Anthony Wright: Athlete Interview Series

A Conversation with Anthony Wright 

    “I’m actually headed to Vanceboro now.” It was fitting for those words to be some of the first Mr. Anthony Wright contributed to this conversation about his life and career as a football player. From his car, and for a portion of his trip that covered around two hundred miles across the state, the setup seemed like an ideal way for him to pass the time of a lengthy drive. It is one Anthony takes around three or four times a year, though with his youngest child headed off to college soon, he plans on a higher frequency of visits back home.

    Anthony Wright is no stranger to trips of long distance. His career as an NFL quarterback led him to many states across the country over the course of a then sixteen game regular season. Having spent time on the rosters of five NFL teams, his path has crossed a wide variety of both places and people, all of whom have helped shape him as an athlete and human being. While much could be gleaned from those influences, the foundation for his principles began in Vanceboro, North Carolina. It was a place he returned, three months removed from becoming a Super Bowl champion, in May of 2008 for the annual Strawberry Festival parade, with his own float. Eight years later, in celebration of the NFL’s 50th Super Bowl, he presented his alma mater, West Craven High School, with the “golden football” that every Super Bowl participant could gift their respective high schools.

    Dedicating the past decade-plus to raising his kids, there is an unquestionable amount of insight Anthony Wright has had to offer them. It goes beyond how to throw a football or read a defense as the leader of a football offense. His life once centered around fulfilling any possible role on a football roster. Whether he was a team’s young star player or veteran backup, Anthony maintained the principles that were fostered on a much smaller stage and town. It is quite clear how they equipped him to meet the moment of those on the biggest ones possible, in the biggest cities, and under the brightest lights. To hear his story, and now share it with you, was an amazing experience I am happy you are part of. 

MB: Where were you born and raised and what did your folks do for a living? 

AW: I was born and raised in New Bern, raised in Vanceboro. My dad worked at Dupont and my mom worked at Moen. 

MB: In your early life, what role did sports have and when do you first remember suiting up in football pads?

AW: Well, I started playing Pop Warner for the [Vanceboro] Bandits. That was my first time I really started to play sports. I think my parents really just wanted to get me out of the house because I had a lot of energy. I was one of those kids who couldn't sit still in school so they were just trying to find an outlet for me. They ended up taking me out to the elementary school field so I could start playing for the Bandits. My first time playing football was with the Bandits.

MB: In that time period there were unfortunately not a lot of examples of diversity at the quarterback position. What was it that led you to gravitate towards playing that position? 

AW: It’s a funny story, you know, I was going into my sixth grade year. I was going to play quarterback. The sixth grade coach at the time, Mr. Morris, he had seen me out there playing around with the kids when I was playing for the eight, nine, ten-year-olds and he saw that I had a good arm. So, he was the first one that recognized I had a talented arm and he was going to play me in sixth grade. When I was in the sixth grade they ended up cancelling Pop Warner football in our area. So, I wasn’t able to play, but he was the first one to recognize the talent. When I got to middle school, in seventh grade, the way that it happened was, we were sitting on the bleachers one day and the coach needed a quarterback to run the scout team and we were sitting there, the seventh graders, while most of the eighth graders were playing, and my cousin, Bobby Cox, was like, ‘Ant can do it! Ant can do it!’ And so I kind of looked at him and the coach looked at me and said, ‘Alright. Come on, let’s go.’ So, my first encounter with playing that position was running scout team in middle school for the eighth graders. That’s how I started playing quarterback.

MB: Entering high school, what were your athletic expectations? You mentioned being scout team for some of those older kids, from a physical standpoint, were you more naturally developed and advanced than others around your age or older than you?

AW: I think I just had a very strong arm for my age and I had a belief in myself, as well. Once I started playing I was just being athletic and running around. I didn’t really know that I was that good, personally. I think others saw it in me. Once I started doing it in middle school I just kind of rolled over into eighth grade and kept going from there. By the time I got to high school- my parents didn’t really play sports, so I didn’t really have anyone to show me the ropes or teach me anything when it came to playing the position. I was just kind of learning as I went.

MB: In terms of your playing style as quarterback, how would you describe that, going into your first years of high school at West Craven?

