BC's Hagberg runs show

If Dan Hagberg had big shoes to fill coming into this season, Burlington Central would be well served to order an even bigger pair for his successor next year.

The Rockets starting quarterback faced a tall task in replacing former signal caller Justin Lee, who twice earned Courier News Player of the Year honors, ran for more than 2,500 yards in his high school career and guided Central to a conference title and state quarterfinal appearance last year.

While that's a lofty legacy to live up to, so far Hagberg has been up to the challenge.

Through eight games, Hagberg has more rushing yardage and the same number of touchdowns as Lee had at the same point in the season last year. Hagberg has also helped lead the Rockets back to the playoffs, and Central can clinch its second straight Big Northern Conference East Division title with a win tonight at Harvard.

Not too bad for a replacement.

"To fill a person like Justin's shoes is nearly impossible," Hagberg said. "I'm just doing the best I can to do somewhat as well as he did. I guess you could say I'm just doing my best to pretty much be like Justin."

If you listen to opposing coaches, Hagberg is living up to his goal by giving a dead-on impersonation of Lee when it comes to running Central's option attack.

"Lee was obviously outstanding, but when we came in and saw film of Hagberg, it was almost like looking at Lee again," Hampshire coach Dan Cavanaugh said. "After playing (Hagberg), our opinion didn't change any. We're very impressed with him. He's a nice player."

The similarities between Hagberg and Lee are striking. Both are outstanding track athletes with multiple trips to the state meet, and both employ those talents on the football field.

Lee, who is red-shirting at Division II power Bemidji State this year, totaled an area-best 1,512 yards and 18 touchdowns last season. Hagberg is currently second in the area in rushing yardage and rushing touchdowns with 1,103 yards and 13 TDs on 112 attempts.

Central coach Aaron Wichman said he isn't too surprised by Hagberg's success.

"He did have big shoes to fill with the kind of season Justin put together last year individually and then the type of season we had as a team," Wichman said. "But I knew Danny would have a good season simply based on the fact that he is a really good athlete and he is a really smart kid.

"We put a lot of pressure in our offense on the quarterback position, but he is the type of athlete that wants that challenge and has that mentality. He is a lot like Justin in that respect."

Wichman contends that Hagberg has more pure speed than Lee, but that Lee is the shiftier runner of the two. At 6-foot, Hagberg stands 3 inches taller than Lee, making it slightly tougher for him to shift through gaps the way Lee did.

However, like Lee, Hagberg can turn the smallest amount of running room into a big gain. Ten of Hagberg's 13 touchdowns rushes have come on runs of 29 yards of more, and five have come on runs of 56 yards or more.

"I'll block my guy for four or five seconds, and then if the whistle hasn't blown I'll look for Danny to see how far down the field he is," said right guard Jason Shallcross, who also blocked for Lee last year as Central's starting center. "He's got a gear most guys don't have."

Hagberg averages 9.8 yards per carry, but despite the gaudy statistics isn't afraid to share the ball. That's especially important in Central's option attack, which calls for the quarterback to make a quick decision based on what he sees from an opposing defense.

"Danny is never selfish with the ball when he is making his reads," Central senior Curt Mastio said. "If the read tells him to give the ball to the fullback, he'll give it to the fullback every single time. He doesn't try to take any of the glory on to himself."

Hagberg doubles as a defensive back, meaning it takes plenty of energy to make it through a game. He credits his track prowess as the reason he has so much endurance on the football field.

Hagberg qualified for the Class AA state meet in the 300-meter intermediate hurdles in each of the past two years, missing out on a spot in the state finals by less than a second last spring. He was also a state qualifier in the 110 high hurdles last spring.

The principles Hagberg says he employs on the track are also his keys to success as a football player.

"I love open space," Hagberg said. "The key is to never stop sprinting. Whenever you let up a little bit that gives the defender an edge. You just have to run as fast as you can and see how far you get."