Throughout the duration of a Friday afternoon football practice, Eastside Bulldogs quarterback Trevor Lyon donned a red jersey which meant defensive players were not permitted to hit or tackle the signal caller.

But, Eastside Bulldogs head coach Kevin Bouwman said Lyon isn’t the kind of player who shies away from contact.

“Trevor has a great pocket presence and he’s athletic as all get out. He can run. He has no problem getting downfield and the thing is he loves to hit too,” Bouwman said with a smile. “My quarterbacks go nuts because we always blow the whistle on them and have them in red jerseys. They say, ‘We’ll take the hit.’ We need those guys ready for the game so that is why there is no contact for them at practice.”

Bouwman said Lyons is battling Braden Bouwman-Hess for the starting quarterback job during August practice sessions.

“It’s neck and neck right now. They are splitting all the snaps (offensive plays) with the No. 1 offense. It is a battle,” he said.

Regardless of who is named the starting signal caller, Bouwman said both players will see plenty of the field once their season begins this Saturday night against Everett in the season opener at Renton Memorial Stadium.

“They (Lyon, Bouwman-Hess) are two of the best athletes on the whole team. We’ve actually tried them at different positions too to make sure they will have an opportunity to get on the field. They can both play receiver and can both play defense if we need them to,” Bouwman said.

Lyon, who graduated from Interlake High School in 2013, was a dual threat quarterback during his high school days. He could throw the ball 50-60 yards down the field and could utilize his legs to gain yards on the ground.

“I love to throw the ball and throw the ball deep but I love running too. I like to lead by example. I’m not really a rah-rah type of leader. I just do what needs to be done to get my team going,” Lyon said.

Lyon said the theme of early season practices has been competition.

“Kevin is a great coach. He is really enthusiastic and gets our team going. We have a lot of great coaches on this team,” he said. “It is a blessing for sure. Our goal is to win the championship and go undefeated.”

Shaun Scott: 425-453-5045; sscott@bellevuereporter.com