By Jeremy D. Wells
Carter County Times
Wins are how we usually measure success in sports. It’s a convenient rubric after all, and easy enough to follow and understand. But it’s not the only measure of athleticism or sportsmanship. Recognition by your teammates and coaches is always nice too.
But when it’s recognition from your opponents? That’s extra special. And it’s right where West Carter Middle School lineman Lucas Tackett found himself at the end of this season. Lucas, the son of Justin and Katrina Tackett, was recognized as the Region 3 Seventh Grade player of the year.
“It’s voted on by the other coaches in the state,” explained the elder Tackett, who works with the coaching staff for both the high school and middle school teams. “Not too many linemen get it.”
He explained that every year each team’s coaches send in four names for consideration, and they are voted on in ranked choice by the coaches of other teams in the region.
“We’ve never had one make it,” he said of the recognition, noting that the coaching staff was pleased to have one of their kids recognized this year, especially one who is focused mostly on defense.
“Lineman usually don’t have a lot of stats,” Justin Tackett explained. “Defensive linemen do, and he’s got a total of seven and a half sacks this year, and close to 33 tackles and 13 tackles for loss.”
Offensively though, he noted, the job of the lineman is to protect the runner. They mostly get noticed, he said, when they fail to do so. When they do their job well the recognition is on the quarterback or a running back who carries the ball. But their job is still essential. Having that contribution recognized means a lot to Lucas, who said he’s preferred defense since starting in flag football at age four.
But it was his offensive play that helped get him noticed, Justin noted.
“Their job is to protect somebody. They protect the quarterback. They protect the running back. But he actually got voted on as an offensive player, and the only thing I can think of is we run the ball right behind him.”
With Lucas leading the charge for the runners, he said, the middle school team, “had two players that ended up rushing a combined 2000 yards together. That’s pretty good for middle school.”
He said he believes his son’s attitude and sportsmanship also contributed to the recognition.
“I’ve got several videos where he pancakes a kid, then he helps them back up,” Justin noted. “He’s a very humble kid.”
He noted an opposing coach made a point of approaching him after a recent All-Star game to comment on that sense of no-nonsense humility.
“He said, ‘One thing I loved about that boy is, he got a fumble recovery, and he acted like nothing happened.’ Because linemen never touch the ball. He got the recovery, and he was like, ‘Here you go.’ He’s just very humble, and I’ve tried to teach him that.”
Lucas said he enjoyed testing himself against other players.
“Just the concept of it,” Lucas said, noting that it’s more than just “shoving guys around.”
The younger Tackett, soft spoken throughout the conversation, also wished to express his thanks to his teammates and the West Carter coaching staff for the opportunities to play and for putting his name forward.
“I’d like to say thanks to my coaches, for being behind me,” he said. “And my mom for supporting me and my dad for pushing me.”
Contact the writer at editor@cartercountytimes.com
