Prosser's premier passer prepares for state final
It would be easy to think that Jordan Durbin has led a charmed life, walking between raindrops as quarterback of one of the most explosive offenses in the state.
Durbin seemingly stepped into a gig two years ago that would be the dream job for any would-be QB, running a no-huddle spread offense that throws the ball all over the field, from sideline to sideline, from screens to the back of the end zone.
Along the way, he's had a pair of Division I college receivers (Cody Bruns of Washington and Kirby Moore, headed to Boise State) running routes for him, and he's won 27 games against no losses.
Oh, and when he takes the field Saturday against Lynden in the 2A championship game at the Tacoma Dome, he'll be playing for a second straight state title.
Yes, it would be easy to confuse Durbin's good fortune with good luck.
"He's worked real hard at it,"
said his coach, Tom Moore. "He practiced with Kellen (Moore) every day his freshman and sophomore year, and he did a great job."
Taking over for Kellen Moore is perhaps the biggest reason Durbin's life was hardly peaches and cream in the early days of his junior year.
Kellen Moore actually re-wrote the Prosser record books, setting every throwing record for the Mustangs -- and quite a few for the state -- before heading off to Boise State, where he has the Broncos in the top 10 in the nation as a redshirt freshman QB.
"Those are the biggest shoes that have ever had to be filled,"
Durbin said. "There was a lot of pressure in the community."
Durbin also wasn't handed the job out of the gate. He had to compete with Bruns, who had played quarterback as a freshman and -- despite his incredible receiving numbers -- was looking to move back.
The two split time throughout spring and summer workouts as well as the first game, which Bruns started at QB and Durbin at safety.
But in Week 2, Durbin put together a big game vs. East Valley that settled the matter.
"Jordan came in and threw five touchdowns in the first half,"
Tom Moore said. "At that point, it just came down to we were a better team with Jordan at quarterback and Cody and Kirby at receiver."
Durbin still has strong memories of that first touchdown pass, though the 119 TDs he's thrown since that first one have been a bit of a blur.
His career numbers are staggering: 7,748 yards, a 68 percent completion rate and just 13 interceptions in 718 passes.
"He's got great feet; he's fast, he has a real quick release, a real short, compact motion,"
Coach Moore said. "He makes good decisions. He understands football."
East Valley coach Barry Reifel said Durbin's numbers are a combination of quarterback, system and coaches.
"You put it all together, and it's a great situation,"
he said. "He's the full deal."
Durbin has received attention from several colleges, including Eastern, Central and Western Washington as well as Eastern Oregon. One of the knocks on him is his size (5-foot-11), and some recruiters have questioned his athleticism, though Tom Moore called him a better athlete than Kellen.
Moore said he has no doubt that, like Kellen, Durbin has all the tools to run the spread offense at the D-I level.
He relied heavily on his big play-makers as a junior -- "When you've got Bruns one-on-one, he's going to beat anybody,"
Coach Moore said -- but Durbin has done a good job of spreading the ball around this season.
Kirby Moore has posted incredible numbers (117 catches, 1,858 yards, 31 TDs). But Durbin has made sure first-year varsity players such as Anthony Flores, Dominic Garza and Matt Young have been in the varsity mix.
That paid off last week in Prosser's 41-28 semifinal win over Burlington-Edison, when Kirby Moore left the game in the first quarter and didn't return.
Moore will be back in the lineup Saturday, and Durbin will be right there, running the no-huddle, throwing the ball all over the field, living a quarterback's dream.
"I felt I have been really blessed the last two years,"
Durbin said. "God has been really good to me."
