MICHAEL WADSWORTH- REITZ HIGH SCHOOL

Tell everyone about yourself?
Well my name is Michael Dakota Wadsworth I'm a freshman at Reitz High School I play basketball on the freshman team.

What was your best game?
My biggest game was probably my double double when I had 15 points and 20 rebounds in 4th grade.

Who is the best player you have played against?
The best player I've probably played against was Jordan Summers. I'll probably have to say he is a left and right handed shooter, great scorer, and quick.

How do you make your team better?
I make my team better by telling them what they can do better, I get them open, and practice how I play which helps them.

Who is your favorite player?
My favorite player is probably Rajon Rondo. He has an explosive quick first step, very good at stealing, and he's a great passer.

Why are sports/education important to you?
Sports is important to me because it has always been in my family and education is important to me because that can get me into college and an opportunity to have a good job.

What advice can you give other student-athletes?
My advice to student-athletes is to work hard at something you really want. Don't just screw up your life and not put 100% effort in the things you do.

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COLT THOMPSON- HOUSTON HIGH SCHOOL

Tell everyone about yourself?
My name is Colt Thompson. I am a freshman at Houston High School in the Memphis area. I play football, basketball, and rugby. In football, I play center and some defensive line along with some linebacker. I'm a very good student and am also president of my grade. I always work to get better. Performance is a result of work ethic.

What was your best game?
I would say my best game was my first one against Cordova. I had 3 pancake blocks. It just felt great to get back on the field again after the long offseason. We won by about 21.

Who is the best player you have played against?
Connor Harris and BJ Nagle. I got a chance to play with Connor in 6th grade, but I also had to play against him the next two years. He is a great running back and he is very hard to tackle. I played with BJ in 8th grade. Everyday in practice, I got to play against him on scout team defense. He plays quarterback. It really made be a better player because he is so hard to tackle as he is a dual-threat QB.

How do you make your team better?
I make my team better in many ways. It all starts with me on offense, so I must make sure the ball gets to the quarterback. I am a leader, whether vocally or by example. I'm not afraid to tell someone when they are not acting right.

Who is your favorite player?
Brian Urlacher, he is a great leader on Chicago's defense. He is such a great player and always has a great attitude. He comes to work every day no matter what.

Why are sports/education important to you?
Sports are fun to me. I love all of them, and I am very competitive. I think you must have good grades to play sports. I don't think you deserve the opportunity to play sports if you don't have good grades.

What advice can you give other student-athletes?
Just work hard. On the field, in the classroom, and don't ever give up. If you want it the most, you will get it.

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ANDREW PANTHER- CHESHIRE HIGH SCHOOL

Tell everyone about yourself?
My name is Andrew Panther. I currently run track and field at Cheshire High School in Connecticut and I am a junior. I started to run track my sophomore year. My dad thought I would be good because he noticed my acceleration and top speed from the prior years while I would participate in the Cheshire soccer leagues. Since then, my training and speed workouts have increased drastically while I am trying to obtain an elite status in track and field. My main events are the 200m, 400m outdoors and while running indoors it's the 300m, 400m, and the 600m event.

What was your best meet?
My best meet is yet to come when I compete at the Yale Invitational meet. My best race the past year would be states were I PR’d by running a 23.8 indoors and than came back to run a 39 in the 300m.

Who is the best athlete you have raced against?
The best athlete I have ever raced against is Justin Doehr, from Sheehan High School, who is currently the best 200m, 300m and 400m in the state.

How do you make your team better?
I tend to score points in the middle-distance events, and in track and field every little point matters. Also, I tend to push myself in practice, which tends to help my teammates to excel and gain something from the practices.

Who is your favorite player?
Usain Bolt, he is the fastest sprinter in the world. Every time he runs, it’s a jaw dropping view. Every time he is about to run, everyone spectating, instantly thinks a new world record is about to be broken.

Why are sports/education important to you?
Sports and education are important to me because participation in both gives balance. No one wants to succeed in sports and possibly risk getting injured and not having a back up plan.

