A night for the ages. 103 rushing yards, 71 receiving yards, 4 touchdowns. An extremely impressive stat line at any level of football. But what if I told you Alon Wade only touched the ball five times.
Greenwood went on to defeat the Berea Bulldogs riding the coattails of Wade’s magnificent offensive outing, winning 42-10.
A performance like that from Alon Wade and the Greenwood Eagles has been in the works for years. He suffered multiple hamstring injuries that halted his play as an Eagle on the field. He missed his entire junior season, but him being able to bounce back is something that Greenwood Head Coach, Chris Liner, has loved to see.
“If you asked me three years ago about Alon, I would’ve told you he would be our star by now,” Liner said.
Every single coach on Greenwood’s staff speaks very highly of the character of Wade. He’s a fantastic teammate and leader, he knows he couldn’t have his success without his peers.
“I couldn’t score without my line or my receivers blocking,” said Wade. “Nothing would’ve been possible without my blockers and that’s what I thought about postgame.”
Every role players dream is to have a night like Wade did last Friday. Making the most of the opportunity when the chances arise. Before the game, it was the coaches of the Eagles who lit the spark for Wade to have such a special showing on the field.
“Right before the game, coach told me when can be as good as we can be as long as we put our mind to it,” Wade said. “Coach Dean told me to just be me and be great, shoutout to him for helping install that into my head.”
Playing football is all a mindset for Wade. But nothing comes before his faith.
“Pregame I was just asking God to give me the strength and the knowledge to go up there and play my game,” Wade stated. “My main mindset is just get the ball and score. Along with that mindset and the blocking, I feel like I could achieve that.”
Alon Wade has been the best kept secret in AAAA football this season, but now the cat is out the bag, and the confidence is only rising for Wade and the Eagles.
“Anytime good things happen, especially after being injured, it’s awesome to see the kid compete and help the Greenwood Eagles,” coach Liner said. “He did it on is own. He just ran people over. It was super cool and I’m super happy for him.”
For Wade, his confidence hasn’t wavered at all since the first snap of the season. Once again, putting his faith at the forefront.
“I can do all things through christ who strengthens me,” Wade remarked. “As long as I have my mind in the game, I’ll be able to do anything that comes my way.”
The Greenwood Eagles, now 1-0 in region play, look to build off last weeks offensive onslaught as they take on Easley on the road tonight at 7:30 p.m.
