What was the difference for Seaman football over Topeka West? Start with powerful run game.

On the opening day for high school football in Kansas, two new members of the United Kansas Conference met at Hummer Sports Park with Seaman (1-0) routing Topeka West (0-1), 58-14.

There were questions to be answered for both teams. While week one was just the starting block to begin to find the answers, here's what stood out.

Seaman's run game dominated in the first half

Last year, first-year head coach Jared Swafford brought a spread offense to Seaman and saw great success with it as the team averaged 33.4 points per game, scoring 47 touchdowns and averaging 328.9 yards per game.

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But the best results usually come with complementary football, whether it's the offense and defense working in tandem or getting even more specific on those sides of the ball.

Last year, Seaman passed for 221.9 yards per game and ran for 107 yards per game.

Part of that was by design and part of it was due to injuries, losing the top two running backs on the depth chart to season-ending injuries early in the season, but either way, Seaman knew they had to be better at running the ball this year.

On Thursday night, Seaman won the game in the first half, up 40-6 at halftime with all five first-half touchdowns coming on the ground.

29 first-half plays for Seaman came on the ground. Senior Jaxon Thomas, (8 rushes, 89 yards, 1 touchdown), senior Bryson Vawter (12 rushes, 77 yards, 2 touchdowns), junior Jack Bloom (4 rushes, 68 yards) and sophomore quarterback Max Huston (5 rushes, 40 yards, 2 touchdowns) had those 29 rushes and that did it for them for the most part as reserves saw the majority of the second half.

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Thomas, Vawter and Bloom, all linebackers on defense, will all rotate at running back to stay fresh and give opposing defenses different styles of running.

At 6-2, 225 pounds, Thomas, the former lineman that converted to running back and linebacker this year, had defenders bouncing off of him against Topeka West.

"Jaxon will tell you, that's probably the most exciting move in the history of football, going from a lineman to a running back," said Swafford. "He obviously has the athleticism and runs incredibly hard."

Thomas said he was excited when the coaches approached him about the move this offseason and knows now that as a senior with experience he could play wherever.

Still, having the rock after blocking for the runner for so long was a different experience.

"I know what the offensive line is doing because I've been there," said Thomas. "I almost shed a tear (when I got to carry the ball). It felt so great running through and it was so nice to get my chance to do something more athletic than just using my strength and not necessarily my speed."

Another major part of that run game's success goes to the offensive line, big running lanes and pancake blocks were not in short supply last night, with seniors Sean Miller and Logan Cox and sophomore Kaden Jordan returning and are joined this season by sophomore Lorenzo Wadkins and junior Aidan Miller.

"We had more knockdowns than we had all camp," said Seaman coach Jared Swafford. "We're excited to watch our big guys play with some aggressiveness."

"Those are the things we were hoping to see," said Swafford on the run game's success in the first half. "We challenged our guys after the jamboree, we knew (the run game) needed to be a focus with a young quarterback. You've got to be able to establish the run. We felt good with our three running backs."

Swafford knows it's only week one and said he wants to continue to see the continuity and consistency continue.

Max Huston's elusiveness stands out at quarterback for Seaman

Seaman didn't abandon the run last year, but with a prolific quarterback like Camden Barta along with three great receivers, it was difficult not to play to their strengths.

This year, Huston won the starting quarterback battle, beating out fellow sophomores Briar Finley and Dane Baxter, but Swafford noted he expected it to be a battle all year.

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Not much was required from him out of the air last night, going 3-5 for 73 yards and an interception, but what stood out to me was his ability to create with his feet as he added five rushes for 40 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Camden Barta was a big, physical kid that played safety on defense and wasn't afraid to lower the shoulder.

Huston displayed speed and elusiveness last night, including an ankle-breaking cutback on a two-point conversion, in the first half which had me intrigued about his potential once he's able to showcase his throwing ability more.

"He has the ability, when the pocket breaks down, to make something happen," said Swafford. "That's an added element to the game. He's shifty, I know he has some experience at running back, and you saw some of that tonight."

Other game notes

• Head coach Russell Norton knows there's a lot of work to do but liked the effort he saw in his first game at the helm for Topeka West. Penalties, poor snaps and poor protection were three things were issues throughout the night for Topeka West.

"There are no moral victories in this game, but the scoreboard wasn't indicative of how the game played," said Norton. "There were some ebbs and flows, Seaman was obviously the better team tonight. We've got a lot of work (to do here) at Topeka West but we have a lot to work with. It's very encouraging."

• Malachi Berg put in a warriors effort last night, creating opportunities on the run and playing late into the second half. The weapons and potential are there for the offense, now just need to see it come together in all phases.

• Xavier Alexander was a steady presence for Topeka West's offense, the running back's elusiveness for his size is impressive and he had two punts inside the five-yard line to boot.

• Callan Barta is making the transition to safety on defense and wide receiver on offense. Although just two catches last night on a night where Seaman didn't need to pass it, Barta flashed his potential by getting wide open down the seam for two deep passes to set up scores. Interested to see his offensive impact this year.

• Seaman's Cameron Selbach and Topeka West's Kyrece Robinson had an interception each.

• Seaman's Aaron Merritt had an 85-yard kick return for a touchdown in the second half. Adonis VanLeeuwen had a long kick return for a touchdown in the first half, but it was called back on a penalty.

Tips or story ideas? Email Seth Kinker at skinker@gannett.com or DM him on Twitter @SethKinker.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Seaman football runs over Topeka West in season opener