Pine View never gave up on QB Marinko

Former Pine View quarterback James Lark had two chances to guide the Panthers to a football state title before graduating, but each time his team came up woefully short.

Two years later another quarterback gets his shot, and if senior gunslinger Nick Marinko is successful against Timpview in Friday's 4A state championship, current BYU redshirt freshman Lark can take pride knowing he helped out just a little bit.

"I'll be honest with you, James (Lark) helped Nick a ton in the summer at seven-on-seven camps," said Pine View coach Ray Hosner.

This is Marinko's second season starting at quarterback for Pine View, but his first was anything but memorable. Marinko moved to St. George from California in the summer before his junior year, but in football terms he may as well have been moving to Australia.

The high school he left in California ran the Wing-T offense, whereas Pine View runs a spread offense. The offenses are drastically different, and learning on the fly realistically hindered him throughout the 2006 season.

"We weren't able to put in much of our offense," said Hosner. "In our offense sometimes our receivers change their routes depending on the coverage, and that noncommunication with receivers was tough on him."

Having played for the state title in 2004 and 2005 with Lark at the helm, Pine View struggled in 2006 and missed the playoffs all together.

Despite the disappointment, the coaching staff never lost faith in Marinko and they've been rewarded with an undefeated record and a shot at another title. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound Marinko has enjoyed a fantastic season with 2,701 yards, 37 touchdowns and a 61 percent completion percentage. That's an improvement of 1,000 yards and 20 touchdowns from last year.

Hosner believes spending time with Lark, a volunteer assistant coach, at various summer football camps did wonders for Marinko's confidence and understanding of Pine View's tricky offense.

"James was in our system from freshman to senior year, whereas Nick had a year and a half to learn," said Hosner.

One of the things that impresses Hosner most about Marinko is his maturity. In addition to keeping an even keel despite his lofty senior success, he's still a humble kid who deflects praise to teammates and isn't above carrying water out to the practice field before practice.

On the field, he carries himself like a veteran quarterback.

"The kid's amazing, he'll check down to his fourth read," said Hosner.

Whether Marinko's helps guide Pine View to the 4A title or not, his coach believes he has what it takes to play college football if he bulks about up a bit more.

A good game against Timpview, arguably the best defense in the state, could be his ticket to more recognition and possibly a scholarship offer.

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E-mail: jedward@desnews.com