What advice can you give other student-athletes?
The main advice I have for other student-athletes is to recognize that sports is a reflection of life. Success comes through hard work and you don’t always succeed the first time. So,” try until you succeed” is something you adapt in order to achieve long-term success. Also, sports lets you lose gracefully without accepting defeat, because every time you don’t succeed it forces you to try harder and to give more of yourself in order to achieve success. This never says die attitude is applicable to the classroom as well. So a true athlete is also a true student who works diligently at each subject as they work on their event or sport.

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AHMAD FULWOOD- BISHOP KENNY COLLEGE PREP

Tell everyone about yourself?
I'm Ahmad Fulwood. I am from Jacksonville, FL. I go to Bishop Kenny College Prep. I'm in the 10th grade c/o 2013. I'm 6'4, 192lbs, and I play Wide Receiver and Free Safety.

What was your best game?
My best game stat wise was against Matanzas when I had 2 touchdowns,8 receptions, and over 140 yards. In my opinion, my best game was against Andrew Jackson who was our division rival for the division championship. With 1:37 left in the game we were down 20-19 and I scored on a 41 yard touchdown pass. It was like winning the Super Bowl and at the time we got a title after 33 years.

What colleges have shown interest in you at this time?
I am getting recruited by Georgia Tech, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, FIU, FAU, South Carolina, and other schools are starting to get into the mix.

Who is the best player you have played against?
The best player I played against had to be Jared Singletary who is going to Arkansas next year. He was fast and could make plays when his team needed them.

How do you make your team better?
I felt I made my team better by bringing a deep threat to our team which teams would have to game plan to cover the whole field. We could free our other receivers who were quick and could get under linebackers really fast. Then later on opening our run game which would go for big yardage when we needed it.

Who is your favorite player?
My favorite player would have to be Andre Johnson because he is so big and strong that he is a problem when he is on the field because he is such a threat no matter where he is on the field.

Why are sports/education important to you?
I love the game of football, the contact, and all of the people you become close with and become a family with. It's like a band of brothers. Education is important to me because without it you can't go anywhere in life simple as that. If football does not work out then I need a plan b and c just to always be on the safe side.

What advice can you give other student-athletes?
I just want to say that doing things that other kids are doing bad will lead you too bad places. Being a student-athlete means that school first then athlete, two things that should always be on your mind. If the things you are doing has nothing good to do with either one of those things, that means it's not the best thing to do.

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TERREON BROWN- CHRISTIAN BROTHERS HIGH SCHOOL

Tell everyone about yourself?
My name is Terreon Brown, I am a Freshman at Christian Brothers High School (Memphis,TN), Class of 2014. The positions I play are FS,WR, and CB. Out of those three I like FS the most.

What was your best game?
It was in 2009 in Middle School when my team went to the State Championship against Paris Inman, which I had 2 touchdowns and 160 yards in that game. But, we failed to hold them at the 20 yard line with 20 seconds to go in the 4th quarter.

Who is the best player you have played against?
The best player I have ever played against was my best friend Marquez Sanders. He is a great competitor on and off the field. We have a fun time fighting for our positions and he really works me until I get it right

How do you make your team better?
The best way to make your team better is to have a positive attitude and pushing your team to your success goals. Work hard, work hard, work hard, and I promise you will get better. Just have FAITH.

Who is your favorite player?
My favorite player I would have to say Josh Bullocks. He represents what a good football player should be and we have the same football number which is 36.

Why are sports/education important to you?
Sports and Education are important to me because without good grades I can't play football and also I can't get into a good college.

What advice can you give other student-athletes?
My only thing I can give to the other young people out there is, follow your dreams and do what's best for you. When I'm on the field all I'm thinking about is tackling the man with the ball. You got to be focus in all the sports you play and the number one rule in sports especially when you are still in school is make good grades. Without good grades you are basically saying I don't want to play sports.

