C-NS star Mike Washington ready to get started at Buffalo
CICERO, N.Y. (BVM) — It only took Mike Washington one season at Cicero-North Syracuse to showcase his rare athletic abilities on the football field. After transferring from Utica Notre Dame after his sophomore season, the star playmaker would have a breakout opening season with his new team.
“The amount that he grew in terms of football knowledge during that one season was unbelievable,” Cicero-North Syracuse football coach David Kline said. “He’s got great moves, he’s got strength, he’s got explosive speed. Once he gets striding out, it’s ridiculous how fast he goes.”
In his lone season with the Northstars, the 6-foot-2, 215 pound junior would become a major part of the team’s offensive success. After looking for more production out of the running back position, the C-NS head coach held open tryouts for the starting spot and Washington stepped up.
“We had Michael as a wide receiver for us at the beginning of the year… [but] we were struggling to run the football which has never been an issue for us,” Kline said. “We were 1-2 at the time and I decided at practice we were going to do an inside run period.
“‘Anybody that’s an athlete that wants to try out for running back, we’re going to have open tryouts today,’ and Mike goes, ‘Coach, can I go in there?’ By the time we got done with our session he was the best running back we had.”
The position switch would pay off big time for the wide receiver turned running back, who rushed for 1,423 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns on 179 carries during the team’s 2019 season. With most of his experience heading into the year elsewhere, the Northstars’ coach was impressed by the growth he saw from his star running back.
“He was a kid that would hit the hole or go where he was supposed to go and not really read it that well,” Kline said. “But as the year grew on, he became more comfortable with what was going on. His ability to see the hole and where it was opening became really impressive and [I liked] his willingness to just lower his head, lower his shoulders and get the three to four tough yards we need.”
After an accomplished junior campaign and a fall football season that was being pushed back, Washington decided against playing in his senior season, instead enrolling early at the University at Buffalo.
“I’m really disappointed we didn’t play in the fall because I think he truly would have been something incredible to watch on the high school level,” Kline said. “I look at what he did to his body, the physical work he put in to get stronger and faster and he’s like one of those kids where you see them and think, ‘How’s this kid only in high school looking the way he looks?’ It would have just been unbelievable to watch him play his senior year.”
Even with the disappointment, the Northstars’ coach admits it was a no-brainer for Washington to head off early and start his career with the Bulls. The two made sure to stay in contact throughout the process, having open discussions before the final decision was made.
“Once Buffalo said they had an opening for him this spring on scholarship, there was really no thought process left involved,” Kline said of Washington’s decision. “He had nothing to gain by playing with us in March. He only had the chance of risking something and then it gave him the chance to start his college education a little early. He’s a great kid and comes from a great family.”
The chance to play at Buffalo is a long time coming for Washington who committed to the school last summer. After receiving offers from Division I programs like Army and Villanova, Washington chose to stay in state.
“I was really happy with that because I know they are solid people and what they’ve done there changing the culture of that [football] program has been ridiculous,” Kline said of Washington’s commitment to Buffalo. “It’s been phenomenal what [Buffalo’s] done up there.”
The Northstars’ coach thinks big things are ahead for Washington and is looking forward to watching his former running back at the next level.
“I think [Mike] has barely scratched the surface of his capabilities,” Kline said. “If everything goes as I think it can go, and he stays healthy and he continues to progress, I would honestly not be surprised if that kid was playing on a Sunday someday in the future. He has that big of an upside.”
