20 carries every game.
"He's going to have to do a lot of things offensively and on defense," Loughridge said. "He will not get much rest on Fridays."
McDonald knew more would be asked of him this season, so he spent the offseason working to improve. Three times a week throughout the summer, he made trips to Springdale to take part in a speed camp. As a result, McDonald has sliced his 40-yard dash time from 4.68 seconds to 4.5.
McDonald downplays the extra work he put in over the summer, but it's that type of commitment that has kept Charleston at the top of Class 3A. The Tigers have won four conference titles in the past five seasons, and they have compiled at least 12 victories in four of those seasons.
That doesn't happen by accident.
"We've got great coaches, and the players try no matter what," McDonald said. "They don't quit. They push through it. They know all that's at stake, and the younger guys don't want to let the older guys down, so they'll work even harder.
"We're pushing ourselves really hard. We're not letting up on anything. We know what's at stake."
Sports, Pages 79 on 08/30/2009