Receiver powers way onto list of recent Washburn greats

Eric Smith

The names Odupitan, Lehman, Sissom, Gardiner, Lebahn, and Walker represent some of the Washburn football team’s top receivers in recent years.

However, junior Drameagon Powers hopes to add his name to that list with his performance this fall.

Powers began his career at Washburn in 2005 as a red shirt freshman. In 2006, he played in six games recording five receptions for 59 yards.

Last year, as a sophomore, he played in nearly every game pulling down 16 receptions for 259 yards while scoring five touchdowns.

“So far my career at Washburn has been okay. This year will be my breakout season,” Powers said.

Coach Craig Schurig, entering into his seventh season as Ichabod head coach, agreed with the wide receiver.

“I think Drameagon’s career is about to take off. We knew when he came here that he’s talented,” the Washburn coach said. “Took him a little bit to get in the rotation because we’ve had good receivers ahead of him. Then last year, he became one of the go-to receiver in a number of games.

“In spring, he was our number one receiver,” Schurig said. “And it looks like early in fall camp, he’s going to have an excellent season.”

Powers began his football career not that long ago as a junior at Elkhart High in Elkhart, Texas. Basketball was his sport, that is, until he discovered football. And although he played both to finish out his high school career, football was the path that he was born for.

“Personally, [football] made me more disciplined. Made me more responsible,” the 6-3 193 pound receiver said. “It allowed me to travel to the world of Kansas.”

Once Drameagon got started, there was no stopping him as he began racking up the numbers and awards as a wide receiver and safety. In his senior year, he had 46 receptions for 980 yards and 13 touchdowns.

“As a junior, I was all-district. In my senior year, I became all-state. And I was real good so I came here to Washburn,” Powers said.

He was able to come to Washburn thanks to a little help from a former Ichabod running back.

“[Washburn] recruited me. My coach sent them a tape. One of the former Washburn students that used to go here, Trent Hearn, we had the same high school football coach. So it was just an easy transition from there.”

Coach Schurig was glad to have the Texas native join the team.

“It was a late recruiting deal. We brought him in in the spring on a visit. He liked it. Said he was coming. So that’s basically way it worked. It was kind of a relationship of a player already on campus,” Schurig said. “And he hit it off right away with some of our guys. Him and Brandon Walker are real good friends. And we knew right away when we had him that he was going to be a very good player.”