AW: Well, I was kind of mimicking the people that I saw. At the time, Jeff Blake was at ECU, so I was kind of emulating Jeff, watching him. They were winning and I just started emulating some of the stuff that he was doing. If he was patting the ball, I was patting the ball. So, I was kind of learning as I went, by watching other people.

MB: The offense there at West Craven, was it adjusted to showcase that arm talent of yours or was it more of a run-heavy style as it was in the Lee Becton era, just before yours began?

AW: We just kind of did whatever we had. We were running the option at the time. So, I was kind of running some option and then Coach Jordan was letting me throw the ball a little bit. If I had receivers we were throwing the ball to those guys, if they had advantages. For the most part, we were running the option.  

MB: You had a good one to pitch the ball to in Raymond Mabry and I think you had a good outside receiver with your cousin Bobby Cox, so that was a good tandem, I’m sure.

AW: Yeah, it was. Actually, it turned out to be a great tandem. I didn’t really realize it because my cousin, Bobby, was playing defensive end, so I didn’t realize that he was my number one guy until about a quarter into the season. Then I realized like, hey man, Bobby is the one who’s going to catch the ball for me! He’s the one who’s going to go deep for me! So, once we got on the same page with that, we just kind of took off.

MB: You mentioned Coach Jordan and he actually, in my interview with him, talked about that energy you spoke of about yourself. Describe your connection with Coach Jordan from those beginning years to the last days of your high school time at West Craven.

AW: Well, Coach Jordan is the one who really gave me the opportunity to make it as far as I did. He saw the talent in me, he helped groom me. He was teaching me things that he knew, as far as throwing mechanics and how to be a quarterback. So, without Coach Jordan, I would have never had an opportunity to go D1 or go pro.

MB: Being a quarterback, naturally a leadership position, did you have more of a vocal leadership style or was it more by example in those high school days? 

AW: I think it was a little bit of both, but I really believe more of being the example than talking. I would become vocal if I needed to be vocal. I was one of those guys that was a big Michael Jordan fan. I guess I emulated people that I saw, so I emulated him. If I needed to get on the guys, I would get on the guys. If I needed to be the ra-ra guy, I would be the ra-ra guy, but for the most part I wanted to be the guy that, once my teammates saw me out there working hard and giving one hundred percent, that they would then follow that lead. So, I was more of an example guy that could be vocal, if needed.

MB: How early into those high school years did you begin to receive some college interest?

AW: Man, to be honest with you, I wasn’t even paying attention to it. I didn’t even know. I think letters were coming to the school and there was interest, but I don’t think I was really getting them. So, I didn’t even really know, to be honest with you. I didn’t know I was as good as I was until I was going into my senior year. They were having- they used to have a party for all the graduates at the mall. So, all the Craven County graduates, they would have a big party at the mall and we all used to go to it. I was going into my senior year at that party and some guy walked up to me with a magazine. In the magazine, it had me ranked as the number three quarterback in the nation. I was behind Peyton Manning and Josh Booty. When he brought that magazine up to me and showed me that I was ranked nationally, that was really the first time I realized I had potential in this sport.

MB: You think nowadays, kids can’t really avoid it because it’s all right there in their face. I’m sure that had some benefits for you to just stay in your lane and focus on your business.

AW: Yeah. When I was playing football I was having fun. I was just having fun. I didn’t have any pressure on me. I just wanted to be good in Craven County, or my region. I never knew that I was going to be ranked nationally.

MB: Once you finally did begin to interact with some of those schools, talk about some of those interactions you had with them and their coaches.

AW: Well, I was recruited heavily by a lot of ACC schools. So, the ACC was kind of what I knew about. Then when South Carolina came into the mix, they ended up taking me on a visit to a game. They were playing Clemson and when I went to that game I was able to see how the SEC was and see how their stadium was. At the time, a lot of the ACC schools were holding around forty thousand people. When I went to South Carolina, they were holding eighty, ninety. When I stepped into that stadium and I was able to see the people and feel the energy, saw how they gravitated toward the sport, that blew me away. It really blew me away. I was like wow, this is college football right here. That kind of sold me on wanting to play in front of that type of crowd on that stage, along with the fact that [head coach] Brad Scott was there. I was a big Charlie Ward fan, and Brad Scott was the offensive coordinator at Florida State when they won the national championship. So, I really wanted to run the offense that Charlie was running and I was able to. That was another key contributing factor to me coming to South Carolina, because I really wanted to run that offense and be in that style. 

