Strong work ethic pays off
Oscar Smith standout emphasizes academics first, is rewarded for it
“He’s not the biggest guy, but you don’t have to the be the biggest guy. You just have to be the biggest you. And he understands that. He understands his why.” —Former area football coach Cadillac Harris on Kam Johnson, winner of the REAL Man Program scholarship
CHESAPEAKE — At 5-9 and 205 pounds, Kam Johnson isn’t the biggest athlete at Oscar Smith High School.
But Johnson has been the big man on campus.
On the football field, the team captain led the Tigers with 69 tackles, including 21 for loss, last season as a senior. On the wrestling mat, he finished second in Class 6 Region A at 190 pounds and was a state tournament qualifier.
And in the classroom, he has a 4.22 grade-point average.
In the fall, he will attend Christopher
Newport University to play football.
To help him, Johnson received a $1,000 scholarship as the
2023 recipient of the REAL
Man Program. REAL stands for “Respect all people, Especially for women, Always do the right thing and Live a life that matters.”
Former area football coach Cadillac Harris is part of the REAL Man program, sponsored by the Hope Foundation. He presented Johnson the scholarship on Monday.
Harris said Johnson epitomizes what the scholarship stands for.
“It’s just the way he approaches life and his work ethic,” Harris said. “He’s not the biggest guy, but you don’t have to the be the biggest guy. You just have to be the biggest you. And he understands that. He understands his why. He knows why he is here and what he has to do. That’s what I love about him.”
Johnson said receiving this scholarship shows him that hard work pays off.
“I put a lot of work in, so just getting recognized in my senior year is amazing,” said Johnson, who becomes the second Oscar Smith student athlete to receive the scholarship, joining Kelvon Bethea, who was last year’s recipient. “I’m just trying to live a life that matters. And I’ve been doing that since my freshman year. My