Mustangs honor one of their own

 LAKEWOOD RANCH — Over the past five months, Anthony Littlejohn watched his son, Adrian, touch the lives of hundreds of Lakewood Ranch High students and athletes.

But it wasn’t until the Lakewood Ranch defensive coach prepared to walk onto the field for the Mustangs Spring Game May 27, that he realized the magnitude of his son’s impact.

After 14-month-old Adrian lost his five-month battle with cancer May 1, the Lakewood Ranch athletic program decided to honor the young Mustang. With the support of North Port High, a school that suffered its own tragedy this past March when quarterback Marcus Freeman was killed in car accident, Lakewood sponsored the first Adrian Shawn Littlejohn Memorial Spring Football Game.

“It means a lot that people care (about you) and understand that people have problems,” Anthony Littlejohn said. “Something like this is important. I had no idea they were going to do this, but they got to understand my situation.

“I’m just a small piece of a lot of situations that are happening, especially with kids that are going through things and need help,” Littlejohn said. “All it has to do is start small and then eventually it will grow.”

Proceeds from the game, which cost $6 to attend, were donated to the Littlejohn family; and in the coming years all of the proceeds will be donated to the Payton Wright Foundation to help families that are fighting pediatric cancer.

“Just to get people to come and people to understand that there’s something they want to support — it’s a big thing,” Littlejohn said. “Paying six bucks for something that’s going to the right place really isn’t that bad. I commend all of these people. God bless them all.”

In a game typically designed to give players and coaches a chance to prepare for the upcoming season, this year’s spring game had an entirely different meaning.

With their defensive coach leading them on, the Mustangs took the field in front of more than 1,000 fans with one common goal — to bring home a victory for their little Mustang while also raising awareness for pediatric cancer.

In the end, the Mustangs were unable to walk away victorious, posting a 21-7 loss to the Bobcats.

North Port took a 7-0 lead to close out the first quarter on a 5-yard touchdown run by Denzel Daniel.
Lakewood responded with 6:21 remaining in the first half when junior quarterback Jeren Kowalewski connected with sophomore tight end Jack Cournoyer for an 8-yard touchdown — the Mustangs lone score of the night.

The Bobcats regained the lead with 59 seconds remaining in the half on a 4-yard run by Brendan Deshields. North Port extended its lead late in the third quarter on a 2-yard run by Alex Priddee.

Lakewood rotated four quarterbacks throughout the game, including Kowalewski, Zach Larson, Zach Reda and Wyatt McLeaod. The vast majority of the Mustangs younger players also saw substantial playing time throughout the game, including most of the second half.

And even though Lakewood didn’t win on the football field, Littlejohn was confident his son was smiling down on the Mustangs and the entire Lakewood Ranch community for their support and dedication to pediatric cancer.

“He would smile. Job well done. More work has to be done, but it’ll get there,” Littlejohn said. “He’s up there smiling right now. He’s probably up there playing and having fun. But he knows his life meant something and people will (learn) and grow from this.”

Contact Jen Blanco at [email protected].