Warren

'Ben' there, done that

By Brad D. Bates
C & G Staff Writer

Mott junior quarterback leads Marauders to 4-1 start

WARREN — It’s not easy breaking in a new quarterback in a new league.

Unless, of course, that new quarterback is Warren Mott junior Ben Filimon.

A first-year starter leading his team to a 4-1 overall start, 3-0 in the tough Macomb Area Conference White Division, may surprise some, but for those who know Filimon, the surprises lie more in the doing than in the results.

“We knew what we had coming in,” Mott coach Tom Milanov said. “If anything is surprising, it’s what he does on the field sometimes. He makes things happen that you didn’t expect to see.”

Filimon played running back for the Marauders a year ago, when they finished a game out of winning their second straight MAC Blue title.

With the graduation of Scott White and the MAC’s realignment, Filimon got his shot to prove himself in one of the state’s most competitive leagues.

“Ben is a playmaker and has a real sense for the game,” Milonov said. “You have to improvise at quarterback, and that’s what he does really well.”

Along with the ability to ad-lib, which at press time had accounted for five rushing touchdowns, what has helped Filimon be a successful fit at quarterback was the return of talented skill players around him — particularly fellow juniors Martez Kelly, C. J. Oliniyan and Torico Searcy.

Of course, being a quarterback surrounded by so many talented players doesn’t come without a certain amount of pressure, including the fact that the unproven junior was the offense’s only question mark when the season began.

 “After the first game, though, we saw that he could throw and get the receivers the ball,” Kelly said.

In the Marauders’ week-one loss to Romeo High, which leads the MAC Red with a 4-0 mark, Filimon threw his first of 15 touchdown passes in a 47-15 loss.

 “They knew I could throw the ball, but they wanted to see if I was the same guy in a game that I was in practice,” Filimon said of his teammates’ expectations.

It wasn’t an overnight success for Filimon at quarterback. While he did have experience as last season’s second-string signal caller, taking over the starting reins on varsity required extra work.

“I had to learn how to read defense, and I was so used to throwing a baseball. I had to relearn some things,” Filimon said. “Once we got in a groove, though, it felt natural.”

Filimon has shown exactly how natural he feels at quarterback more and more each week.

Since that week-one loss,  Mott has outscored opponents 180-52 and put itself in position to challenge for the White title.

With league games at home against co-leader Grosse Pointe North at 7 p.m. Oct. 11 and at three-time defending White champ Warren Cousino at 7 p.m. Oct. 18, Mott and Filimon control their own fate.

“We have to stay positive,” Filimon said of what it would take to keep his team rolling. “We just need to keep practicing hard and not get down.”

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Brad D. Bates at bbates@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1029.