MB: Going to that big stage, from a small town in Eastern North Carolina to Columbia, South Carolina, what was that atmospheric adjustment like?

AW: You know, it was my first time really being outside of Vanceboro. So, in the beginning, it was tough because I was kind of homesick. Once I got acclimated to being in college- it’s a big city, but not too big. It’s more of a college town type of feel. So, it was easy for me to maneuver around it, once I got acclimated and adjusted. I didn’t have a problem at all.  

MB: In terms of that routine of being a college student-athlete, especially there at an SEC football program, how was that?

AW: Once I got accustomed to it, I was there for a year or two. It just became a regular routine. Most of the time when you’re in college and playing sports, most of your time is going to be occupied. So, I had to get acclimated to playing college sports, from a standpoint of the time consumption. It was football, football, football. I used to think that once football was over it’s basketball season and we’re going to take a break and we’ll be back when it’s time to start football again. I didn’t realize that football was year round. I think that was kind of surprising in the beginning. Like I said, once I got through that first year and understood the ropes, it was no big thing.

MB: Getting through that first year, what were some of the things you learned from being second on the depth chart, just kind of getting to soak it all in each week, that you took into year two?

AW: Well, I learned a lot about the game that I didn’t know. I learned a lot about the business of the game and so I think that was probably the biggest adjustment for me. Learning the game itself and then the business of it. I knew I had to be ready when my opportunity came. I felt like, thank God for Coach Scott bringing in Coach Reeves, John Reeves, because he came in after that first season. Rickey Bustle was our offensive coordinator when I first got there and then he left and went back to Virginia Tech. In came John Reeves. When John Reeves came in, he actually taught me the game. He taught me defenses, coverages, how to read my routes, how to understand the plays, and how to study. Once I learned the game, that’s when my talent really took over. 

MB: What was it that you did to earn the trust of your teammates and coaches, aside from your playing ability, to get that starting job as a Sophomore?

AW: Outside of my performance, I understood what I was doing. You know, I had the study habits that were needed, I had the leadership that was needed. When I got on the field, I made plays. I made things happen. I threw the ball accurately. I think when you’re able to do that, you’re able to build the confidence and trust in the coaches and they’ll want to have you out on the field. 

MB: Talking about walking out onto the field, take me into your psyche going out there in an SEC stadium on a fall Saturday, fans are going crazy, stepping under center or in shotgun. Literally every eye is on you at that point and the game is in your hands. Did you ever get used to that over those three years as a starter?

AW: Yeah, you get used to it. I think you just have to block it out. You can’t let it overwhelm you. You just have to go in confident. This is what you do. Block out all the noise. Block out the crowd. It’s just eleven on eleven and may the best eleven win. So, I think that’s the attitude you have to take. You can’t think about how big it is, because if you think about that then you’ll  lose yourself in the game. You just want to stay focused on the things that you’ve been working on all week or all summer and go out there and just play the game.

MB: Once your time there at South Carolina came to a close, wins and losses, everything in between, after that period and going into the draft process, what was your approach to making an NFL team? Not many guys can say they could even try to make an NFL team.

AW: So, going into the draft it was kind of shaky because I had a terrible senior year. They ended up getting rid of Coach Reeves and they brought in another guy who came in and we had a terrible, terrible season. Going into the draft was kind of shaky because I didn’t know where I was going to go. I didn’t know what was going to happen. I was just kind of waiting it out and then when the draft happened, I ended up becoming a free agent. Pittsburgh brought me in as a free agent. So, I had a chip on my shoulder because I really felt like I was better than a lot of guys that got drafted. What happened was, when I went to Pittsburgh, my first time there being around the veterans, I was able to see the other quarterbacks throw the ball and do the things that they were doing, in my mind I knew that I would play in the NFL for a very long time. I didn’t think the guys they had, Pittsburgh had at the time, were better than I was. They weren’t throwing the ball better than I was and I was picking up the offense. The offense wasn’t as difficult as you would think it would be. So, it gave me confidence when I was able to see what they had.