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CONNOR HARRIS- CHRISTIAN BROTHERS HIGH SCHOOL

Tell everyone about yourself?
My name is Connor Harris, I am an Freshman at Christian Brothers High School (Memphis, TN) class of 2014. The positions I play are: Running back, Kick Return, and Corner back. Out of the three, I personally enjoy KR & RB most.

What was your best game?
In my opinion my best game came against Whitehaven High School's 9th grade freshman team. During the game, our first drive, my first carry, I scored from 48 yards. Even though I was pulled from the game before halftime, in the first half I had achieved: 3 touches, 74 total yards and 1 touchdown.

Who is the best player you have played against?
The best player I have ever played against: hmm, that's a good one. I cannot really give a great answer because I'm on the Freshman team, not yet experienced Varsity, but I can say the best TEAM I have ever played against was Memphis University School. They are widely heard of, after defeating South Panola in 2009 21-19.

How do you make your team better?
I try to make my team better by being wherever the coach needs me. I was a team captain and consider myself to be a positive role model for all the athletes surrounding me. Sometimes being strict, or assertive is what it takes to get the job done.

Who is your favorite player?
My Favorite football player is Lamichael James. I say Lamichael, because of the many similarities that we both have in our styles of play. I enjoy seeing him do jump cuts, jukes, spins, and many other types of moves. By watching him, I see that I can also pick up a few moves by observing.

Why are sports/education important to you?
Sports and education are both equally important to me because they go hand-in-hand. Without education, sports is not possible, and in parallel, without sports, you could be missing out on the opportunities of colleges being able to pay for your college career.

What advice can you give other student-athletes?
To other student athletes looking on: What I have done that has made me successful is my WORK ETHIC and my DESIRE TO SUCCEED. Equipped with both, how could you go wrong?

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CHECK OUT THIS OLD VIDEO OF CONNOR IN THE 7TH GRADE!!!!!

RODDERICK BARNEY JR.- RIPPON MIDDLE SCHOOL

Tell everyone about yourself?
My name is Rodderick Dewaine Barney Jr. I'm an 8th grader attending school at Rippon Middle in Woodbridge, VA. I play AAU basketball with Virginia Dynasty. In school I’m an A and B student. When I finish my homework I’m in the gym working out with my VA Dynasty team at Freedom High School. Before basketball God, Family, and school come first.

What was your best game?
My best game was when I was playing with the older Virginia Dynasty team. I had 20 points, 1 rebound, and 3 assists. As I was playing I felt unstoppable. Every time I received the ball I had that mentality that nobody can stop me. When I got in the zone it was a wrap.

Who is the best player you have played against?
The best player I played against was my friend Malik in an AAU game on December 5 on a Sunday. As we were on the court you would never think that we were friends. I say that because Malik and I were just playing so aggressive. Malik and I were crossing each other up, hitting jumps shots in each other’s face, talking smack, and more. We both ended up having about 14 or 15 points. I love playing against aggressive players because it makes me a better ball player.

How do you make your team better?
I make my team better by giving them a prep talk. If I see something is not right or we aren’t playing to our potential, I tell them that we need to get it together if we want to win this ball game. Also if I see that someone made a mistake or missed a shot I tell them it’s ok and to keep their head up. It’s my job as a point guard to lead the team, control the tempo, and make my teammates better.

Who is your favorite player? 
My favorite player is John Wall from the Washington Wizards. I admire John Wall because he has the full package a point guard can have. What I like about John Wall is that he has the ability to get to the free throw line, he has a mix of scoring and passing, he has a good pick and roll play, and an ability to create his own shot. I’m not saying that’s all he can do but John Wall is something special.

Why are sports/education important to you?
Sports/education is important to me because without an education you cannot get into college. That’s why it’s very important that you get your school work done because if you can’t get your school work done in the classroom you won’t be able to play the sport you love. School comes first before sports remember that.

What advice can you give other student-athletes?
Stay in school and get good grades. Remember without those grades you won’t be able to play the game you love. NO GRADES NO PLAY.

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