Foster, Flucos battling for respect

Ryan Foster isn’t loud or overbearing. He just quietly goes about his business of helping nudge Fluvanna County’s football program back to respectability, one rollout pass and one six-yard gain at a time.
“We want to show everybody that we can compete now,” Foster said.
Anyone who’s watched Foster play doesn’t doubt his credentials as a competitor. The junior signal-caller has a quiet, determined confidence about him, forged by years as a quarterback in Greene and Fluvanna counties.
Foster worked his way through the peewee ranks since taking the reins of an offense for the first time as an 8-year-old living in Greene County. He’s been the quarterback for many of Fluvanna’s players since moving to the county in 2002 as an elementary school student.
That experience has been invaluable in Foster’s development as a leader, giving him a repoire with both receivers and linemen alike. One lineman, senior Charbel Nader, came to Fluvanna head coach Joel Gray and made a vow that suggest a lot of trust in Foster’s ability to pilot the Flucos.
“[He came] to me and promised me that ‘Ryan wasn’t going to have to run for his life this year’ — that he would personally make sure that it didn’t happen,” Gray said. “I think that attitude has helped settle Ryan down some.”
But that confidence in Foster hasn’t just developed because of time — it’s grown because when it comes down to the closing seconds of a game, the gritty, 5-foot-11, 180-pound quarterback always wants the ball. Always.
Against Goochland while playing junior varsity as a freshman, Foster marched the Flucos 80 yards with less than two minutes to play. He went
7 of 7 on the drive and cemented his reputation with Joel Gray.
“One of the first things we noticed about Ryan when he was playing JV was that he wanted the ball in his hand at “crunch time” — when the game was on the line,” Gray said. “That really caught my eye.”
The fact that Foster’s determined mentality survived Fluvanna’s surreal 2007 season is a testament to his maturity. The Flucos, with the then-sophomore running the show, went through a seemingly never-ending run of bad luck during a winless campaign. There were injuries, off-the-field issues and the well-documented food poisoning that caused the Flucos to forfeit against Western Albemarle.
Foster, who plays shortstop and pitches for Fluvanna’s baseball team, and the rest of the Flucos seem determined to eradicate the memories of 2007, and they took a big step towards that with a season-opening victory over Prince Edward. Foster accounted for a huge chunk of the offense in the win, passing for 143 yards on just five completions while rushing another 55 yards on 19 carries.
“I like the spread offense, I like running and throwing at the same time,” Foster said. “I can pull the ball down when the pocket breaks down and keep the defense on their toes.”
The dual-threat quarterback is a near necesity in the spread offense that’s come to dominate locally. Most of the local teams running the spread aren’t employing a version like Texas Tech, where the quarterback just sits back in the pocket and tosses it around.
Most of the local incarnations are more spread-option at their foundation, and Foster is a near-perfect candidate to execute that style. He’s tough and fearless when it comes to the running game and can remain paitent in the pocket too. As just a junior though, he’s still got some things to work on.
“He is such a competitor that he thinks he can make something positive happen on every play, and it hasn’t always worked out that way,” Gray said.
The Flucos are loaded with juniors and seniors this season after fielding a much younger squad in 2007. Skill position players Danny Edgell, Hunter Shepherd and Tyler Denby all contriubte on both sides of the ball. Edgell, a senior, leads the team in receiving with 115 yards and Shepherd, a
junior, has pulled down five catches for 81 yards over the first two games. Denby has carried the ball 24 times on the season and also leads the Flucos in tackles.
Foster isn’t excused from double duty either. He leads the team in interceptions with two picks in his role at free safety.
With the development of those weapons, Foster seems to be learning that he doesn’t have to get it all done on his own, and that should strike some fear into Jefferson District opponents because if that happens. Fluvanna won’t be any easy victory.
“As [Foster] learns to avoid sacks and comes to recognize that with our skill people, we’re always one play from moving the chains, our offense could really become potent,” Gray said.
The arrival of assistant coach Jason Barnett has helped spur Foster’s evolution as a quarterback. Barnett’s role seems to be a refinement of Foster’s raw talent with a goal of transforming him into a more polished, efficent signal caller.
“We’re challenging Ryan daily to improve his ball fake and audible skills,” Gray said. “Coach Barnett constantly reminds him that being a field general also requires patience.” 
While Fluvanna stumbled in week two against traditional power R.E. Lee after opening the season with the Prince Edward victory, there’s a good chance they’ll get back on track against Goochland this Friday.
Foster will almost certainly do his part — moving the offense, and, in the process, Fluvanna County football, forward.