Name: Deion Conde
Rundown: Conde is a 5-foot-7, 145-pound sophomore quarterback at Sunnyside High School.
Who he is: As a freshman, Conde was given the keys to the convertible, bypassing the JV level and going straight from youth football to Sunnyside’s varsity starting quarterback.
“I wouldn’t say it was too difficult, I was just really nervous,” Conde said.
Thrust into a difficult spot for a teenager, the Blue Devil quarterback proved more than capable of leading the offense as he delivered a memorable 2019 season throwing for 1,604 yards and 13 touchdowns.
“He can flat out spin it,” his head coach Glenn Posey said.
The two knocks against Conde have been his slight frame and turnovers — a natural criticism of a high school freshman. The Blue Devil QB said he’s grown two inches and added 15 pounds of muscle since he last stepped on the field, while also noting that his main focus this season is improving his consistency from game-to-game to cut down on the 17 interceptions he threw as a freshman.
And for those who still think Conde’s short stature hinders his playing ability, he and his coach believe otherwise.
“He compensates for it, uses it to his advantage,” Posey said.
Proof he’s good: What makes Conde a revelation to watch grow into the quarterback position is that he’s been given full command of the Sunnyside offense. During one of the team’s 7-on-7 tournaments in January, he decided what to run on offense.
“I didn’t call a single play that weekend,” Posey said.
Though the Blue Devils went 3-7 in 2019, Posey felt that was largely a byproduct of the team’s youth at other positions, not just quarterback. The offseason hasn’t been anything like Posey expected — the Blue Devils just started practicing in full pads — but the head coach expects a big year from his program.
“We have a good class this year with some dudes that have done a great job so far,” he said.
Posey raved about his quarterback’s work ethic this summer as Conde helped organize player-led workouts while the coaches were prohibited from holding team practices because of COVID-19.
Now that the team is together again, with their quarterback looking confident and energized, Sunnyside should be much improved this fall.
“We're hitting our stride again, I feel really good about our work ethic now.”
He said it: “(Conde) played better than the results showed last year… He was one of our hardest workers in the offseason, really worked on his body and got a lot stronger.” — Posey
