Guthrie crushed Northeast in Week 5. The Blue Jays won 51-6, and “Jones carries Guthrie to Victory” was the headline story in the Dec. 15 Guthrie News Leader.
He scored four rushing touchdowns in the first half, taking snaps from shotgun to hit holes quickly.
“(DeMarko) was so tough mentally and physically,” offensive coordinator Chuck Atchison said. “I mean, there’s games that he carried the ball 30-plus times and might have thrown it 25. And he wasn’t huge in stature, but the guy had a huge heart. And he wanted it so bad. If I had a DeMarko every year that I›ve coached football, I could coach football ‹til I›m dead.”
The Blue Jays went from a team with questions after a 2-2 start to a juggernaut, ripping through Class 5A. From Week 5 to Week 9, Guthrie outscored its opponents by a combined 230-36.
Webb developed into one of the most feared kick returners in the state.
“ The other teams couldn’t touch him,” Rush said. “I think he probably scored a kickoff return in almost every game in the 2002 season. It was just ridiculous. If he caught the ball -- if they actually kicked it to him -- it was like, just block one person and jog down to the end zone to congratulate him because we know he’s gonna be down there.”
Webb grew up returning kicks without blockers, and with the occasional dog in pursuit. Taking one back in a game felt like stepping up to the plate after swinging a weighted donut-laden bat in the on-deck circle.
Webb and Jones weren’t the only ones stepping up. The strength of Guthrie was its offensive and defensive line. The stretch of dominance started with that group.
The Blue Jays had just two Division I players on their team. Kyle Smith, who went on to play at New Mexico, started at right guard. David Washington, who started four years at Oklahoma State, played next to Smith at right tackle.
Chad Sanders and Levi Van Houton, who received scholarships to play at Northwestern and Alva, held down the left side. Despite being the smaller side of the line, Smith said Sanders and Van Houton were intent on proving they were not the weak side.
They took blitzes to their side personally and were good players.
Smith played both ways. When he went on the defens ive line, Seth Van Houton, Levi’s brother, and Detery Laws — who some say could’ve been the best Blue Jays player if not for off-the-field problems — joined him.
Sam Murillo anchored the defense at middle linebacker. Rush and Jason Shoemaker, who also played receiver and was Jones’ favorite target not named Webb, were key cogs at outside linebacker.
No group held a deeper respect for Guthrie’s defense than its offense. Halfway through the 2002 season, the Blue Jays needed a scout team running back to mimic Noble High’s tailback’s speed. Webb volunteered, and in the first few minutes the coaches called a toss.
“In my head I’m thinking, ‘It’s easy. I’m going to score right here,’ ” Webb said.
He glanced up while turning the corner, but instead of green grass in his sights, all he saw was senior linebacker Russell Rush. The scene wasn’t pretty. Rush doesn’t remember the hit, but said he practiced like he played. And besides, he’d administered a lot of hits like that.
“It’s like in X-Men, Wolverine,” Webb said. “I think Russell had metal bones.”
While sprawled on the practice field, recovering from the hardest hit he ever took, Webb realized the defense was pretty good, too.