Victor: Jack Of All Trades For Northwestern Football

Just before taking the field for his team’s defense, player Darius Victor asked Wildcats coach Bryan Pierre what he wanted him to do on that given play.

The head coach stopped and laughed for a second.

During the course of the previous three plays, amid Northwestern’s 28-8 win against Wheaton on Sept. 2, Victor, a standout running back and linebacker, scored on a 55-yard touchdown run.

The he stayed on the field to kick the extra point, put down the kicking tee in preparation for the ensuing kickoff and then kicked off for the Wildcats before running down as part of their kickoff coverage team.

“It was one of those reflective moments for me as a coach,” Pierre said. “At that moment, when he asked me that, I just joked with him, 'Is there anything else we can ask you to do, Man?'”

Victor, a junior, finished the game with 14 carries for 187 yards and three touchdowns as a running back and 10 tackles, including three tackles for a loss, as a linebacker.

He also converted one of his two extra point attempts before the Wildcats decided to use their other kicker for the rest of the game.

In the two games that have followed—a loss to DuVal and a win against Oxon Hill—Victor has rushed for a combined 251 yards and four touchdowns.

As a sophomore last year, the compactly built 5-foot-7, 200 pound Victor ran for 457 yards and nine scores as a running back, posted 52 tackles, two sacks and two forced fumbles as a linebacker and had an 85-yard return for a touchdown as a kick returner.

Pierre sees him assuming an even greater role this season.

“We’re definitely getting the ball in his hands more this year on offense,” the coach said. “And defensively, he’s got more leeway calling some of the defenses out on the field.

"Since he completely understands our defense, we're giving him more leeway to make changes in the play-call out on the field and to even make some play-calls on his own out on the field.”

Pierre also wants Victor to continue establishing himself as a team leader.

“He’s a very talented football player,” Pierre said. “We can all see that. But he’s also a leader that the other kids on the team look up to, so we’re also expecting him to lead the team.”

Wildcats assistant coach Steve Rapp described Victor as “a true leader, both on and off the field” who “leads by example and makes others follow.”

Victor, though, says his primary agenda is just to do whatever he can to help Northwestern improve on last season’s 4-6 record and make a run for the playoffs.

“It would mean a lot to do that,” Victor said. “That’s my goal."

The Wildcats are 2-1.

"I love winning and I hate losing. So if we can improve and make it to the playoffs, I’ll be extremely happy.”