By, Matt Alkire
Many communities around the
country greet the arrival of high school football season with a certain level
of excitement and expectations that would be deemed typical. Parents and fans
filter into the stands each weekend hoping for their team to garner a
respectable record, win most of their games and in some cases – approach
greater accomplishments like state playoffs. Then you have the elite, the uber
programs. Programs like The Brook Hill School where winning playoff games is
expected and everyone simply wakes up for the state championship game. These
places are the ultimate pressure cookers, the true Mecca of high school
football. Quarterback Will Weathers transferred into this atmosphere going into
his junior season, one he’ll never forget.
Call it fate, baptism by fire
or simply the weight of an entire town on a young man’s shoulders but Weathers
quickly found himself the starting quarterback for Head Coach Terry Pirtle in
2011. No added pressure for the 6-foot-1, 210-pounder by the way, but his
school had just been to the state championship two years before and made
appearances there as regularly as I skip the salad bar at an all you can eat
buffet.
Weathers however did not bow
to the pressure.
“Our school had been to the
state championship two years before I transferred there, but they just never
won the whole thing,” Weathers stated. “We had just always been a program that
was consistently outstanding and was used to being in that spot. Brook Hill is
a small school so I got to know everyone and built bonds really quickly. I then
found out that I was going to be the starting quarterback over our coach’s son
Travis Pirtle who was going to play the slot instead. All of the sudden Travis
started helping me get up to speed with the offense which I thought was just
really cool of him to do and the seniors really took me in and helped me too.
Still, there was a ton of pressure and expectation to get the job done.”
That season was a bit of a
blur for Weathers. He threw for 1255 yards and 17 touchdowns without any
interceptions while also picking up 1,000 yards with his feet along the way.
The dual-threat prospect did what he was supposed to do, lead Brook Hill to a
state championship bid. Austin Regents remained the monolith in their way to
the record books.
“Throughout the playoffs we
knew that Regents was the team we were going to meet in the championship, so we
had been preparing for them each week along with the team we were playing at
that time,” Weathers said. “Our entire team was very focused and ready for
Regents ahead of time as we had been putting in different packages specifically
focused for that game ahead of time to be completely prepared.”
Still, no amount of
preparation takes away the nerves of that experience. Anyone who has ever been
on that stage does know however, there can be defining moments in contest that
turn the tide and almost give a player that centering kick to the head they
need. It settles you down. Everything slows and becomes reality. Will Weathers
remembers one of his moments very well.
“Obviously you’re nervous
about a state championship game, but we were also ready to just go out there
and put all of that hard work on the field,” Weathers explained. “We had a
great running back and our slot receiver/corner (Travis Pirtle who had played
outstanding all season) couldn’t play, so we had a freshman out there.
Obviously, having a freshman starting in the championship game made it uneasy.”
“Our game plan was really to
run to the weak side of the field and really let our horse carry the ball as my
running back was terrific. I just remember a huge 3rd down play we
had, it was 3rd and 13. They had this big ole’ nose guard that was
immovable all day and our center isn’t the biggest guy, but we called a
quarterback draw and he side-stepped him and made a nice lane for me. I ran
right off his block and got a first down that set us up for a touchdown. That
score really swung the momentum for us in a big way. Then two of the other
plays had nothing to do with me, but it was great as the freshman that had to
step in for Travis at corner picked off their quarterback twice in the red
zone. We just made big plays when it mattered.”
The result – Brook Hill
School – State Champions…
The 2012 season was a year of
adversity and tribulation after losing 18 starters from their championship
squad. Brook Hill School finished up 6-4, but Weathers says that he learned
just as much from this year as he did the success of 2011.
“I just tried to encourage
our young guys because we had a ton of sophomores starting for the team,”
Weathers offered. “The path I took was to really lead them by example. Last
year the team was really counting on me to make big plays and this year I had
to really guide and teach the younger players even during games in a lot of
situations. A lot of people might get frustrated with that, but you’re going to
have adversity in football just like you do in life. The point is to adapt and
do what you have to do to win, so I accepted my role. It’s always fun to play
football, but to have them working so hard because they saw me working that way
was definitely inspiring and showed me something new in myself I didn’t know I
had before because I was used to playing with older players.”
Speaking of encouraging
signs, Weathers is seeing some in recruiting right now. Schools like Abilene
Christian, Air Force, Texas A&M-Kingsville, Midwestern State and Harding
are hot on his trail.
Looking at his film, there is
a lot to like about the signal caller and also some things he’ll need to work
on at the next level. He was a tough one to evaluate as often times you could
see that he did deal with dropped passes on a regular basis.
Weathers best two qualities
in terms of what he does on the field come down to athleticism and accuracy. In
today’s college football environment where the spread offense has become so
popular, his ability to get rid of the ball quickly and accurately and also
make teams pay with his feet is very attractive.
He does not display a cannon
for an arm, but frankly that looks to have more to do with a lack of proper
mechanics than strength. Case in point, when he’s throwing on the run and does
have to put his lower body into a throw – he fires the ball. Standing in the
pocket he is often straight-legged and upright. That can be coached out very
quickly. Having a feel for where the ball needs to be placed so that his
receivers can turn up field and gain yards after the catch cannot be taught
quickly however.
As a runner, he is not just a
“scrambling quarterback”, but actually exhibits very good vision and instincts
in the hole and open field. You see a bit of tailback in Weathers. Also, the
young man is very tough with the ball in his hands. Most quarterbacks will
slide or run out of bounds however Weathers regularly uses a stiff arm or drops
his shoulders.
While his first choice at the
next level and coach’s first choice will most certainly be at quarterback, my
opinion is that he brings added value as a scholarship player in one big way.
He could eventually be a quarterback, running back, receiver or safety for a
program as a scholar-athlete. Not many players bring that athletic combination
to the field.
As for Weather’s thoughts,
he’s open to that change if it needs to happen as well.
“I prefer to play
quarterback, but if I had to move somewhere else on the field to help my team
I’d do that. I think I’m best with the ball in my hands and have played running
back before and done it well, so I could play there at the next level. Tight
end is another place I’d feel comfortable.”
A student who is brilliant at
mathematics, Weathers says a future in Engineering could be in the cards in
college. He scored a 1700 on his SAT and has a 3.4 GPA. We asked him what he’s
looking for in a college or university.
“I’m not necessarily looking
for a huge university because I don’t want to be another face in the crowd,”
Weathers explained. “I am looking for a school where football is very important
to the town and student body and gets a ton of support. Also, I want to go
somewhere that is very well respected academically. As far as a coaching staff,
I look for people who want to make me better not only as an athlete, but as a
student and a man as well. I love competitive coaches and look for someone I
can respect.”
At the end of my conversation
with Weathers, I jokingly asked him if there was anything else people needed to
know about him. His hobbies, whether or not he liked to take long walks on the
beach – the usual puff piece material which I wouldn’t write even if he did
give me. As it turned out he finished my job for me with quote of seven simple,
but serious words.
“You don’t want to play
against me.”
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