Pettway has now admitted to liking the receiver position more than the quarterback position, and during his senior season, he’ll have the opportunity to help Pate make a name for himself. “It may sound crazy, but that was bigger than football and the NFL to me. “Growing up I loved basketball and had dreams of going to the NBA,” Pettway said. Pettway went on to get great playing time during his sophomore year, before eventually becoming a full-time starter during his junior season where he went on to become the second leading receiver in Thompson football history. “That’s when I fell in love with playing football.” “Coach (Mark) Freeman persuaded me to give football another try,” Pettway said. There was some hesitation from Pettway, however, who thought seriously about quitting football altogether after his eighth grade year so he could focus on basketball. “Now that I’m at receiver, we still have that close connection.”

Even when we were battling for the job, we were always like brothers,” Pettway said. During seventh and eighth grade, the competition continued with each playing a season as the quarterback, but eventually the decision was made for Pate to be the guy there moving forward, while Pettway moved to receiver. That’s what’s helped us be great.”Įventually the competition came to a head in middle school when one would have to eventually emerge as the starting quarterback. He’s a great guy and we’ve taught each other things and have built on each of the lessons.

“We are really big competitors and like to compete,” Pate said. The two didn’t play against each other very often, but the competition was there regardless. “He was the Red team’s quarterback and I was the Black team’s quarterback.”

“Third grade through basically middle school, we both played quarterback,” Pettway recalled. The connection between the two, however, goes back much further than that to when each was playing youth football.īoth started playing the sport around the kindergarten-first grade time frame after their parents signed them up, but it was third grade where they really got there first glimpse at each other. When they do step on the field together this season, Pettway will return as the team’s leading receiver having posted 1,208 yards and 17 touchdowns last season, while Pate will step into his first season as a starter at quarterback.

Black Minded by Michael Sawyer