A-K Valley football Q&A with Springdale’s Christian Vokes

By: Greg Macafee
Wednesday, September 4, 2019 | 6:49 PM

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The Springdale football team is off to its best start of the Seth Napierkowski era, and senior Christian Vokes has been a vital piece.

“He’s a gamer for sure,” Napierkowski said. “He has this competitive edge about him that you just love as a coach, and he fuels our team with that energy a lot of the time.”

During Springdale’s last-minute 29-27 win over Deer Lakes in Week Zero, the 5-foot-8, 150-pound running back/defensive back ran for 119 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries. Vokes excelled in all three phases of the game. He tallied six tackles on defense and also blocked Deer Lakes’ game-winning field-goal attempt in the final minute.

Vokes played an even bigger role this past Friday when the Dynamos took down Imani Christian, 34-20, for the first time in school history.

He carried the ball 20 times for 174 yards and three touchdowns. He also came up with an interception on defense and played a major role in his team shutting out Imani Christian for three of the four quarters.

“A lot of people look to me as a leader this year, so I try to keep everyone’s head in the game,” Vokes said. “I try to keep everything calm, make sure everyone is executing and just making sure everything is going as planned.

“For us as a team, it kind of just happens unexpectedly for us. We just execute towards the end of the game, and as the tension builds, I guess we just all step up and play our roles better.”

The Dynamos are 2-0 for the first time since 2015, and Vokes has played a primary role in that success. Now, he is hoping to keep his team on track as it looks to lock down a playoff spot this year.

How does it feel to finally get a win over Imani Christian?

It feels great because we are the first Springdale team to do it. I felt like we could because I feel like our athletes can compete with any teams that were going to play because we work hard.

What do you think was the key to the win?

Without our line, we couldn’t have done that. They held everything up front, and we had a push every single play.

How does it feel to start the season undefeated?

It’s crazy, actually. I felt like a lot of people didn’t have faith in us this year because of how we did last year. But we’re a special group of players, and we didn’t lose many people from last year. We worked so hard in the summer, and I knew it was going to pay off.

What do you think you will have to do to keep this momentum?

We always have to think that we can do better; we can never be satisfied with where we are at. We always have to think that we can do better every single game.

Are you more of a power runner or shifty runner?

It just depends. It really just happens. Sometimes I’m making moves and sometimes I’m just trying to break tackles.

Do you have any pregame routines?

I like to pray before games. Just to make sure I can play the best game I can, no injuries, just make sure I’m healthy before and after the game.

What is your favorite school subject?

I’d have to say English.

What is your favorite NFL team?

Probably the Steelers or the Saints.

What’s your favorite meal?

Chicken. Anything with chicken.

What’s your favorite restaurant?

Applebee’s

Greg Macafee is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Greg by email at gmacafee@triblive.com or via Twitter .

Tags: Springdale