The Rudder Rangers have been talking about firsts a lot this season, but one they have avoided is their first quarterback controversy.

Junior running back Tre Hammond started all but the final game last season at quarterback in Rudder's first season of varsity football. Over the offseason, he moved to running back, while Kyle Danford took over at quarterback.

Jealous?

Not at all. In fact, Hammond heaps praise on his teammate while embracing his own move to running back.

"I like scoring. That's what I like best," Hammond said. "I had a little bit of time in the offseason before we got into full pads. I had to watch film on our last running back to learn stuff from him. [Danford's] a way better quarterback than me. He should have been starting last year. I'll give it to him."

The move wasn't overly tough for Hammond, who played running back from Pop Warner until he switched to quarterback in seventh grade. It didn't hurt that Hammond is possibly the toughest player on the Rangers' roster.

"It ought to be an easy transition, because as a quarterback you have to know what everyone is doing anyway," Rudder head coach C.M. Pier said. "Having him out of quarterback is better for our team and enables us to do more things. Now we can have him at running back, returning kicks, playing receiver, wherever we need him."

Rudder is still growing as a program and does not have the depth of some of the bigger schools in the area. Because of this, Hammond still serves as the team's backup quarterback, and that can make practice a bit tough at times.

"It's hard because the quarterbacks are on the other side of the field," Hammond said. "I'm all the way over here, trying to watch them the whole time."

Pier says he and his coaching staff need to get Hammond more touches. The Rangers have three players with the majority of the carries this season, Danford, Restevin Anderson and Hammond, though Hammond has just 31 of the trio's combined 165 carries. He's averaging 5.6 yards per carry while also averaging 19 yards per punt return. He's second on the team in scoring with 24 points.

"He's a tough kid and has big-play potential," Pier said. "We look every Sunday at ways to get the ball in his hands. It's our fault for not getting the ball into his hands. We've got to do that. He's a good runner, a heady runner and is stronger than what he looks."