MB: Making that transition from their organization to the Dallas Cowboys, the quarterback in your first year there, you’ve got legends Troy Aikman and Randall Cunningham, who were veterans at that point. Describe that connection with them and the things you learned in those quarterback meetings.

AW: When I went to the Cowboys it was a little different. It was kind of surreal. I was watching Troy, I was there with Randall, guys I had seen on television and now I’m out there competing with them, playing with them. Initially, it was surreal, but I think as a competitor, once you get going and you’re doing your thing, all you can really control is yourself. I was just making sure that when I got my turn, I was going to do what I needed to do to show that I belonged. Playing with those guys and being behind Randall, having Randall tell me certain things and having Troy tell me certain things, it was crazy. It was crazy at the time, but as you continue to compete and play, you would just get back into the realm of ‘this is just football and when it’s my turn, I’m going to do my thing.’

MB: It eventually did become your turn. Whether it was from injury or any other scenario, you were able to step in and make some plays. In terms of the atmosphere and mood of the team, they had their dominant ‘90s era and when you arrived they were on the back end of that. What was that like with the team and organization? 

AW: At that particular time they were in transition. Coach [Dave] Campo was the head coach and that’s when Jerry [Jones] was having the issues with head coaches and guys coming in and out. Coach Campo was the head coach, transitional situation, and so I was kind of filling in, getting in where I could get in, you know? Being undrafted and coming in the way that I did, again that goes back to the business part of it. I had to get in where I fit in and I felt like I was able to do enough to keep me around.

MB: In terms of veteran influences and people around you at that point, someone like hall of famer Emmitt Smith, later in his career, were you able to connect with him and a guy like Troy Aikman, with the gap in age and experience?

AW: Yes I was, actually. You know, when you’re playing with those guys you become teammates. So, you know, we all connected. We’d laugh, joke, play dominos together. I sat in meetings with Troy all the time. Troy wasn’t really a guy who did a lot outside of being a teammate. He wasn’t a guy who was going to sit down and play cards with you. (laughs) I did a lot of that with Emmitt.  So you learn the personalities of the people and you adjust to it. I felt like my time with those guys was good and if I saw them today we would have good conversations and reminisce on some of the times that we had together. They were veteran guys, they were older, I was young and they were kind of trying to show me the ropes the best way they could. 

MB: You did get called to step in and play there at a pretty young age with the Cowboys. How was the support around you when you got called in. Obviously, you had to earn the team’s trust to even be in that position. Whether it was with them or in Baltimore, which we’ll soon get to, but regardless of where you were, how’d you go about earning that trust? 

AW: I think you earn the support by the way that you practice on the field. What you do during the week, especially as a scout team quarterback, you are going against their number one defense. So, the things that I was able to do against the defenses in practice, I think they had my respect and I had their respect. They were able to present that to the front office to let them know. That’s how I ended up starting in Baltimore. The defensive guys, Ray [Lewis], Ed [Reed], those guys went to the front office and said, ‘Hey, we want Anthony to start’ and that’s how I started playing. I started playing because of the defensive guys going up to the front office and to the head coach, vouching for me to play. 

MB: What were some of the other circumstances, aside from those influential voices vouching for you, that led you to those opportunities to play?

AW: Talking about the business side of it, right? They had just drafted Kyler Boller in the first round and so he was going to be their guy at quarterback going forward, but he ended up getting hurt. So, once he got hurt, it was between me and Chris Redman. They had just drafted Chris Redman in the third round, maybe three or four years earlier. Instead of them going with Chris Redman, who they had just drafted then, they ended up going with me. I was able to go in and perform, putting myself in a position to be in Baltimore for a long time. It was an injury that allowed me an opportunity to start, but once I got in I handled my business and was able to perform. That allowed me to be in Baltimore for quite some time.

MB: I can’t leave the Baltimore chapter of your career without mentioning that historic comeback game against the Seahawks in 2003. You talk about handling your business, which you did here in amazing fashion. Describe the whirlwind experience of coming back from such a large deficit and the notoriety that followed afterwards.  

