The best athletes say the darnedest things

One of the highlights of the past year for me has been putting together our Athlete of the Week feature.

Since we relaunched the feature in January 2017, 52 East County athletes have seen their autograph grace our pages. As a sportswriter, it’s my job to take what people tell me and make it interesting, but sometimes there’s no substitute for hearing an athlete speak verbatim. 

Here is a look back at the first year of the relaunch.

Some athletes are hesitant to boast when doing these features. That wasn’t the case for former Braden River boys basketball player Deoni Cason, who claimed in February that he was the best basketball player in Manatee County.

“I feel like no one can stop me,” Cason said with a smile.

It was funny, but it was also honest. Kids are getting coached on interview cliches these days, so when an athlete gives an answer like that, it’s just fun.

Ditto for athletes talking about their unusual hobbies. Last March, The Out-of-Door Academy then-senior baseball player Najee Rhodes told me the reason he enjoyed taking computer science classes so much.

“I like hacking into things,” Rhodes said.

Rhodes’ teammate, Brady Moore, is now at the University of Western Ontario. Moore told me in May that he was headed home to Canada because, simply, it was too hot here.

Moore was so in touch with his identity that he said his favorite food was poutine, a Canadian dish of fried potatoes, gravy and cheese curds. You’ve got to love that information.

Then there’s 12-year-old Palm Aire resident Alana Kutt, who last May said she has a hobby of watching documentaries on Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer. Not many preteens I know do that one.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, some athletes have used the platform to express their opinions on sports topics. In June, Braden River graduate and competitive cheerleader Lauren Kvederis gave her thoughts on why All-Star cheerleading should be considered a sport.

“There’s a difference between high school cheerleading and All-Star cheer,” she said. “I don’t think high school cheerleading is a sport. Cheering on the sidelines, that’s just spirit cheer. It doesn’t require any effort. All-Star cheer, however, going to competitions and having strenuous practices, that to me is as difficult as any sport out there.

“We practiced three days a week, four days a week before a competition, for either three or four hours. I’m a main base, so I hold the foot and lift the person. It requires a lot of strength.”

Sounds like a challenge to me.

As far as trends go, a few are readily apparent. Pizza is the preferred food of these athletes, with pepperoni being a favorite topping. Math is the overwhelming favorite subject, which tracks with the analytical movement taking over the sports world these days.

“The Walking Dead” dominates TV viewing.

I used to ask athletes about the hardest they have laughed, but I stopped when they all answered the same way. They laugh all the time, and it’s impossible to narrow it down to one moment. It’s good to know top athletes are still having fun.

If you take all the advice the athletes have dished out since the relaunch, you’d have a great self-help book for young athletes.

Some common refrains: Trust your talents; don’t dwell on the past, move forward; work harder than your opponents; don’t be a follower; push through adversity; no matter what, don’t give up, ever.

Follow that advice and maybe you, too, will end up an Athlete of the Week.