My academic inspiration: To be different and make something of myself after high school so that I can mentally build into being able to provide for a family, have a good job and a stable income. 

I balance school and football by: Paying attention to the amount of work I have while also establishing a connection with my teachers and having help from my parents and coaches. I’ve built relationships with my teachers by showing them that student comes before athlete. They realize this so they’re great about supporting me whether it involves coming in before school to get work done or staying after for extra tutoring. 

Football has influenced my personal growth by: Showing me that everything I’ve learned on the field correlates into the real world, such as leadership and teamwork, which you need to have for the future and in a career. It lets me know my abilities to endure pain and hardship, while still being able to keep going and pick up my teammates as well.  

My career path for the future: Is to get my master’s degree in civil engineering. I’m looking to attend Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They’ve given me an offer to continue playing football there and they are one of the top schools in engineering. They have a 14% acceptance rate so them reaching out to me has really meant a lot.  

My role models are: My mom, dad and sisters. They are all intelligent and athletic. My dad and both my sisters went to South Sumter High School. That tradition really helps drive me to make a name for myself at the school like they have, as well. 

My advice to fellow student athletes is to: Trust the process and really focus on the student part instead of the athlete part and everything will come together. It’s like a domino effect. Once you put the student aspect in front of it, then you’ll really start to become more involved. In turn, people will see that and recognize you as a smart person. 

My chosen superpower would be: To fly around and visit family across the pond that I’ve never met. I would want to see family that I have in Germany where my dad was born. 

If I had a time machine: I would go back and watch all the greats playing in the NFL like Barry Sanders and Herschel Walker, people that were really shaping the game at that time.