Lackey senior Proctor named to Under Armour All-America game
Lackey senior Proctor named to Under Armour All-America game
Through nine weeks of the high school football season, Lackey holds an 8-1 record and has already clinched a playoff spot in the Class 2A South Region playoffs.
A win over Calvert tonight in their regular season finale will automatically give the Chargers the region’s top seed with home field advantage, so can this week get any more exciting for the program?
It sure did on Tuesday morning when senior Nathan Proctor Jr. was presented his honorary game jersey during the American Fami- ly Insurance Selection Tour for the 2016 Under Armour All-America Football Game at the Lackey High School auditorium in Indian Head.
Proctor will represent the Chargers during the prestigious foot- ball game in Orlando on Jan. 1. His selection for the New Year’s Day classic by ESPN Recruiting means Proctor, a four-star recruit, is con- sidered among the best players at his position in the nation.
The 10th annual game will be a nationally televised competition spotlighting the country’s top high school seniors.
“This is a dream come true,” Proctor said. “It’s big for me. I grew up watching this game and when you’re a kid you really don’t think that you are going to get there. But now everything has come true, and I thank my coaches, family
and the Lord because I could have never achieved this without His love and strength.”
ESPN rates Proctor the No. 6 outside linebacker in the nation and No. 3 player overall in the state.
For Proctor it was a moment that he will never forget as he unveiled his black UA jersey with red and gray accents in front of his teammates, coaches, teachers, fellow students and family members.
Current NFL players Julio Jones (Atlanta Falcons) and
A.J. Green (Cincinnati Bengals) participated in the game during their high school careers, in addition to eight first-round NFL draft picks in 2016.
“My goal has always been to make to the NFL and have a long football career ahead of me,” Proctor said.
While being one of the top recruits in the state and in the nation, the 6-foot-2, 217-pound Proctor grades have skyrock- eted since his freshman year as he maintains a 3.5 GPA.
Proctor, who began playing football in a Charles County youth league program when he was 5, currently has 30 NCAA Division I scholarship offers.
“I wanted to make my par- ents happy, especially my mom more than I cared about foot- ball,” said Proctor, who is un- declared and will not make a decision until National Signing Day on Feb. 1.
Lackey head coach John Lush said that Proctor always had a knack for playing football when he put him on varsity as a freshman, but he had adversity in the classroom.
“He always could play football when he came in as a freshman, he just struggled academ- ically at first,” said Lush, who received the Dream Champion award at the ceremony and will serve an assistant coach in the
game. “Now as a senior he has a 3.5 and is on our leadership counsel and he one of our leaders on the field as well. He is one heck of a kid.”
In late January, Proctor has visits scheduled for Penn State of the Big Ten Conference and Ole Miss of the Southeastern Conference. He also has a visit next month set up for Virginia Tech of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
“This is an awesome experi- ence. You see [the game] on television, but until you actual- ly get up here and experience it you can feel the energy not only from Nate and his family, but the crowd,” Lush said. “It’s
just so overwhelming, I’m not sure if I will be able to replicate that again. This is great for the school and a great community effort, everyone helps out and will be all lined up when we played Calvert.”
Possessing 4.55 speed in the 40-yard dash with a strong and athletic presence, Proctor has been a key asset on a Lackey defense that has yielded double digits just twice this season.
Lush said, “Some of the young kids see Nate and think about that ‘Could be me, ‘and if they strive to be him, they can be pretty successful.”