AW: Man, it was a whirlwind, like you said. It was one of those situations where we got down early and we went into halftime and I just remember talking to the coaches, Coach [Brian] Billick. I just remember telling Coach Billick ‘just give me the game.’ We had nothing to lose. Baltimore was known as a running team, so we were trying to hand the ball off to Jamal [Lewis] all the time and play great defense, but in this particular game it wasn’t working. They had our defense’s number and offensively, we just kept trying to hand the ball off. So, I told him at half time, ‘Coach, just trust me. Give me the game. I got it.’ He was like ‘okay’ and so when we came out in that second half, we went back to some of the stuff I did in South Carolina. I was in the shotgun for most of the time and we got back into the rhythm that I was comfortable with. We started making a comeback. The more they allowed me to throw the ball and get into my zone, the more comfortable I got. Then it became like what I was doing in college or in high school. I was just doing it at the highest level. We were able to come back and win that win. Like I said, all the media attention that came with that and all the interviews I did, all of that was a part of the work I had put in up to that point. I felt like I had worked really hard to get to that point. I felt like what I did that day, I could always do if I had the opportunity and I felt good about it. 

MB: Pretty incredible stuff there. You did spend a season in Cincinnati and then ultimately ended up with, thanks to you and Eli Manning, my favorite team, still to this day, the New York Giants. What led you to their organization in that final stage of your football career? 

AW: The Giants brought me in for a workout. I went in, they brought in probably twenty guys and I think I was the only quarterback. The way we did it was we’d go into the fieldhouse, we worked out, then we finished and went back in to get dressed. I performed so well in the workout that they pulled me and one other guy to the side and put us in a separate room. They allowed the other guys to get dressed and leave, then the GM came in and offered us a contract. He was like, ‘You know what, we want to sign you guys.’ So, they signed me and this other guy and that’s how I ended up getting on the roster. I was able to go to the workout they had for us, perform well, and they locked me and the other guy in. So, I was thankful for that and then, just so happened, you know, we ended up winning a Super Bowl with those guys that year. Listen man, I tell my son all the time, you just have to trust your story. You don’t know what’s going to happen or all the circumstances and situations that’s going to happen, but if you just do the right things and you trust your story, everything is always going to work out for you.

MB: Was it before training camp when that workout took place or had the season already started?

AW: No, I think the workout took place before the draft. So it was in the springtime. We went there, did the workout, and they signed me in March.

MB: It was well-documented that Coach Tom Coughlin was kind of on the hot seat at that point and I think he kind of had to change his coach style, just so he didn’t alienate any more of the players. Probably just to get Michael Strahan to show up for that last season of his career! What was it like to play for Coach Tom Coughlin? Discuss his standards and that day-to-day process with the ‘07-’08 Giants team.

AW: Man, I loved Coach Coughlin. I went in with this perception of Coach Coughlin that he was going to be this tough guy because of everything people would talk about, but he wasn’t really a tough guy at all. All he wanted you to do was follow his rules. He had a military mindset. He was a big military mindset type of guy and he wasn’t one of those guys that you couldn’t get along with. He would talk with you. He just wanted you to follow his rules, that’s all. I think that I just kind of felt like some of the guys wanted to push that to the edge, but at the end of the day, everybody kind of fell in line. He wanted you at the meetings five minutes early and for me, I enjoyed it. I really enjoyed playing for him. He was very knowledgeable. He was a great leader. He knew how to give direction. We knew where we were trying to get to, and hey, we got there.

MB: You're exactly right. Yeah, he had a good plan for you guys and y’all stuck to it. Being in the quarterback room there with Eli Manning, he was only a couple of years into his career and you were actually in that veteran role then. What was your connection like, both professionally and even personally with Eli at that point?

AW: Well, during that time Eli was about to be in a position where he needed to perform in order to stay. I used to just tell him the things that I knew. I remember telling him that, ‘Hey man, this is your career. This is your job. If there is something you don’t like about a game plan or a play, then you need to voice your opinion because at the end of the day, it’s your ass that’s on the line. So, you’ve gotta make sure that, if you’re going to go out, you better go out swinging. You better go out your way.’ Those were some of the things that I was telling him. Hey, we were up and down a lot that year, but he ended up winning the Super Bowl. We got hot there for a second and once we got rolling, nobody could beat us. I was just kind of helping him keep his mind straight, keep his emotions in check, and realize what the endgame was. 

