By Ella Harvey
Not too many sophomores get the opportunity to play quarterback under the Friday night lights, during the biggest rivalry game of the season. Unless maybe you are new-to-Lovett Sam Abney.
Sophomore Sam made his Lion debut as the starting quarterback at the Lovett v. Westminster game, also known as the Battle of Buckhead. Wearing the number 9 on his jersey, he’s already proven himself to be a strong leader on the field and on the sidelines.
I had the chance to talk to Sam one afternoon (navigating around his rigorous football schedule for around four days has made me rethink not buying a proper agenda) about what it was like to be a new student at Lovett and also play in such a big rivalry game.
When I got to the second floor (hoping to be the first there), he was already waiting, looking calm and collected, while I had just been in a scramble, sprinting upstairs, with my Honors Chem homework, and hoping that he didn’t leave or think I forgot.
We sat down in the Skybox, and since we are in the same Honors Chemistry, I thought I’d give him a quick debrief on how our chemistry homework was very challenging.
Coming from Riverwood, about six miles up the road, Sam probably didn’t have much knowledge about the long-standing Battle of Buckhead rivalry and how electric the energy would be at this iconic game. “It was a cool atmosphere,” Sam said. “A bunch of people were there, and just the Westminster stands were pretty much full, and Lovett, the student section, was cool too.”
Sam is one of almost 30 sophomore boys on the Varsity team, and despite the recent loss to Westminster, the sheer talent of such a young team isn’t going unnoticed. “I think we ran the ball really well. Our running backs did super well,” Sam said.
He shouted out backs Walker Aiken and Knox Thomason, who both played great games against the Wildcats. “Westminster’s defense wasn’t ready, and we snapped it super quick, and Walker Aiken had like a 30-yard run,” Sam said, recalling the play before the team scored.
Sam praised the team’s ability to do both passing and running plays throughout the game. “I mean, I definitely ran the ball more,” he said. “I think I ran it 15 times and threw maybe 12 or something, but I mean, it’s a good balance.”
I asked him to say more about how he maintains this play balance. “Yeah, so there are design runs where I know I’m going to be running it, but then also if I’m trying to pass it and then no one’s open, I can also just take off,” he said.
While Sam’s experiences on the varsity football team have helped him find camaraderie on and off the field, he is still a new student adjusting to Lovett. His first overall impressions? “Everyone’s super involved,” he said. “There’s a lot of stuff. I mean, Riverwood was a great school, it’s more, ‘you’re on your own,’ but here there’s a lot of support.”
Academically, Sam takes numerous Honors classes, so I was curious about how he plans to manage school and football (basically adding up to a full-time job). “So far, it hasn’t been too hard. Just get out of practice and do homework, and that’s about it,” he said.
When Sam is not at football practice, playing football, or thinking about football, he likes to “hang out with [his] friends, and to catch up on some school work.” He has high hopes for the future of the Varsity football season and what they can achieve. “I mean, win games, we got a good team. Win playoff games, just, I mean, got to take it one week at a time, can’t look too far,” he said.
He didn’t have to. The next week, Sam helped lead the team to a victory over Crisp County!
