You'll have to excuse Matt Marshall for acting like a follower instead of a leader — he just wants to have some bragging rights at the dinner table.
When the Skyline quarterback takes the field Friday in the 5A state championship game against Brighton, he'll be trying to follow in the footsteps of his dad and brother, who both won state championships at Skyline.
Back in 1969, Marshall's father, Steve, who's also an assistant coach with Skyline, quarterbacked the Eagles to the AA state championship.
In 1998, Marshall's brother Grady was a starting free safety on a Skyline team that finished the year by hoisting its fourth straight state championship.
"My brother and dad have both won state championships, and I want it so bad," said Matt Marshall. "It's just a family affair."
If Marshall is able to lead Skyline past Brighton on Friday, he and his brother Grady will have both helped the Eagles win very unexpected state titles.
By losing the final four games of the regular season this year, not only did Skyline enter the playoffs with a disappointing 5-5 record, but it went into the playoffs as the No. 4 seed out of Region 2. That was the same seed Grady's team entered the playoffs with in 1998.
"He's given me so much motivation. He tells me what it takes to win a state championship because he's been there," said Marshall.
Few positions in the state come with as much pressure as the quarterback at Skyline, a school where winning state championships is an expectation, not a fledgling desire. Based on his family heritage, perhaps no Eagles quarterback has ever been as prepared for the challenge as Marshall was this year.
"It's pressure, but if you can't handle it, don't play," said Marshall. "Pressure should give you motivation to work harder. I think Skyline quarterbacks live up to the pressure, and I think they like being in that situation."
When Marshall was a sophomore, he paid particular attention to the maturity and leadership demonstrated by Skyline quarterback Mitch Reid, who led the Eagles to the state championship game. Last year, he paid even closer attention to Joey Putnam, because Marshall knew he would be the man leading Skyline's option offense in 2005.
After winning early, Marshall and his Eagles went into a seemingly irreversible tailspin heading into the playoffs.
While Marshall admits there was some doubt heading into the playoffs, he also added, "we've known all year we can only go as far as we wanted to."
For Marshall, who has an autographed picture of Skyline Mr. Football winner Steve Tate in his locker, his goals have never wavered. Seeing pictures and trophies of his father and brother around the house are constant reminders for Marshall, who will be trying to achieve the ultimate goal this weekend.
If he's successful, it would be Skyline's 14th state championship.
E-mail: jedward@desnews.com