Athlete Spotlight: Sam Whitty
October 15, 2017
Senior Sam Whitty led the varsity football team to victory against one of our biggest rivals: Lake Brantley. His catch allowed the team to maintain their winning streak, making them a competitor for the district title.
Q: (Jose) How’d it feel to catch the game winning touchdown against Brantley?
A: (Sam) Honestly, a lot of emotions ran through my head. I was proud of myself as soon as it happened and glad I could pull it off for the team because I love those boys. Overall, it was a great game for us.
Q: What does it mean to have Brandon Brown as your quarterback?
A: First off, Brandon is amazing. If anyone else threw that ball, it wouldn’t have been as good because he threw it right there-perfect. I’m glad to have him as our quarterback.
Q: What does this win mean for the team moving forward?
A: This win makes us undefeated in districts, which is a huge step towards making the playoffs. We beat University, which means we just have to wait and see how the Seminole game goes. If we win, we go to districts.
Q: What would a 9-1 season mean for you guys?
A: A 9-1 season? Wow, that would be amazing. However, we still have a lot to accomplish. That was our goal from the beginning though, to bring Ramnation back. If we make the playoffs, I will go nuts. It would be so big for the team because we haven’t been since freshman year and it would mean a lot to the seniors.
Q: What does it mean to you to see Ramnation supporting the team at games?
A: The Ramnation [support] is amazing. Honestly, it’s not the same without the fans- they make it fun and its not as live without them. I love each and every person at the games, especially the way they support us. The crowd at the Brantley game was amazing and they basically gave us a home-field advantage.
Q: What does it mean to have Coach Perry as a coach, pushing you everyday to get better?
A: Coach Perry is an amazing coach. He gets under my skin at times, but that’s how all good coaches are. He’s helped me get to where I am today as a player.
Q: This is the best offensive line Lake Mary has had in a long time. What does that mean for the offense?
A: Obviously, without a great offensive line, Brandon can’t throw the ball which means we can’t run the ball. Having a great offensive line makes us a threat against whatever team we play against.
Whitty encouarages Ramntion to continue supporting the varsity boys as they advance in the district football league.
discipline is the key when Coach Perry wants us to get better every time on the field or off the field during summer we had to do a lot of conditioning work out and we had to do a lot of running and sprinting and so on if I was Coach Perry I would push them harder and make them do better.
It’s not about how hard you push, it’s about how sharp you are in coaching. Sure, conditioning is fundamental without question and that always needs to be maximized. But, I think there was a subtle message in there from this interview.
Player relationships and development yield best results! Whitty was a huge receiver and always came up big when they threw it to him. I used to sit among many in the stands and just be bewildered at how little they threw the ball to such a size advantaged receiver. This is a great article and for those who never saw this game, the incredible 2 touchdown throws and catches at the end puts the exclamation point on my sentiment. I would have tapped into that much more! Absolutely one of the best high school last minute wins I have seen in a long time.