Kevin Sherrington

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When settlers in the Texas Panhandle scared up a flock of wild turkeys on the banks of Turkey Creek, they went with the theme and called the place Turkey Roost, which eventually became just Turkey.

Over the next 100 years, its sole claim to fame was as the home of Bob Wills, King of Western Swing.

But in the fall of 1986, Kirk Saul gave Turkey another reason to crow.

Going into Saul's last year at Turkey Valley High – then a Class A school serving Turkey and nearby Quitaque, with 18 seniors and about 30 football players total – the Patriots changed gears. At 6-0, 175 pounds, Saul was the team's second-biggest player. But the Patriots were quick. So their coach, Steve Adams, decided on something a little radical.

They were going to throw the ball. A lot.

While other opponents passed 10 or 15 times a game, tops, the Patriots averaged 30 attempts.

With Saul working under center out of the I-formation, often throwing after quick three-step drops, the yards and touchdowns and wins piled up. The papers in Amarillo and Lubbock checked around. Late in the season they reported that Saul had broken state passing records.

Courtesy Kirk Saul

Setting a national record with 54 touchdown passes in 1986 earned Kirk Saul recognition in Sports Illustrated's "Faces in the Crowd" feature. They were the last touchdown passes Saul threw, as he gave up college football after a season.

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Next thing you know, he'd set national records.

Against Chillicothe alone, he passed for 590 yards, only four off a national record, and eight touchdowns, tying a state record.

After losing to Baird in the third round of the playoffs, closing out a 12-1 season, Saul had passed for more than 3,500 yards and 54 touchdowns, the latter a national record.

Even rated mention in Sports Illustrated's "Faces in the Crowd."

"Teams didn't see offenses like that much," Saul said, "so it was probably a big advantage."

Recruiting letters came from all over, but Saul stayed close to home, choosing what's now called West Texas A&M. His freshman year, he was fourth-string behind Steve Kragthorpe, now head coach at Louisville, although he led the team in trivia.

"You threw how many touchdowns in high school?"

He never threw any in college. Quit football after his freshman season.

"There's a lot of time involved with football," Saul said, almost apologetically, "and it just wasn't for me."

He earned a degree and coached at several West Texas schools, including his alma mater, before going into administration. Now 40, married with three children, he's an elementary school principal in Canadian, a couple of hours north of his hometown.

Most of his records have been surpassed by kids playing in pass-happy spread offenses where quarterbacks operate out of the shotgun and numbers run wild. But he still ranks in the state's top five in touchdown passes in a season.

Not bad for a guy from Turkey. Or Quitaque, actually. The locals pronounce it KIT-a-kway, which was supposed to translate as "end of the trail" but could mean "whatever one steals" or even "two piles of horse manure." Honest. Dig up Texas treasures and you never know what you'll find.

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