Londonderry's Cruz, Palma a dynamic duo both offensively and defensively
Sep. 21—CONCORD — There is no drop-off for the Londonderry High School football team when Carson Palma and Adrian Cruz give the other a breather.
Palma, a 5-foot-8, 190-pound senior, and Cruz, a 5-foot-9, 205-pound junior, both play middle linebacker and running back for the Lancers, who improved to 2-1 overall and 2-0 in NHIAA Division I play with a 35-7 victory over Concord at Memorial Field on Friday.
Palma did not play much on defense last year but has grown into the signal caller for a unit that held the Crimson Tide (2-1) and Salem (1-2) to one touchdown each.
Cruz, Londonderry's lead rusher, was as agile as he was bruising while running for 84 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries against Concord. He also rushed for a TD in the Lancers' 30-7 Week 1 win over Salem.
"Honestly, it's just a matter of keeping them fresh," Londonderry coach Jim Lauzon said. "If we were to switch them (as starters), I don't know if we'd see a whole lot of difference on offense or defense. ... It's great to have a weapon like that."
Before each play, Palma does his best to set his defensive teammates up for success. He ensures everyone understands their task when he relays the play call from the sideline and that the Lancers are lined up properly before the snap. Throughout the game, Palma shares what he notices from his position == linemen blocking patterns, quarterback cadence and players' emotions — to his defensive linemen.
With Palma roaming the middle, the Lancers held Concord to 65 yards passing and fewer than 100 yards rushing.
"He's a really good middle linebacker," Cruz said of Palma. "He can read his keys. He's nasty. He flies around. He's fast. He makes plays all over the field."
Palma (four carries, 53 yards against Concord) said that he has the same mindset running the ball as Cruz and sophomore Jordan Ball: always try to break that first tackle and fight for every extra yard. The three rushers, who go by the nickname RBU (Running Back University), trained together all offseason.
Ball suffered a knee injury two weeks ago.
Cruz said that he and Palma were more competitive than close last year but have since built a tight bond. They battle each other in practice all week long but are each other's biggest supporters on game day, Palma said.
Palma said he is helping Cruz defensively with alignment and eye discipline — areas Palma struggled with last year — and how to lead the unit. Cruz joked that he peppered Palma with a lot of questions in the offseason.
Palma said Cruz is a great player and expects he will do great things both this season and next.
"They seem to root for each other a lot," Lauzon said. "For them to share the backfield and share the linebacker spot, it's great to see."
Key players — Londonderry senior quarterback Sam Ogden went 9 of 11 passing for 117 yards, including a 6-yard touchdown to Nathan Marshall. — Senior Angelino Rodriguez scored Concord's lone touchdown with 2:50 remaining on a 25-yard run.