MB: During that time there was obviously a lot of pressure on him. He has always been known as “easy Eli” and someone who maintained his composure. Was that true throughout the week, amid that New York media craziness? 

AW: Yes. Eli has always remained Eli, man. He’d try to keep his composure. Like I said, we would have conversations as quarterbacks at our lockers and stuff, but he was one of those guys where he was hard to read sometimes. He always kept the same expressions on his face. It would be hard for the media to read it but we would have our own conversations on certain things, just trying to keep him emotionally intact so that he didn’t get himself rattled while everything was coming at him.

MB: Earlier you spoke about practicing against some pretty solid defenses. This continued on with the Giants that year with that epic defensive line. You had Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck, and Osi Umenyiora. What was that experience like going against them throughout the week that season?

AW: Well, I mean, they were disruptive. They were disruptive, but I will say this about them, they knew how to practice. I played with some guys that went one hundred miles per hour all the time and didn’t know how to change gears. Those guys were veteran guys that knew how to practice and made sure they did their assignments. I think that was the key for us to win. Everybody played their position and everybody played their positions well.

MB: Getting a spot in the playoffs, the team pushed through the first two rounds and you eventually found yourselves there in one of the coldest games in NFL history. In Green Bay, against the Packers for the NFC championship, you had a front row seat for that. Watching it all happen live, what are your memories from that postseason run? 

AW: Man, the run was unbelievable! You know, we went to Tampa and beat Tampa. Then we ended up going to Dallas and beat Dallas. Dallas had already beaten us a couple of times that year. Going to Green Bay, man, when we went to Green Bay, that had to be the coldest I had ever been in my life. My wrists were frozen, my toes were frozen, ankles frozen, everything was frozen. I just remember thinking to myself, boy, I sure hope Eli doesn’t get hurt! (laughs) Standing on the sideline the entire game, you can’t feel anything and I’ll be honest, I tell people this all the time, that’s when Eli really gained my respect because he played really well that game. I was standing on the sideline and couldn’t feel anything and Eli was actually out there throwing the ball, playing the game of football. It was impressive to see. When we won that game, again, it was a surreal moment. I couldn’t believe- like, growing up as a kid, watching the Super Bowl on television and seeing all these things concerning the Super Bowl and now here I am about to be a part of that. It was a surreal moment. A kid from Vanceboro, North Carolina, with a population of less than one thousand people and here I am about to be in the biggest show in the world. It was a surreal situation, I can’t even lie.

MB: When you get there to Glendale, Arizona, and going into that Super Bowl week, talk about the media hoopla, the lights and cameras and what those days, leading up to the actual game, were like?

AW: To be honest with you, they kind of kept us away from a lot of that stuff. We had our media time and day where we had to do that stuff, but for the most part, they tried to keep it like a regular week. We didn’t really go out a lot. We didn’t get a chance to be out in the scene and all that. You know, I felt like once we got through all the media stuff, as far as the assigned stuff for the media, it was like a normal week. We stayed in our hotel for the most part and nobody ever really went outside of that. We didn’t really get to “enjoy” the Super Bowl until after it was played. After it was won and we played it, that was our first time really getting out and enjoying it. 

MB: Just being able to hold that Super Bowl trophy, you went from playing one of the coldest games in NFL history, a couple of weeks earlier, to then witnessing one of the best Super Bowls in NFL history. Talk about being there to experience it all.

AW: The only word I can say is ‘surreal.’ This is a culmination of all the work that you put in since I was with the [Vanceboro] Bandits. To go from there to actually playing on the biggest stage, and then winning it, it’s surreal, man. I would have never imagined in a million years that that would have happened, but like I said, as you’re playing and you’re doing what you do, it just comes along with the territory and things just happened to work out for me to where I was able to be a part of it.

MB: After that special season, what was the timeline from then to when you ultimately decided to wind things down in your football career? 

AW: I did one year after that when I was on injured reserve. That was my last season. I ended up getting hurt in a preseason game.

MB: Was it that injury that led to that decision to turn the page and move on to your post-NFL life?

