Boyd scored all four touchdowns for a Lithia offense that hadn't scored more than two TDs in a game all year. The last time the Lions won a game prior to last week was almost a year ago when they beat Osborne 10-0 to end the 2011 season.
“I just didn't know how it felt anymore,” Boyd said.
Boyd has done his part all season for a Lions offense that has at times been anemic. Lithia Springs came into the game averaging 8.5 points largely due to depth issues on the offensive line that made it hard to get any momentum going.
“He has consistently run hard all year long,” Lions head coach Scott Dean said. “The kid's put forth the effort. But some of the ups and downs we've had on the offensive line have impacted his play. So he's been hit a lot of times in the backfield at the point of attack."
Last week, Dean decided to modify his traditional wing-T offense a little bit, with Joseph Ross and Antonio Reed both lined up as blocking backs in a “jumbo” set to pave a lane for Boyd and it worked.
Boyd came through with over 200 yards on 30 carries. Overall, Boyd has rushed for 650 yards and seven touchdowns, picked up another 172 yards receiving and has thrown the ball for 24 yards. With three games to go, he's on pace to get close to the 1,000-yard mark on the ground.
“This year his effort is through the roof,” Dean said. “He finishes runs, he falls forward, he hits the hole wide open. … “He came into the summer and decided he was going to be the featured back and he hasn't looked back.”
Boyd has proven so versatile that Dean has moved him around to different spots in the backfield. In addition to playing wingback, he's also lined up at fullback, which in the Lions traditional wing-T set is more of a tailback type role than the traditional blocking role the fullback plays in other offenses.
“We move him around to get him the ball,” Dean said. “He plays a host of characters at the wing spot as well as fullback.”
Boyd, for his part, is willing to do whatever it takes. He runs track for Lithia Springs and estimates his 40-yard dash time at around 4.5 seconds. He's also not afraid to run over an opposing defender.
“Whatever I've got to do to score,” Boyd said.
Boyd grew up in DeKalb County and has been playing football since he was 4 years old. He played all three years in middle school on a team that went undefeated and won a championship.
He transferred to Lithia Springs as a freshman and has played four years for Dean, who was an assistant at Lithia before taking over as head coach last year.
Dean said Boyd played some on defense as a freshman at outside linebacker, got more reps on defense as a sophomore and some time in the backfield and last year transitioned to more of an offensive player who still saw time on both sides of the ball. This year, Boyd has become a full-time offensive workhorse.
As a middle school running back, Boyd said he drew some light-hearted comparisons to former San Diego Chargers and New York Jets running back LaDainian Tomlinson and current Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson.
But being from Georgia, Boyd's heart is with the Atlanta Falcons. Just don't compare him to Falcons tailback Michael Turner.
“He's a good back, he's just not fast enough,” Boyd joked. “If he was fast enough, he would be unstoppable.”
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