For the last few years, finding senior Louie Razo on the Chesterton offense was like a never-ending game of “Where’s Waldo?”
Sometimes he’d be the deep back in the I-formation. Sometimes he’d line up in the slot. Sometimes he’d be split out wide.
For his senior season, though, Razo’s not going to be moving around as much for the Trojans.
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“I like having one job,” he said.
And that one job is as the featured running back for Chesterton (2-0), which opens its Duneland Athletic Conference schedule at 7 p.m, Friday against host Michigan City (1-1).
“He’s been a full-time starter for us at a number of positions since he was a sophomore,” Chesterton coach Mark Peterson said of Razo. “He’s more than capable of being a multi-faceted guy and playing those different positions.”
And Razo said that time spent handling multiple roles turned him into a well-rounded football player.
“It helped me a lot,” he said. “Instead of just running the ball and having that vision, I got better at catching the ball and running the routes.”
But the early returns for Razo in his feature back role have been impressive. In Chesterton’s season opener against Hobart, Razo racked up 237 yards and three touchdowns on 18 carries in the Trojans’ 35-21 victory. In Week 2, Razo was held to just 92 yards but still managed a pair of TDs as Chesterton topped Munster 33-21.
Both Razo and Peterson attributed this early success to an offseason dedicated to strength training.
“He did a great job this offseason,” Peterson said. “He put on about 12 pounds and really worked hard in the weight room.”
Razo said that added bulk didn’t affect his speed, either, adding that he feels faster on the field when he’s making cuts around defenders. But that speed is nothing new for Razo, who was part of Chesterton’s 400-meter relay team that finished third at the boys track state finals.
Along with the physical maturity, Peterson said he’s noticed improvement in how Razo handles himself around his teammates.
“His playing skill is fantastic and he does some great things,” Peterson said. “But as far as the secondary stuff goes, he’s really established himself as a great leader. He’s one of our captains.”
Those improved leadership traits could be crucial, should the Trojans find themselves in a similar position this Friday as they did in their 2016 game with Michigan City. The Wolves blanked Chesterton 20-0 in that game, the first victory for Michigan City in that DAC rivalry since 2009.
“Last year, going into halftime down 7-0, I felt like we had a chance to come out and win that game,” Razo said. “But it seemed like everyone was discouraged because they were leading at the half.”
Dave Melton is a freelance writer for the Post-Tribune.