New Underwood junior running back Alex Anderson wants to take his game to the next level, and then some. Despite some early-season injury problems and the Tigers' 1-3 start - the product of a tough early schedule against some of the better 9-man teams in the area - Anderson is heading toward his goal of becoming the best player he can possibly be.

"My dream is to get to the NFL," Anderson said. "I don't know how realistic that is, but I'm going to work hard and play in college and see what happens. Football and sports are something that I really enjoy and have been the focus of my whole life, and I want to stay around the game if I can."

The 16-year-old Anderson started at tight end last season and excelled with 28 receptions for nearly 450 yards and eight touchdowns. Anderson also spent time at running back when a starter went down with a midseason injury. Alex took advantage of the opportunity to quickly establish himself as a runner to be reckoned with.

"The first time he touched the ball, he took it 55 yards for a touchdown," Tiger coach Clint Nelson said. "Alex is very athletic and agile. He's just a big, strong, athletic kid who is very mobile for as big as he is. He is very much a power runner who drags people with him before he goes down. He is not afraid to put a whooping on people. We have kids in practice who just get out of his way when they see him coming. They don't want anything to do with him."

This season, Alex has rushed for 379 yards on 43 carries - an impressive 8 yards per carry - and seven touchdowns. "I've enjoyed the move to running back," said Anderson, who also makes his presence felt from his linebacker position, having recorded 43 tackles and two interceptions.

"I enjoy being able to handle the ball more often, and be in the thick of it and helping my team to make plays. I think I have the speed to get outside, and I don't mind taking people on when I have to."

Anderson keeps up on the latest training techniques, and during the summer he works out six days a week on a circuit training program. After all, when you grow up in a small South Dakota town, it takes a lot of hard work to turn a youthful wish into an NFL career.

Alex might use as inspiration the stories of a couple of Minnesota Viking linebackers, Mt. Vernon's Chad Greenway and Vermillion's Ben Leber, who came from a similar background and took their games from small South Dakota towns to NFL stardom. They, too, just like Anderson, started with a big dream.