So here was Nick Russell, starting his first game at quarterback after starting one game as a freshman two years ago, being asked to direct Northwood on a game-winning drive in the 2011 season opener at Delphos Jefferson.

The Rangers, trailing 35-34, were at their own 20-yard line with just over two minutes to play and Russell knew he would have to make good decisions, get the ball to his receivers and not turn the ball over.

A successful two-minute drill always falls back on the play of the quarterback, and Russell delivered with a 5-for-6 passing effort in the last-ditch drive against the Wildcats. Senior kicker Garrett Reighard's 28-yard field goal with six seconds left gave the Rangers, who led 28-7 at halftime, a 37-35 victory.

Northwood junior quarterback Nick Russell (Press photo by Don Thompson/picasweb. google.com/donrachael)

“We drove (69) yards,” Russell said. “I wasn't nervous, because I had confidence in our offense. We always practice the two-minute drill in every Thursday practice. That really showed, because we were pretty good. It felt great going back to the locker room after that win. My quarterback coach (Matt Donegan) came down from the press box and gave me a big hug. It was a big non-league win.”

The 5-foot-11, 155-pound Russell, who has been a quarterback since the third grade, was a starting free safety as a freshman and sophomore. Coach Ken James, however, decided to take Russell off the defensive unit so he could focus on his quarterbacking duties.

“I started at quarterback for the Little Rangers and got used to it and I really liked it,” Russell said. “I liked being the leader of the team and winning games and trying my best. It just progressed right up to high school.”

Russell's only experience as a varsity quarterback came two years ago, when his older brother, Eric, then the Rangers' starter, had to miss a game against Lake because of a hip pointer. Nick led Northwood to a 32-26 win over the Flyers.

Eric was the Rangers' starting quarterback the last two seasons and led the team to a 14-8 record, one Toledo Area Athletic Conference title and two playoff appearances. He is now a quarterback for Manchester (Ind.) College's freshman team, but he suffered a season-ending knee injury on Labor Day.

James said the Russell brothers are alike in some ways, yet they have their differences.

“Nick's faster,” James said. “They are pretty similar in size. Eric, when he was older, had better command of our offense. Nick's doing what Eric did as a junior and he's gained more experience. At this time of his junior year, Eric was getting control of what he was doing. In week nine against Toledo Christian he had a really big breakout game.”

Nick, who has led the Rangers to a 6-1 record (4-0 TAAC), has completed 34-of-59 passes for 650 yards, with two touchdowns and six interceptions. He also leads the team in rushing, with 480 yards and seven touchdowns on 89 carries.

“Nick's a little bit more slippery than Eric was, but Eric had different situations,” James said. “He had a senior-dominated crew around him and he had bigger, faster running backs. We asked him to get the ball to those guys. Nick's one of our quicker kids, so we're asking him to run the ball a little more. They are both coaches' kids (their dad, Dave, is Northwood's defensive coordinator), they both put the team in front of themselves and they both work hard.”

Nick, 16, who is less than two years younger than his brother, said Eric taught him a few valuable lessons about what it takes to play quarterback.

“He said to never get down and have your head up and be a leader out there, even if things are going bad,” Nick said. “You can't show your weakness. The team looks at the quarterback as the leader of the team, like, 'Come on, guys, we're fine.' You just basically never show your weakness.”

Nick said he knew following in Eric's footsteps was not going to be easy.

“I wanted to do as good or maybe achieve a little bit more, to carry on the (Russell) name,” Nick said. “I had pretty big shoes to fill. I've done pretty well, but I have a lot of improvement still left. I'm still learning.”

James said the game has started to slow down for his first-year starter.

“What he sees, he sees faster,” the coach said. “If he sees a blitz coming, he automatically knows where he has to get the ball and he gets it there pretty quickly. He's getting much better at getting us out of bad plays and into good ones.”

Last Friday, in a 52-14 win against one of best teams Danbury (3-4, 1-3) has had in years, Russell directed Northwood's option-oriented offense to 402 yards rushing. He also scored a pair of touchdowns.

And like a true leader and a coach's kid, he is more than willing to spread the praise for Northwood's success so far.

“Our offense is starting to click,” Russell said. “Our offensive line is playing really well and we're clicking together as a team. I want to give all the credit to the O-line and the coaches. If the O-line didn't block, we wouldn't be able to do anything. We have a lot of good running backs who do good stuff. We play as a team and we have a lot of good team chemistry this year.”

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