When Tyler Ballenger first decided to come out for football at West Salem, the last thing he wanted was to be another soccer to football convert who just kicked the ball.
So he put his focus elsewhere.
Yes, he can kick, but the 5-foot-10, 160 pound senior is focusing on receiver, and his focus is paying off.
West Salem’s Tyler Ballenger runs the ball as the Titans defeat Sprague 36-29 in a Greater Valley Conference game on Friday, Sept. 9, 2016, at Sprague High School.
Ballenger has caught seven passes – third on the team – for 88 yards and two touchdowns for the Titans (3-0 Greater Valley Conference, 3-1 overall).
“He definitely has a strong leg, but we have some other kids that can kick also,” West Salem receivers coach Joe Looney said. “It’s been nice for him to just be able to concentrate on the football part of it and not the kicking part of it.
“He definitely is a guy that if we needed to have him kick or had a shortage in that area, he could do it, but we have some other talented guys there so it’s not something he’s had to necessarily focus on for us.”
Though Ballenger is known as a soccer player at West Salem, he’s not a novice at football.
He started playing Boys & Girls Club football at about 7 years old and played up through his eighth grade year at Straub Middle School, though he played club soccer at that time, too.
Ballenger had to make a choice coming into his freshman year at West Salem so he chose to play soccer.
For a person who had never previously played receiver – he mostly played at running back on his youth teams – Ballenger has taken to route running surprisingly well.
He likens the running of routes to running track and field.
But for an athlete who has been playing a sport the past three years where he was forbidden to use his hands at all, he has developed quickly at catching the ball.
“Probably a play that nobody remembers, we ran a little bubble out to him against Sprague to the right side and he’s running away from the quarterback, the ball was down and to his left and he dives, catches the ball left handed while laying out,” said senior receiver Cole Rumrill. West Salem’s leading receiver with 23 catches for 331 yards and a touchdown.
“Nobody really ever remembers that, but you just look at something like that, having the spatial awareness to see that the safety’s coming down and he’s about to light him up. So instead of just bending over and reach down for the ball, laying out for the ball to save himself and the play.”
Ballenger was a steady defensive presence for West Salem’s soccer team over his first three years of high school.
The seed was already planted that he might give up soccer, though.
He quit playing club soccer after his sophomore year of high school and took up playing golf – he was 10th in the district meet and 77th at the 6A state meet last year.
“I wanted more time for that and I was kind of burned out on it,” Ballenger said.
“And so I quit on club and coming into my senior year I decided that because I played football all my life, I didn’t want to regret not playing one year of football in high school so I joined the team and they took me in pretty well.”
Sprague’s Nathan Rediger tries to take down West Salem’s Tyler Ballenger in a Greater Valley Conference game on Friday, Sept. 9, 2016, at Sprague High School. West Salem defeated Sprague 36-29.
His last year as a soccer player for West Salem, 2015, ended well.
An honorable mention all-Greater Valley Conference defender, he was a steady influence in the back line as the Titans reached the Class 6A state championship game before losing 2-0 to Lincoln.
Somehow he already knew he was done with soccer.
“It was tough, but I mean ending with how good we did last year, I think it was pretty satisfactory to be able to walk off and say I made it to high school state championship for soccer,” said Ballenger, who’s older brother, Nick, plays soccer at Oregon State.
“Also one of the main factors was that I didn’t want to regret never playing a year of football. All three years I didn’t play I still missed it. I came to every single (football game). I missed it.”
Not surprisingly, he is getting acclimated to playing on defense for West Salem’s football team.
He’s worked his way up to No. 2 on the depth chart at safety behind Simon Thompson.
Ballenger said that playing safety is more like playing soccer because it’s more about reacting to what other players do on the field.
But he’s found a comfort zone at receiver, and his play has reflected that.
“Like everyone else he’s got a competitive spirit and a little bit of ego. Just like everyone else they don’t want to look bad,” Looney said. “If nothing else he’s going to catch it just so coach (Shawn) Stanley and myself don’t yell at him.”
bpoehler@StatesmanJournal.com, 503-399-6701 or Twitter.com/bpoehler