AW: Yes it is, actually. I had a bulging disc in my C6-C7. That particular hit that I took on that particular down wasn’t even like a super hard hit. The guy just kind of shoved me in the back and my head snapped back and compressed the disc. The disc hit my nerves and once that happened I was like, yeah, I’ve had a nice run. I didn’t want to play around with that because I couldn’t feel my hand on my left side. That was it for me.

MB: Talk about what that adjustment was like, having played the sport since you were a kid, how was the transition into those post-football years?

AW: Well, you miss the camaraderie of the teammates. You miss playing a game. You miss being in the spotlight and playing on the field and all those things. You miss that, but you do realize at some point it’s going to come to an end. For me, I was able to adjust easily because I was a realist. I had that realization where I knew I wasn’t going to play forever. Once I stopped playing ball I just focused on my children. That became the number one thing for me, at that point. My son graduates in May, leaves in June, and so now I have the opportunity to focus back on myself.

MB: You were able to learn so many things from all the ups and downs that come with a football career. How were you able to take some of those things into your life, whether it’s personally or professionally?

AW: Well, I was saying something about this the other day. Memories are reminders. So, for me, the memories of me playing football is a reminder of what I can do when I put my mind to it and when I focus on it. I’m able to use those experiences when I need them, if I ever get in difficult situations or anything like that, I’m always able to remember some of the things that I did and allow those memories to get me past any struggles that I may have now. 

MB: Watching your son develop into his own youth football days to now getting through high school and entering the college level. What were some of the key things you wanted to instill in him on and off the field?

AW: I just wanted to teach him work ethic because I know there are certain rules when it comes to work ethic. If you put the work in, the results are going to come. So, I wanted to instill that in him early. Not only just from a sports standpoint, but just in life in general. That was my key, to show him what it’s like to work, instill that in him, and then let him grow into it. While he was young, I had him doing ladders. I had him doing hurdles. I had him doing a lot of athletic stuff just so he could learn his body. I was saying to him, ‘At the end of the day, you’re going to get bigger. You’re going to get stronger. You’ll become a man. As you become a man, you’re going to grow into this skillset. So, as he began to get older, he began to get bigger, stronger, faster, and he grew into his skillset. That was my goal for him. He’s at a point now where he’s taking control of himself and he knows how to go to the gym on his own. He knows how to do the stretching on his own. He knows how to go throw on his own. He does all the stuff on his own now, which is what I wanted to teach him.

MB: Your relationship with football, aside from helping develop your son and watching him grow, just you on a fall Saturday or Sunday, are you really into it as a fan nowadays?

AW: Absolutely, I am! It can be difficult at times because you can get into the analyzation thing. That’s probably one of the most difficult things with my son when he watches football with me. We may stop a game midway and I might rewind it and ask him questions or I may get up there and show him why this worked or why this didn’t work. So, you get into that architectural part of the game, where I’m breaking the game down and showing him this is what they should have done or what could have happened. It’s just teaching him the game from my perspective so that he can understand it when it’s his turn.

MB: Overcoming something like a big injury, which you faced there in college-

AW: A total knee reconstruction.

MB: Being able to simply walk again, much less play and go to the next level beyond college, what were some of the things you took away from that experience that must have affected you mentally, as well? 

AW: That’s one of the things about growing up in Vanceboro. I grew up in Vanceboro. My parents taught me hard work. They taught me what it meant to work hard. They taught me what it meant to fight through situations that were tough. So, I didn’t know any other way. All I knew was I was going to have that reconstruction and I was going to get back out on the field. I didn’t think about anything else. I didn’t think that my career was going to be over. I didn’t think that I wasn’t going to walk straight again. I just knew that I tore my knee up, I’m going to get a reconstruction, and I’m going to get back out there. That’s all I knew. It’s funny because I- probably about ten or fifteen years ago, I went and got my knee checked out by a doctor and he came back in the room and he told me that if he didn’t know me, he would’ve thought I was seventy-years-old looking at the x-ray. (laughs) That was like fifteen years ago, or so. At the end of the day, all I knew was go. All I knew was go out and get it done. So, my parents instilled that in me and so there was never a second thought when I got hurt.

MB: Like you said, it all comes back to Vanceboro.

AW: Absolutely!